These case summaries first appeared in LexisNexis’ Insolvency Case Alerter. They represent some of the more interesting insolvency decisions to have been published recently.

This summary covers:

The Covid-19 pandemic has been with us now for over 12 months. At the time of writing, we are part way through the third national lockdown. The Government has indicated that schools should start reopening on 8 March 2021, but there is no indication of when non-essential retail will reopen or when the directive to work from home ‘where possible’ will be eased.

At the end of last year judgment was handed down by Pat Treacy J in a matter notable for the unusual attitudes of a director towards the company’s director’s loan account. By the time the company entered into administration, the loan account was overdrawn to the tune of £1.35m, with the director having withdrawn funds to (amongst other things) finance the purchase and maintenance of a personal yacht.

In measures that came into effect from 1 December 2020, the Finance Act 2020 dictates that for certain debts, HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) will now rank much further up the chain of creditors when a company enters administration or liquidation. This is a radical change to a process that had previously ranked HMRC as an unsecured creditor for nearly 20 years.

What was the old system?

Throughout the current pandemic, there have been remedies available to commercial landlords in relation to unpaid rent arrears and other tenant breaches - though the introduction of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 had a significant impact on

In light of a number of recent High Court decisions, Andy Creer considers the approach of the Court when considering an application for a speedy trial.

With the news that the Arcadia Group has entered administration, suppliers of goods and services are left with a number of questions: what happens next, and can they still get paid? The answers to such issues have recently been drastically altered by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act (CIGA) 2020. Its impact is discussed in the eight key points considered below.

What would happen in ‘normal’ circumstances? A manageable problem

This note considers the way in which the practice directions governing insolvency proceedings have evolved during 2020.

Following yesterday’s announcement that a number of the temporary measures brought in by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act (CIGA) to ease pressures on companies most at risk of insolvency during the ongoing Covid-19 crisis are to be extended, we look here at some of the key questions arising under CIGA in the context of the commercial landlord and tenant relationship.

The English Supreme Court has handed down its long-awaited judgment in Sevilleja v Marex Financial Ltd. The key issue the case has dealt with is the scope of the reflective loss principle in English law. This might not mean much to the average person, but the decision is potentially ground-breaking for creditors of companies seeking justice. This short article explains why.

The reflective loss principle