The voidable transaction regime under Part 5.7B of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (the Act) provides a framework for liquidators to pursue recovery action against parties who have received property or some form of benefit from an insolvent company.  In turn, the mechanisms and processes under the regime often provide uncertainty in commercial dealings and other transactions of a company and provides a further layer of anxiety when navigating through cashflow problems.

一、问题的提出

破产程序中票据债权的处理具有特殊性和复杂性。现行破产法和票据法并未对票据债权给出明确定义，破产法对出票人破产情形下承担继续付款/承兑责任的付款人享有债权申报权的规定与典型的票据债权有所区别，且无法覆盖票据债权的全貌，无法解决实务中层出不穷的理论和实际问题。在无法准确界定票据债权及其表现形式、解决票据债权在破产程序中涉及的理论问题的情况下，管理人在票据债权的确认、登记、提请法院裁定确认和执行分配各环节都将遭遇实务困境，并可能引发管理人履职风险。有鉴于此，笔者基于在某大型民营集团及其下属财务公司破产程序中的有关经验，尝试对票据债权的法律界定、在破产程序中的表现形式、典型理论问题进行论述，并提出相应实务解决方案。

二、票据债权的法律界定及其在破产程序中的表现形式

U.K. TURNAROUND AND RESTRUCTURING UPDATE APRIL 2024 OUR OUTLOOK It would be safe to say that 2024 has begun at a ferocious pace for our Turnaround and Restructuring team, reflecting the many challenges and disruptive headwinds that businesses are facing into. Following the recessionary environment witnessed in the second half of 2023, the reported modest return to growth in January has not masked the disruption that we see in the market, irrespective of industry or sub-sector. Our current engagements span from online retail to shipping, financial services, and aerospace.

Section 90-15(1) of the Insolvency Practice Schedule (Corporations) (Cth) (IPSC) provides that the court may make such orders as it thinks fit in relation to the external administration of a company. It’s well recognised the broad power under that section extends to the making of judicial directions on the application of insolvency practitioners under section 90-20(1)(d) of the IPSC.

When to seek a judicial direction

A creditors' scheme of arrangement ("Scheme") can be a powerful restructuring tool implemented to achieve a variety of outcomes for a business, ranging from deleveraging or a debt-to-equity conversion to a merger and/or issue of new debt/equity instruments. When managed appropriately, a Scheme can reshape a business' debt and equity profile, setting it up for an improved go-forward operating platform. Below we set out an outline of the Scheme process in Australia and consider some key features that are unique to Australian schemes.

Reid-Roberts & Anor v Mei-Lin & Anor (Re Audun Mar Gudmundsson (a Bankrupt) [2024] EWHC 759 (Ch) was an unusual case resulting in an unusual application of the exceptional circumstances rule in the context of an application by the joint trustees in bankruptcy of Audun Mar Gudmundson for declarations as to the beneficial ownership of his and his ex-wife’s former matrimonial home and orders under s 335A Insolvency Act 1986 for possession and sale.

The European Commission has published a new proposal for a Directive that would harmonise certain aspects of insolvency law across the EU. This proposal, following the enactment of Directive (EU) 2019/1023, illustrates a strong desire to facilitate the free movement of capital within Europe. A significant part of the proposed Directive is designed to make laws governing avoidance actions uniform across the EU.

In the recent decision of the Anjani Kumar Prashar (Suspended Director of Grandstar Realty Pvt. Limited) v. Manab Dutta1, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (“NCLAT”) has held that the auction purchaser would also be a financial creditor vis‐à‐vis the creditors of the entity whose assets were purchased by the auction purchaser.

Is it possible for a debtor company to issue debt (such as bonds) and contractually agree for that debt to rank lower in priority than debts owed by a company to other unsecured creditors? This article examines the commercial uses of subordinated debt agreements, and considers how courts in the offshore jurisdictions of the British Virgin Islands, the Cayman Islands and Bermuda would treat a subordinated debt agreement in a winding-up.

Several significant judicial decisions and legislative updates occurred in 2023 that are relevant to commercial lenders, businesses and restructuring professionals. This bulletin summarizes the key developments of 2023 and highlights areas of significance to be aware of in 2024.

1. Priority Scheme

In 2023, several cases and legislative updates raised important questions regarding the priority scheme in insolvency proceedings.

Environmental Priorities