About a year ago the Dutch Court of Appeal* – confirming the decision of the primary relief judge - rendered an interesting judgment in the field of asset recovery. Currently the case is pending before the Supreme Court. Recently the Advocate General rendered its Advisory Opinion in which he advises the Supreme Court to confirm this decision of the Court of Appeal, and also to clarify its case law regarding immunity from execution.
Introduction
The current Dutch Bankruptcy Code dates back to 1893 when it was first enacted, has aged nicely and still functions well despite the now existing international financial markets and complex financial instruments that could not have been imagined 127 years ago. Although many changes were made since its inception, the Dutch Bankruptcy Code has never had a major overhaul, even though many initiatives were launched over the years.
On Tuesday 6 October 2020 the Dutch Senate adopted the long-awaited legislative proposal for the Act providing for court confirmation of a private restructuring plan (Wet homologatie onderhands akkoord (“WHOA”)). The act introducing the 'Dutch scheme' will enter into force in the beginning of next year at the latest.
On 29 September 2020, the Dutch Senate’s justice committee decided that the Dutch Scheme bill can be dealt with as a formality (hamerstuk) without further debate. It did so after the Dutch Government submitted to the Dutch Senate’s justice committee its memorandum of reply (Memorie van Antwoord) regarding the Dutch Scheme, or to use the full title: the Act on confirmation of private restructuring plans (commonly referred to as the WHOA, after its Dutch acronym). This blog highlights the various topics covered in the memorandum of reply.
Op 26 mei 2020 heeft de Tweede Kamer het wetsvoorstel Wet Homologatie Onderhands Akkoord (WHOA) aangenomen. Als de Eerste Kamer dit voorstel eveneens goedkeurt, is de WHOA een feit en kunnen huurder-schuldenaars die in financiële nood verkeren onder voorwaarden wijzigingen laten aanbrengen in lopende huurovereenkomsten, of deze zelfs geheel doen eindigen. De verwachting is dat de WHOA op 1 januari 2021 in werking zal treden.
Temporary Payment Deferral Act 2020
This proposal aims to prevent avoidable insolvencies and offer the court the option to:
Restructurings, especially those involving multiple jurisdictions, are invariably complex matters. This CMS Expert Guide provides an overview of the various restructuring possibilities available in a large number of countries, allowing you to compare how the options are deployed in these jurisdictions.
We intend to update it periodically to reflect important changes as they happen.
If you need more information or have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
This guide provides a comparative analysis of certain key areas of law and procedure for those involved in or affected by financial distress of a corporation and the trading of distressed debt across Europe.
Our tracker contains an overview of changes made in light of the Covid-19 outbreak which impose restrictions on creditor rights, relax debtor obligations to file for insolvency or concern other insolvency-related issues. As you will appreciate, this is a dynamic situation, and both the measures announced and applicable legal framework will continue to evolve in the coming days, weeks and months
Certain governments have taken (extensive) measures to help businesses and its employees. This leads to an entire new and unprecedented market situation and results in sometimes unprecedented legal issues which require swift but thorough assessment, both from a national and cross-border perspective. To provide companies and its directors with some general guidelines in these times of uncertainty, our international Restructuring and Insolvency team has prepared an overview of certain pressing legal issues.