In the recent decision of British Columbia Attorney General v Quinsam Coal Corporation, 2020 BCSC 640 (Quinsam), the British Columbia Supreme Court (the Court) considered the priority between a debtor’s environmental liabilities and a secured creditor. In its analysis, the Court extensively discussed the Supreme Court of Canada’s decision in Orphan Well Association v Grant Thornton Ltd, 2019 SCC 5 (Redwater). In reference to Redwater, the Court posed the following question:
Temporary provisions restricting action to wind up companies and reverse some winding up orders already made are a step closer following presentation of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill (“Bill”) to the House of Commons on 20 May. The Bill will now work its way through both Houses before imminently becoming law. The Bill includes a number of substantial corporate insolvency changes, but also temporary provisions restricting action to wind up companies in light of Covid-19, on which we focus here.
On 20 May, Parliament had its first reading of the Bill, a detailed document containing all the expected provisions applying across England, Wales and Scotland, and with separate (but substantially similar) provisions for Northern Ireland.
MPs will next consider all stages of the Bill on 3 June 2020 and it is anticipated that this will be fast-tracked to become law in July.
In In re Palladino, 942 F.3d 55 (1st Cir. 2019), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit addressed whether a debtor receives “reasonably equivalent value” in exchange for paying his adult child’s college tuition. The Palladino court answered this question in the negative, thereby contributing to the growing circuit split regarding the avoidability of debtors’ college tuition payments for their adult children as constructively fraudulent transfers.
Background
The current Coronavirus crisis is opening up opportunities for competitors as well as investors to purchase businesses in financial distress. While such businesses may be often acquired on advantageous terms, these transactions can also entail various significant legal risks.
A recent judgment of the Supreme Court of Western Australia, Dalian Huarui Heavy Industry International Company Ltd v Clyde & Co Australia [2020] WASC 132 (available here), demonstrates that the use of interim measures to provide security for an amount in dispute can be a very powerful remedy when structured through the creation of a trust.
The Australian government has taken swift action to enact new legislation that significantly changes the insolvency laws relevant to all business as a result of the ongoing developments related to COVID-19
A recent judgment rendered by the Superior Court in the judicial district of Montréal1 is in line with the current trend in rulings regarding the appointment of receivers under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (“B.I.A.”), namely the requirement that the notice of exercise of a hypothecary right referred to in the Civil Code of Quebec (“C.C.Q.”) be submitted, and the time limit specified in the notice must have expired, prior to the application to appoint a receiver.
As businesses experience diminishing revenues, falling stock prices, and other economic hardships resulting from Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), some economists project the possibility of an unprecedented number of business bankruptcies. Some of these businesses own brands, and some have entered into relationships, most commonly trademark licenses, under which they allow others to use their brands. What happens to a trademark license when a brand owner becomes insolvent, particularly in the context of a reorganization under Chapter 11?
This case update from our Property, Chancery & Commercial team looks at the issues raised in the recent cases of Dhillion v Barclays Bank, Peter Singh Sangha v Amicus Finance, O v O and Others, and Duval v 11-13 Randolph Crescent.
When will the court refuse to grant rectification of the Land Register for mistake?