In this case the High Court had to consider the mutual recognition provision in the EU Bank Recovery and Resolution Directive ("BRRD") and the Winding Up Directive for Banks (WUD) which provide for how the insolvency of EEA banks should be managed by member states.

This case highlights the different tensions that arise in the aftermath of the collapse of Banco Espirito Santo ("BES") between how creditors are treated under the BRRD and WUD and the flexibility given to central banks to restructure good and bad debts when a bank fails.

The Dutch shrimp factory Heiploeg was declared bankrupt in November 2014. The undertaking was relaunched immediately, as the relaunch was prepared in a ‘pre-pack’ construction. All 180 employees of the bankrupt company were dismissed by the administrator. 120 employees were immediately employed again by the relaunched company, but on different employment conditions.

On April 16, 2015, the European Court of Justice (“ECJ”) provided guidance on the interpretation of Article 13 of the EC Regulation on Insolvency Proceedings (the “Regulation”) in the case Lutz v Bäuerle – C-557/13.

On 20 May 2015 the European Parliament adopted a recast of the European Insolvency Regulation. The Recast Regulation is in line with the EU’s current political priorities of promoting economic recovery and boosting growth and employment. The key objectives of the Recast Regulation are to move away from the traditional liquidation approach towards more of a “second chance approach” for businesses and entrepreneurs in financial difficulties, and to enhance cooperation and coordination in cross-border insolvency proceedings. 

Scope

ADVISORY | DISPUTES | TRANSACTIONS Financial Litigation roundup Spring 2015 Welcome to the latest edition of our Financial Litigation roundup. In this edition, we consider recent judgments and ongoing cases from the banking and financial world in the UK and Asia, as well as regulatory developments across those jurisdictions. English judgments SPL Private Finance (PF1) IC Limited and others v Arch Financial Products LLP and others; SPL Private Finance (PF2) IC Ltd and other v Robin Farrell. more> McWilliam v Norton Finance (UK) Ltd (in liquidation).

Background

As things currently stand

The aim of the EC Regulation on Insolvency Proceedings (1346/2000) (Regulation) is to improve the efficiency of insolvency proceedings with cross border aspects. It provides, within the European Union (EU), rules for determining:

The Supreme Court has held that, in order to open secondary proceedings in England under EC Regulation 1346/2000 on Insolvency Proceedings, the company’s “establishment” within the jurisdiction must be a fixed place of business that is involved in a business activity that consists of dealings with third parties: The T

As reported in our briefing last week, the European Court of Justice has delivered its judgment in the case of Union of Shop, Distributive & Allied Workers (USDAW) and another v WW Realisation 1 Ltd (in liquidation) and others (C–80/14) in relation to long running claims brought by former employees of national retailers Woolworths and Ethel Austin, which arose out of the administration and closure of all of their retail stores. The ECJ had to consider the meaning of “establishment” in the legislation, which triggers an obligation to undertake collective consultation when an employe

spring 2015 contentious business update hilldickinson.com Law in Action Page 6 Consumer Rights Bill - all change? Page 8 Mediation – when is it reasonable to refuse? Page 12 Serious Fraud Office (SFO) -vWest, Stone and Sustainable Agro Energy plc (SAE) Gary West, the chief commercial officer of SAE and Stuart Stone, director of SJ Stone Ltd, were convicted of offences under the Bribery Act 2010 in the context of an overall prosecution for fraud against officers of SAE.

The European Court of Justice has today given its decision in the “Woolworths case” on the duty to consult collectively under the Collective Redundancies Directive, in particular defining the meaning of “establishment” for the purposes of determining when that duty is triggered.