The German Federal Court of Justice (BGH) in its ruling of 12 January 2023 (IX ZR 71/22) clarifies the requirements for proving an 'intent to disadvantage creditors' that it established in its landmark ruling of 6 May 2021.
Background
When a debtor receives a bankruptcy discharge, section 524(a) of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code prohibits a creditor from seeking to collect a prepetition debt against the discharged debtor or its property. Importantly, the discharge does not extinguish the debt—it merely limits recourse against the discharged debtor. Section 524(e), however, provides that the discharge does not affect the liability of non-debtors for the discharged debt.
While media attention of the COVID-19 pandemic has focused on commercial tenants, many commercial landlords are also experiencing distress as a result of missed rent payments. There are a few general concepts that are helpful to understand as a tenant in the event your landlord files bankruptcy.
In the recent decision of Atlantic Sea Cucumber Ltd (Re), 2023 NSSC 231 the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia in Bankruptcy and Insolvency (the “Court”) departed from the long-standing norm in insolvency proceedings of granting an abridgement of time for filing and service of applications. The debtor company, Atlantic Sea Cucumber Ltd.
When debt restructuring discussions are at an impasse and the reservoir of goodwill between the parties has run dry, stakeholders face difficult choices. For a lender, one of the most powerful tools available is the exercise of rights under a voting proxy given by a parent holding company in connection with a pledge of a borrower’s stock or membership interests. Through the exercise of proxy rights, lenders may replace a borrower’s board of directors with a new board made up of independent directors.
On July 25, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued an important opinion protecting the rights of stalking horse bidders in Section 363 sales. In the Matter of Bouchard Transportation Company, Inc. involved one of the largest petroleum shipping companies in the United States. Bouchard sought to sell a large portion of its assets, consisting of certain vessels, through a Bankruptcy Court approved auction. In anticipation of the auction, Bouchard sought, and the Bankruptcy Court entered a bidding procedures order.
Re Gatecoin Limited (Gatecoin) is a landmark decision concerning the winding-up of a cryptocurrency exchange.
Background
Liquidators secured over 50 types of cryptocurrencies with an aggregate value of over HK$140m. To aid the liquidator’s allocation of the seized cryptocurrencies, the Court of First Instance decided two key issues.
Decision
The court held that:
The Irish High Court has determined that the liquidation of an Irish aircraft leasing company, which was a 100% subsidiary of a Russian company expressly subject to EU sanctions, rebuts the presumption that the company was controlled by the Russian parent for the purpose of EU sanctions.
This enables the liquidators to deal with the assets without costly and time-consuming derogation applications.
Background
The Insolvency (Cross Border Insolvencies) Regulations 2014 (“the ICBIR”) provides an effective mechanism for dealing with cases of cross-border insolvency. It gives effect to the provisions of the UNICITRAL Model Law and also the EC Insolvency Regulations, which Gibraltar continues to apply in full even post Brexit.
This case concerned the immunity of receivers from claims, where the Court had approved the sale of assets over which they were appointed.
Background
Following a dispute between two shareholders of Blackpool Football Club Limited (BFCL), receivers were appointed by the court over certain assets related to Blackpool Football Club, including the shares held by the majority shareholder in BCFL, Denaxe Limited (Denaxe).
During the marketing process, the receivers concluded the best way forward was to sell the assets as one complete package.