The recent company insolvency statistics for Q1 2022 show the number of company insolvencies is continuing to increase. The figures show creditors’ voluntary liquidations as being the most common procedure followed by compulsory liquidations – the number of which is more than twice as high as in the previous quarter, although still below pre-pandemic levels.
The High Court has allowed an application for an order to enable access to a bankrupt’s pension to satisfy debts arising from fraud. Prior to the bankruptcy, judgment was obtained against him for £3.2m plus costs.
An analysis of the UK’s corporate rescue tools: The Company Voluntary Arrangement, the Scheme of Arrangement and the Restructuring Plan.
When it comes to options for the rescue of a distressed UK corporate, there had for a very long time been a growing mood of regret amongst practitioners that there was no comprehensive restructuring tool. That all changed with the introduction of the Restructuring Plan (RP).
But, as with all things new, the evitable question is: what happens to the old?
A director has been found liable in the High Court for fraudulent trading as a result of failing to carry out proper due diligence in a series of transactions which were found to be part of a VAT fraud scheme.
The claim was brought against the director by the Liquidator of JD Group Limited (the “Company”).
Background
Over recent months we have seen numerous references in the press to investigations into Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) fraud. A year ago the National Audit Office estimated that around 11% of the loans granted (some £4.9bn) were procured fraudulently. More recent official estimates suggest the figure is between £3.3bn and £5bn.
Needless to say attempting to recover these funds is a enormous task. The National Crime Agency is investigating some of the biggest cases, but equally banks and HMRC are actively seeking to identify fraud and recover the loans.
In the first of our short videos in relation to business recovery and resilience, John Alderton (Partner in our Restructuring & Insolvency team), responds to the question:
‘There hasn’t been a wave of insolvencies, is business stress still there or are we through the worst of it?’
Please click here to listen to John’s answer.
The shackles preventing stakeholders from putting pressure on companies will soon be firmly off as winding up petition protections and rental support end, warn Matthew Padian and Lucy Trott.
Those of us who dabble in the insolvency world keep a keen lookout for the Insolvency Service’s insolvency statistics whenever they appear.
A recently published case has shone a new light on the well-known fact of English company law – that a company has its own legal personality and is therefore separate and distinct from its members and directors.
Thus, a company shields its members and directors from most liabilities. For directors, this protective veil is pierced in certain limited circumstances such as those set out below.
As we enter a new era of ‘living with Covid’, new financial woes accompany new freedoms for many. Inflation is now at a 30-year high, with income failing to keep pace with the cost of living and interest rates rising twice in the last 4 months. A number of retailers, including Next, B&M and Greggs, have warned that soaring costs cannot be fully absorbed and will lead to price rises for consumers in 2022.
So, what is going on for retailers post-pandemic? And what steps can smaller, boutique brands take to mitigate the risks to their businesses going forward?
ANNUAL CASE REVIEW 2021 serlecourt RAISING THE BAR IN CHANCERY & COMMERCIAL “Stacked with highly experienced silks and juniors, Serle Court has long been one of the leading sets when it comes to civil fraud disputes” Legal 500 serlecourt 02 Welcome to Serle Court’s Annual Review of 2021. In the second year of the pandemic, barristers at Serle Court have continued to appear, often remotely, in courts at all levels around the world, in cases across our wide field of commercial chancery law.