On September 2, 2020, the Fifth Circuit declined to void a fee award of nearly $2.3 million in favor of an employer that had prevailed on its trade secret theft claim against its former employee, because the employee willfully failed to comply with the bankruptcy court’s “extremely explicit” order regarding his objections to the award.
Background
InTelnic Ltd v Knipp Medien und Kommunikation GmbH [2020] EWHC 2075 (Ch), Sir Geoffrey Vos sitting in the English High Court ruled that where a debt is governed by an arbitration agreement, it is appropriate for the Court to stay or dismiss a winding up petition without investigating whether the debt is disputed in good faith and on substantial grounds.
This case provides guidance on the high threshold a creditor will have to cross in order to be able to present a winding up petition for sums due under an agreement with an arbitration clause.
I. Introduction
Complex restructurings are no stranger to colorful facts and unpredictable twists and turns. But few lead to criminal charges. Fewer still involve criminal charges against the chairman of the unsecured creditors’ committee, alleging that he abused his position to benefit himself financially.
In the recent case of Re Rhino Enterprises Properties Ltd & Anor [2020] EWHC 2370 (Ch) the court held that it was at least strongly arguable that a company voluntary arrangement (a “CVA”) was not a contract for the purpose of s.1(1) of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 (“the C(RTP)A”).
Good afternoon.
Following are our summaries of the civil decisions of the Court of Appeal for Ontario for the weeks of September 7 to 11 and September 14 to 18, 2020.
The past two weeks saw ten substantive decisions released by the Court of Appeal. Topics covered included bankruptcy & insolvency, contracts (freight), enforcement of letters of request by foreign courts, family law and insurance, as well as the usual procedural decisions relating to extensions of time and appellate jurisdiction.
Wishing everyone an enjoyable weekend.
The case of Bresco Electrical Services Ltd v Michael J Lonsdale (Electrical) Ltd (Bresco) saw the TCC and the Court of Appeal agree that insolvent referring parties should not reap the rewards of adjudication. In fact, the TCC said that a referring party facing an adjudication brought by an insolvent party could even get an injunction to restrain that referral.
The statutory provisions for Restructuring Plans form a new Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006. CIGA was brought into force on June 26, 2020 and at a hearing in the High Court in London on September 2, 2020, the plan proposed by Virgin Atlantic, which was the first to be brought before the courts, was sanctioned.
Executive Summary
In a pair of recent contrasting judgments, Re Agritrade Resources Ltd [2020] HKCFI 1967 and Re Rare Earth Magnesium Technology Group Holdings Ltd [2020] HKCFI 2260, the Hong Kong Court has once again confirmed its pragmatic approach towards applications by foreign liquidators and provisional liquidators for recognition and assistance in Hong Kong. The judgments emphasize the importance of adhering to the standard forms of order adopted by the Hong Kong courts in respect of such applications, and the need for any departure from the standard form to be fully justified.
Legal Notice 373 of 2020 The Companies Act (Suspension of Filing for Dissolution and Winding Up) Regulations (the “Regulations”) was published on the 15th of September 2020. Back in March, the Conference of European Restructuring and Insolvency Law (CERIL) published an Executive Statement highlighting the importance of countries across Europe to adapt their insolvency legislation in light of the “current extraordinary economic situation” the world has found itself in as a result of COVID-19.