From 15 February 2022, the UK Insolvency Service is granted new powers to investigate and disqualify or prosecute directors of dissolved UK companies. The Rating (Coronavirus) and Directors Disqualification (Dissolved Companies) Act (the Act) extends the Insolvency Service’s powers, on behalf of the UK Business Secretary, to deal with company directors who abuse the company dissolution process.

In the latest edition of Going concerns, Stephenson Harwood's restructuring and insolvency team touches on the extent of the automatic stay arising from the recognition of a foreign main proceeding under the Singapore Model Law cross-border recognition regime, the requirements for a pre-pack scheme of arrangement under the recent Singapore Insolvency, Restructuring and Dissolution Act 2018, and the importance of Environmental, Social and Governance ("ESG") in the restructuring context.

Contents

On 21 December 2021, the UK government launched the future of insolvency regulation consultation, proposing significant changes to insolvency regulation which it says 'has not kept pace with developments in the insolvency market.'

It is uncontroversial that:

Throughout the pandemic, a steady stream of government support was made available to prop-up businesses. As we move towards a New Normal, those support packages are being scaled-back. Many businesses are still recovering from the shock of the last 18 months and, with high levels of historic debt as an additional burden, are not yet back to full financial health.

In Re Edengate Homes (Butley Hall) Ltd (in liquidation) Lock v Stanley (in his capacity as liquidator) and another [2021] EWHC 2970 (Ch), the High Court has confirmed that to reverse a liquidator's assignment of claims to a third party, the claimant must satisfy a 'formidable' test.

Background

La CNMV ha publicado un documento con “preguntas y respuestas” que pretende servir de ayuda en la interpretación por las sociedades cotizadas del régimen de operaciones vinculadas tras la reforma introducida por la Ley 5/2021 para la incorporación de la Directiva sobre derechos de los accionistas en las sociedades cotizadas. A continuación, se incluye un resumen de los criterios interpretativos ofrecidos por el organismo supervisor.

Referencias Jurídicas CMS

Artículos de fondo

Government support during the pandemic and extremely strong credit markets saw exceptional fund raising levels in 2021, in spite of a slower Q4. Borrowers secured increasingly favourable terms from their lenders, with only a little pushback as the year progressed. Private credit continued to compete for greater market share and found interesting opportunities in smaller and more complex names. 2021 has proved to be a record year for financings and the continued availability of cheap capital, with reasonable stability and outperformance from riskier credits.

The latest edition of our bulletin, edited by our colleagues in Australia.

Welcome to the first edition of our Commodities bulletin for 2022.

In an opinion that mostly flew under the radar in 2021, Judge Christopher Sontchi from the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (the “Court”) found a private equity sponsor (the “Sponsor”)¹ liable (and, in some cases, not liable) under various contractual and tort theories in connection with actions the Sponsor took or did not take in its failed efforts to stave off a potential bankruptcy filing of its portfolio company, Allied Systems Holdings, Inc., now known as ASHINC Corporation (“Allied” or the “Company