Overview

It has been just over 6 years since the Bill for the Prescription (Scotland) Act 2018 ("the 2018 Act") received royal assent. Sections 5 and 13 of the 2018 Act came into force, perhaps earlier than most anticipated, on 1 June 2022. Since then, depending on who you speak to, you are likely to hear differing opinions on whether enough has been done to re-balance the 'defender friendly' discoverability test developed though cases such as Morrison and Gordon's Trustees.

The Pauline Action is a legal mechanism that allows creditors to apply to the Royal Court of Jersey to set aside transactions undertaken by a debtor to defraud or otherwise prejudice them.

Emirates NBD Bank PJSC v Almakhawi and Others [2024] JRC 256 is the most recent case from the Royal Court to affirm that the Pauline Action, which has its origins in Roman law, remains an effective debt recovery tool for creditors in Jersey.

Purpose of the Pauline Action

Key points

KEY TAKEAWAYS

Introducción

Este mes destacamos especialmente dos sentencias del Tribunal Supremo que aclaran dudas con respecto de dos situaciones que se dan en la práctica:

(i) el tratamiento del importe a recibir en una opción de venta firmada antes del concurso y ejecutada tras éste;

(ii) la calificación de un crédito subordinado garantizado con hipoteca.

• “While the pre-petition Debtor may have consented to waiver of the automatic stay in favor of [secured creditor], . . . other creditors did not”; and
• “The automatic stay is designed to protect both debtors and creditors alike.”

In re DJK Enterprises, LLC, Case No. 24-60126, Doc. 196, at 13 (Bankr., S.D. Ill., February 13, 2025).

In re DJK Enterprises

Parkside’s Derek J Y Chan, instructed by Tanner De Witt, acted for the successful Plaintiffs, China City Construction (International) Co., Limited (In Creditors’ Voluntary Liquidation) and Dingway Investment Limited (In Compulsory Liquidation), both acting through their liquidators, in obtaining an anti-suit injunction (“ASI”) to restrain China City Construction & Development Co., (HK) Limited from continuing proceedings (“the Beijing proceedings”) it had commenced in the People

Small business restructurings (SBR), which allow companies with less than $1 million in liabilities (other than employee entitlements) to restructure their unsecured debts, are increasing in popularity. SBRs now amount to about 25 per cent of all monthly company insolvencies, and outnumber voluntary administrations.

In this article, from knowledge gained in advising small business restructuring practitioners, and from wider industry commentary, we discuss some of the good, and not so good, aspects of the SBR regime.

The good

The case of SBP 2 S.À.R.L v 2 Southbank Tenant Limited [2025] EWHC 16 (Ch) highlights the importance of careful drafting and robust legal advice when looking to forfeit a lease.

Background

In the March 2025 edition of the Restructuring Department Bulletin, we highlight recent decisions and developments impacting the restructuring arena and share the latest news on the Paul, Weiss Restructuring Department.