To modernise the restructuring toolkit available to special administrators, the UK government has introduced changes to the English special administration regime (SAR)1 for distressed water companies. The changes follow reports of significant stress in the water services sector.
New Changes
Background
The collapse of Carillion in 2018 was arguably the UK's largest corporate insolvency in years, creating a lasting impact through job losses and the derailment of hundreds of public sector projects.
Restructuring Advisory Partner David Hudson considers the outlook for corporates
There’s no denying that the latest insolvency figures make for uncomfortable reading. In 2023, there were more than 25,000 registered company insolvencies, the highest annual number since 1993 and 14% higher than 2022.
Changes are afoot to the statutory regime governing special administrations for regulated water companies (the SAR) following the publication of a suite of new legislation.
Impact of the changes on pension trustees
On 7th February 2024, Mr Justice Richards heard closing submissions in the English High Court for a contested sanction hearing for Aggregate Group’s Part 26A restructuring plan. This hearing presented one of the first opportunities to analyse how the Adler decision will affect restructuring plans going forward.
In Short
When individuals are made bankrupt in Scotland, the formal term is 'sequestration', a trustee will be appointed to deal with the sequestration. That trustee will be responsible, amongst other things, for contacting creditors, assessing their claims, ingathering the assets of the debtor and converting them into cash in order to settle the costs of the sequestration and pay dividends to creditors.
Take a look at our summary below of some of the key R&I trends and developments to look out for in 2024.
1. SOLVENCY II
1.1 Solvency II Directive review: Provisional political agreement reached on proposed Solvency II amending Directive
R (on the application of Palmer) (Appellant) v Northern Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court and another (Respondents) [2023] UKSC 38
On appeal from: [2021] EWHC 3013