The Companies Act 2006 (Strategic Report and Directors' Report) Regulations 2013 (Regulations) to amend the structure of UK annual reports have been published and laid before Parliament.
The recent Australian Federal Court case of Neeat Holdings (in liq) [2013] FCA 61 considered the issue of whether the liquidator of a trustee company should be permitted to sell trust assets notwithstanding the appointment of a new trustee in substitution for the insolvent trustee company.
There is a plethora of Australian legislation which sheets home personal liability to directors and officers.
Below are some reminders of traps for directors and officers for transactions that might be undertaken in the usual course of a director or officer’s normal arrangements.
Trap 1: Super re-contribution
Some advisors propose, as a strategy for limiting superannuation death benefits tax, withdrawing superannuation balances and re-contributing that amount into super as a non-concessional tax-free contribution.
Introduction
In the hire industry, it is common for hirers to incur significant exposure on customer accounts where credit is extended in circumstances where security is not provided. In a difficult economic climate, ensuring your customers promptly pay for hired goods, or pay at all, can be challenging.
A recent analysis[1] has found that:
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) and institutional bodies have published the following guidance in relation to corporate governance and directors' remuneration in the last few months.
The PPSA (Personal Property Securities Act) will celebrate its first birthday on 30 January 2013.
The PPSA introduced fundamental changes for business structuring arrangements. Assets that are subject to non-arms’ length lease or hire arrangements can be at risk if the entity that has possession of the property under the lease or hire agreement is placed in liquidation or receivership.
What is a PPS lease?
A ‘PPS lease’ is the lease or hire of property for a period (including options):
Merger control rules are still fully applicable in times of crisis. Any transactions that (i) lead to a change of control over a business or a part of a business on a lasting basis; and (ii) trigger the jurisdictional thresholds in the EU or a Member State’s merger control regulations, are still considered “reportable transactions” that require prior clearance.
Introduction
The immediate focus for Britain’s authorities when dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic has been, quite rightly, to secure the best possible health outcome for the greatest number of people.
Subsequently, following a wave of concern regarding the best way of maintaining the financial status-quo for (i) businesses, (ii) employees, and (iii) individuals, the UK government announced an unprecedented series of assistance programmes, designed to counter the impact of previously unknown, and unquantifiable, distress.
Introduction
Clearly there are some major economic challenges ahead.
Many businesses may be able to withstand the challenges ahead but it may very well be that their trading counterparties (whether suppliers, customers or other stakeholders) will not. Whilst these times can represent an opportunity for some, such as potential acquirers (whether of businesses, assets or distressed debt), in most cases, the climate represents a threat to businesses.
This briefing looks at the potential impact of the coronavirus COVID-19 on businesses and examines steps that can be taken by stakeholders and directors to recognise, manage and mitigate the risks. In particular, we look at: the potential impact on businesses; managing insolvency risk; considerations for directors; and considerations for lenders.
Global outlook for the coronavirus situation