SUMMARY

On 11 February 2021, the English High Court confirmed in gategroup Guarantee Limited that restructuring plans are insolvency proceedings so are not covered by the Lugano Convention.

One of the debt instruments subject to the gategroup restructuring plan contains an exclusive Swiss court jurisdiction clause. Under the Lugano Convention, proceedings relating to "civil and commercial matters" must generally be brought in the jurisdiction benefitting from the exclusive jurisdiction clause.

In the final part of our predictions for 2021 for the UK insolvency market we look at pensions, the National Security and Investment Bill and cross border matters.

Although the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) arrived in time to prevent a wholesale “no deal Brexit,” issues of cross-border cooperation and recognition in relation to insolvency and restructuring proceedings were not included in the agreement.

How the night time industries could make it through the last months of lockdown

In his address to the nation on Monday afternoon, the Prime Minister set out the government’s roadmap for cautiously easing lockdown restrictions in England. He shared the latest data on infection rates, hospitalisations and deaths, as well as early data showing the efficacy of vaccines.

The roadmap for leaving lockdown, which was published on gov.uk on Monday, seeks to balance health, economic and social factors with the very latest epidemiological data and advice.

From 31 December 2020, the European Regulation on Insolvency Proceedings (the “EIR”) ceased to apply in the UK. As a result:

Prior to 1^st January, 2021, the cross-border recognition and enforcement of insolvency proceedings and judgements between the European Union ("EU") and the United Kingdom ("UK") was largely consolidated within the framework of the European Insolvency (Recast) Regulation (the "EIR") which generally attributed automatic recognition to such proceedings and/or judgements. Following the end of the Brexit transitional period on the 31^st December 2020, the EIR no longer applies to the UK.

Status as of 17/02

Table of Content

• 1 Financial Support Measures
• 2 Capital Markets
• 3 Employment
• 4 Real Estate & Construction
• 5 Tax & Duties
• 6 Corporate, M&A
• 7 EU & Competition
• 8 Courts and Authorities
• 9 Healthcare
• 10 Insolvency & Restructuring
• 11 Insurance
• 12 Intellectual Property
• 13 Telecom & Data Protection
• 14 Other

1 Financial Support Measures

The Pension Schemes Act 2021 (‘the Act’) has received Royal Assent, with the UK government indicating that key provisions will come into force by autumn 2021.

The Act includes a number of provisions that will significantly impact restructuring activity involving financially distressed groups with a UK defined-benefit (DB) pension scheme.

What will change under the Act?

Below are some of the most significant changes being introduced by the Act.

Landmark decision holds that the SFO does not have the power to procure documents from foreign companies outside the jurisdiction.