In cross-border civil and commercial litigation between Hong Kong and Mainland China, parties often struggle to obtain evidence located in Mainland China.
In Re USUM Investment Group Ltd[2026] HKCFI 1320, the Hong Kong Companies Court delivered a landmark judgment concerned with “novel and important questions as to whether the court has power to recognize a restructuring approved by a foreign court and, if so, the extent of such assistance”.
Jackson Hospital has sued Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama in an Alabama bankruptcy court for $250 million. The Montgomery-area hospital claims that years of claims underpayment by the insurance giant have directly contributed to its insolvency.
In Webb and another (as liquidators of Eversholt Rail (365) Limited (in liquidation)) v Eversholt Rail Limited and another [2026] EWHC 101 (Ch), the High Court dismissed the liquidators’ appeal against a decision not to allow their extensive application for the production of documents under s.235 and s.236 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986). The application had sought to reconstitute a special purpose company’s full corporate knowledge in circumstances where it had held no documents of its own.
Introduction
This legal guide summarises the key differences between a ‘voluntary strike off’ and a ‘voluntary winding up’ under the Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 (Companies Law). Both procedures bring a company’s existence to an end, but they differ in purpose, process, timing, cost and risk. This legal guide is designed to help clients determine the most appropriate route based on their circumstances.
Voluntary strike off
Under § 547(b) of the Bankruptcy Code (emphasis added):
- “the trustee may, based on reasonable due diligence in the circumstances of the case and taking into account a party’s known or reasonably knowable affirmative defenses under subsection (c), avoid [a preferential transfer.”
Question: What amount of detail is required in a preference complaint to satisfy the above-quoted “reasonable due diligence” requirement?
Executive Summary
Introduction
Aerovias del Continente Americano SA Avianca & Ors v Versilia Solutions Ltd [2026] EWHC 282 (Ch) covers well trodden ground on the limits to the powers of a provisional liquidator and how, in certain circumstances, they can be overcome, in this case by seeking ratification of the sale of the company’s assets.