Few things go together as naturally as fraud and insolvency. The pattern is now well rehearsed: scams pile up unnoticed while money flows in the good times, but when recession hits, increased scrutiny from lenders, counterparties and the tax man – not to mention insolvency practitioners – means fraud is far more likely to be discovered.
squirepattonboggs.com 014-5095-0428/15/EUROPE Impact of COVID-19 on Insolvency Laws: How Countries Are Revamping Their Insolvency and Restructuring Laws to Combat COVID-19 26 April 2021 squirepattonboggs.com squirepattonboggs.com Contents Around the globe, our lawyers are receiving a large number of enquiries about mitigating the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on companies' business operations and finances. Governments in several countries have reacted quickly to try to mitigate COVID-19's impact by changing or amending their insolvency laws.
These case summaries first appeared in LexisNexis’ Insolvency Case Alerter. They represent some of the more interesting insolvency decisions to have been published recently.
This summary covers:
In this issue, we consider Qantas’ recent Full Federal Court win in its JobKeeper stoush with the union, and the interpretation of who is entitled to the COVID-19 cash flow boosts following on from the AAT’s decision in Slatter Building Group Pty Ltd and Commissioner of Taxation (Taxation) [2021] AATA 456. We also provide an update on the latest appeals, ATO guidance and rulings.
Buckle up, Qantas’ fight over JobKeeper entitlements isn’t over yet
In 2014, Accelerated Payment Notices (“APNs”) were introduced by the Government under the Finance Act 2014, allowing HMRC to request upfront payments on account of disputed tax and/or National Insurance contributions relating to certain tax avoidance schemes.
HMRC clamping down on furlough fraud by companies in Danger Zone
The latest statistics show that over 11 million workers have been furloughed in the UK as part of the government's job retention scheme (that equates to 16% of the population or one in six people) and 41% of employers had staff furloughed. The scheme has so far cost the government over £40 billion and this figure will continue to rise until the end of September this year when the scheme is set to wind down.
Will your business be financially viable at the end of lockdown? What challenges does 2021 pose? What are the next steps
This note summarises the duties that directors of companies incorporated in England and Wales are subject to.
This note explains those duties, and matters that directors should consider in relation to them, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The appointment of joint liquidators can be a useful tool in cross-border insolvency proceedings, particularly when assets are located in a number of jurisdictions. However, courts must ensure that a joint liquidator appointment does not lead to conflicting duties based on the respective laws in each jurisdiction. This was the main issue for consideration in West Bromwich Commercial Ltd v Hatfield Property Ltd, where Jack J was satisfied that the appointment of joint liquidators was necessary.
European Real Estate Finance: Market Update – Q1 2021 March 2021 Authors: Jeffrey Rubinoff, Dr. Thomas Flatten, Thierry Bosly, Hadrien Servais, Carl Hugo Parment, Fernando Navarro, Christophe Goossens, Julio Peralta, Angel Calleja, Aurélie Terlinden, Alexandra Stolt, Amitaben Patel & Brendon Vyas Further information on the response to COVID-19 can be found here, and we also have a German-language article, available here, looking at the impact on commercial leases. LIBOR Discontinuation Much has happened in the world of LIBOR Discontinuation since our last update.