Introduction
On 5 October 2022, the UK Supreme Court delivered its long-awaited judgment in BTI 2014 LLC v. Sequana SA and others [2022] UKSC 25 ("Sequana Case") which concerns the question of the trigger point when directors must have regard to the interests of creditors ("Creditor Duty"). This case raised questions of considerable importance for Malaysian company law.
１ 東京地裁「倒産部」に（2022年4月
東京地裁では、2022年3月まで、長年にわたり、破産・民事 再生は民事20部（破産再生部）、会社２ ビジネス・コート（2022年10月）更生は民事8部（商事 部）によって事件処理がなされてきましたが、同年 4月より、会 社更生、特別清算及び外国倒産処理手続承認援助事件等 が民事8部から民事20部に移管され、民事20部の名称も「破 産再生部」から「倒産部」に変更1 されました2。
民事再生と会社更生はともに再建型の倒産手続であり、手 続が類似しているところもあることから、会社更生が民事20部 に移管されたことに伴い、従前の会社更生の実務運用が変わ ることも考えられるものの、民事20部としては、当面は民事8部 の運用を承継しつつ、破産・再生事件の運用状況も踏まえ て、利用者が利用しやすい、公正・適正性を担保した円滑な 手続運用を継続的に検討していく3 、とされていることから、当 面は運用が大きく変わることはないと思われます。
The Law on the Temporary Adaption of Restructuring and Insolvency Law Provisions to Mitigate the Consequences of the Crisis (SanInsKG) was published in the German Federal Gazette (Bundesanzeiger) today (8 November 2022) and will become effective in German law tomorrow (9 November 2022), following a very quick legislative process.
Purpose of the SanInsKG
SanInsKG is intended to address the difficulty of companies assessing their solvency in the current economic climate.
The Supreme Court recently considered the existence of the “creditor duty” and when this duty arises in the case of BTI v Sequana. The creditor duty is the duty for company directors to consider the interests of the company’s creditors when the company becomes insolvent or is at real risk of insolvency.
An insolvent estate is where someone dies and there is not enough money in their estate to pay off their debts. Essentially, it’s where the liabilities exceed the assets.
If an estate is insolvent, the beneficiaries under the Deceased’s Will, or anyone entitled under the intestacy rules, will not receive anything because the estate’s creditors will need to be paid off. This includes any gifts of value, such as jewellery, as these should be sold to help meet any liabilities that are due.
In brief
The UK Supreme Court has handed down its long-awaited judgment in relation to the case of BTI 2014 LLC (Appellant) v. Sequana SA and others (Respondents) [2022] UKSC 25, concerning the duty of directors of a company registered under the Companies Act 2006 to consider (and act in accordance with) the interests of the company’s creditors.
Contents
On 12 January 2019, the Italian Government enacted Legislative Decree No. 14 (so called "business crisis and insolvency code (codice della crisi d’impresa e dell’insolvenza)", which entered into force on 15 July 2022 (the "Insolvency Code").
The Insolvency Code provides for, inter alia, the following:
Chief Justice Hammerschlag, sitting in the New South Wales Supreme Court (the Court), has delivered a judgement of importance to secured creditor and insolvency practitioners alike in Volkswagen Financial Services Australia Pty Ltd v Atlas CTL Pty Ltd (Recs and Mngrs Apptd) (In liq) [2022] NSWSC 573 (Atlas).
After much anticipation, the UK Supreme Court has handed down its judgment in BTI 2014 LLC v Sequana S.A. [2022] UKSC 25 - and has authoritatively set the baseline for how directors’ duties evolve as regards shareholders and creditors’ interests when a company is in the zone of insolvency.
Background
In an important decision for U.S. companies with UK subsidiaries, the UK Supreme Court recently handed down its long-awaited judgment in BTI 2014 LLC v. Sequana S.A., the first case in which the UK's highest court considered the duties of directors of UK companies to company creditors.
The Ruling