This week’s TGIF considers State of Victoria v Goulburn Administration Services (In Liquidation) and Ors [2016] VSC 654, in which Special Purpose Liquidators were appointed despite a potential conflict arising from their firm having conducted compliance audits of the companies.

Background

There continues to be doubt about the validity of certain Committees of Inspection (COI) established during a liquidation and the approvals given by them. Another decision of Pritchard J in the Supreme Court of Western Australia reinforces the potential risk to liquidators relying on COI approvals in the scenario where no separate meetings of creditors and contributories (i.e. shareholders) are held to approve the establishment of a COI.

The use of pre-packs or pre-positioned asset sales in Australia has traditionally been limited. This is a result of impediments to such transactions under the Australian legislative insolvency regime.

The interplay of these impeding factors means that there are few true pre-pack transactions in Australia. However, significant reform to the Australian insolvency regime is expected to be implemented in 2017. We wrote about the main aspects of that reform in our last article, `Australian insolvency law reforms aim to increase business restructuring opportunities'

The Timbercorp Group invested in agribusiness Managed Investment Schemes on behalf of some 18,500 investors. Many investors in the schemes entered into loan agreements with Timbercorp Finance to finance their investments.[1]

Summary

The unanimous decision of the High Court on 9 November 2016 in Timbercorp Finance Pty Ltd (in liq) v Collins & Timbercorp Finance Pty Ltd (in liq) v Tomes may increase the likelihood of satellite litigation by individual group members following group proceedings.

It follows from the decision that, if group proceedings are heard, group members are only bound by the answers to common questions and the pleadings; they are not, for example, precluded from raising individual claims which were not raised in the group proceeding.

This week’s TGIF considers Re Akron Roads Pty Ltd (in liq) (No 3) in which the Court held that the liquidators had standing to seek a declaration against an insurer arising from the assignment of rights under a policy.

WHAT HAPPENED?

The previous High Court decision

Changes to Australia’s corporate insolvency laws are set to come into effect in 2017 and will result in an increase of powers for creditors in external administrations.

IN BRIEF

Two recent decisions have determined the applicability of security for payment legislation to insolvent contractors. One decided that the legislation does not apply to contractors in liquidation. The other decided that the legislation can be used by bankrupt contractors. At first glance, the decisions seem to be at odds, but on closer analysis the two decisions are not inconsistent.

Introduction

Following on from the Government’s National Innovation and Science Agenda,the Productivity Commission’s report into Business Set-Up, Transfer and Closure (‘the report’) released in December 2015 called for a number of reforms to the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (‘the Act’), that aim to reduce the stigma associated with insolvency and to assist recovery. We discuss two of these below.

‘Small liquidation’ process