In the unusual case of Albert Edward Rodrigues v Associacao Portuguesa de Socorrous Mutuos (in liquidation) (HCMP 1391/2014), the Hong Kong Court of First Instance ordered a permanent stay of a company’s creditors’ voluntary winding up which has technically been going for 25 years, and in so doing reminded us of the applicable principles and the fact sensitive nature of such applications.
Background
A SUMMARY OF MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS IN KEY AREAS GENERAL COUNSEL UPDATE 27 February 2014 LEGAL GUIDE EDITION 37
With inflationary pressures and battered supply chains plaguing business, the debate has resumed over how long struggling firms can put off restructuring
With governments winding down Covid-19 support, supply chains buckling under multiple disruptions, growth stalling and high inflation taking hold, it is unsurprising that businesses are feeling the pressure at 2022's halfway mark. The worsening climate recently prompted JPMorgan Chase chief executive Jamie Dimon to warn investors of an incoming economic "hurricane".
The government is planning to make significant changes to the UK’s pensions notifiable events regime. The changes are designed to ensure the Pensions Regulator is given advanced notice of material corporate transactions and financing arrangements which may impact a defined benefit (DB) pension scheme.
The Court of Appeal has struck out Quincecare duty and dishonest assistance claims brought by the liquidators of a company operating a Ponzi scheme against a correspondent bank that operated various accounts for the company.
When the Hong Kong Court recognises offshore soft-touch provisional liquidation, will there be an automatic stay of proceedings in Hong Kong?
Recently, in Re FDG Electric Vehicles Limited [2020] HKCFI 2931, the Companies Court answered “no”. In doing so, the Court revisited the wording of the standard-form recognition order.
Soft-touch provisional liquidations
The Australian Federal Government has announced the temporary amendments to insolvency and corporations laws will be extended until 31 December 2020 in light of the continuing challenges of COVID-19.
In brief
The new , currently expected to be enacted in mid-June 2020, is likely significantly to impact many supplies of goods and services to companies that are or may be in financial distress. However, the effects are sufficiently far-reaching that they could impact the balance of rights in all supply chains and particularly the drafting of supply contracts, with an impact on both suppliers and their customers or clients.
The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (“BEIS”) over the weekend announced a number of proposed changes to UK insolvency law in response to the COVID-19 crisis.
The Court of First Instance has recently helpfully summarised the legal position on schemes of arrangement under both Hong Kong law and English law. Notably, it has called for further development in cross-border coordination in order to avoid the trouble of parallel insolvency proceedings and it has raised a red flag in relation to detailed disclosure of restructuring costs: Da Yu Financial Holdings Limited [2019] HKCFI 2531.