The Government has now announced its intention to proceed with the introduction of a bill to establish a farm debt mediation scheme, based in many respects on comparable New South Wales legislation. It is important for secured lenders to farming enterprises to consider in advance the implications of the bill and the necessary changes to product design, documentation, client relationship management and enforcement processes which may be required.

The scheme is intended to provide for fair, equitable and timely resolution of farm debt issues with two key objectives:

The New Zealand and UK Arbitration Acts generally require court proceedings to be stayed if the parties have agreed to resolve disputes through arbitration.

In a recent address to the Insolvency Lawyers Association, the new Chancellor of the High Court, Sir Geoffrey Vos, discussed briefly the effect of that statutory stay upon winding-up petitions.

The English High Court in Telnic Ltd v Knipp Medien Und Kommunikation GmbH [2020] EWHC 2075 (Ch) has confirmed that the court has discretion to restrain a winding-up petition against debtor's when the debt is governed by an arbitration agreement.

Knipp Medien Und Kommunikation GmbH (Knipp) appealed against an order to stay its winding-up petition against Telnic Limited (Telnic). Telnic also brought a cross-appeal seeking orders that Knipp's petition be dismissed rather than stayed.

A Singaporean Court in Anan Group (Singapore) PTE Ltd v VTB Bank (Public Joint Stock Company) [2020] SGCA 33 has recently confirmed the Court’s approach in assessing arbitration clauses when an application has been brought to put a company into liquidation. 

The parties in this case are parties to an arbitration agreement.  The respondent applied to put the appellant into liquidation.  The Court considered that the winding up proceeding should be stayed with the underlying dispute to be resolved through arbitration.

Since China opened its doors to foreign investors around forty years ago, it has been a top recipient for international direct investments. Despite the gradual slowdown of the country’s overall economic growth, foreign interest in China continues to be strong. After a slight decline in 2016, foreign direct investment increased again by 3% to US$134.97 billion in 2018.

A Guide to Doing BUSINESS IN HONG KONG Contents Introduction Hong Kong at a Glance 1 Political System 1 Legal System 1 Economic System 1 Investment Incentives 1 Financial System 1 International Relationships 1 Relationship with the PRC 2 Belt and Road Initiative 2 General Data Protection Regulation 2 Business Vehicles Types of Business Vehicle 5 Business Registration 5 Special Types of Business 5 Hong Kong Companies 5 Incorporation of a Private Limited Company 5 Branch Operations 7 Reasons for Choosing a Branch or Subsidiary 7 Representative Offices 8 Sole Proprietorships/General Partnershi

The Federative Republic of Brazil is the largest country in South America and the world’s fifth largest country, both by land mass (almost 8.6 million square kilometers) and population (more than 200 million people). It is the only lusophone (Portuguese-speaking) country in otherwise Spanish-speaking Latin America and the largest lusophone country in the world. Brazil is a member of the G20, and one of the BRICS countries, along with Russia, India, China and South Africa. The country’s Constitution serves as the foundation of the Brazilian legal framework and sets forth fundamental rights.

Introduction Hong Kong At a Glance Population: 7 million Languages:  English, Cantonese and Mandarin Time zones:  8 hours ahead of Greenwich Mean Time Climate: Subtropical with long, hot summers and pleasant temperate winters Political System

Arbitration and insolvency law in Dubai - is there a link?

Try to imagine a legal system without an effective insolvency law, as in Dubai. How would creditors recover their entitlements? Does it lead to more arbitration activity? Does it explain why the Dubai International Arbitration Centre had over 300 new cases last year and why arbitration is increasingly used?

Insolvency law - is it really necessary?

An adjudicator can only deal with one dispute under one contract. In Enterprise v McFadden the adjudicator could not therefore deal with a claim to a net balance arising out of mutual dealings on four separate subcontracts (one of which was not even a construction contract) under Rule 4.90 of the Insolvency Rules 1986. Tripartite adjudication is not possible so the adjudication could not cope with a cross claim which would have involved joining assignors.