Along with tightening social controls, the months ahead will be defined by various critical relationships and the rules that govern them. Of course they all interlock: material change in any of them impacts each of the others. Which causes multiple complexities in decision-making and risk assessment processes, both within a business and when looking at critical suppliers and customers:
Landlords and Tenants:
In March 2020 the UK Government announced the suspension of the wrongful trading provisions contained in s.214 of the Insolvency Act 1986. Those provisions impose personal liability on directors found to have over-traded while a company was insolvent. By removing the risk of personal liability, the Government sought to provide directors with the personal protection they required to allow their businesses to continue trading through the pandemic.
Following yesterday’s announcement that a number of the temporary measures brought in by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act (CIGA) to ease pressures on companies most at risk of insolvency during the ongoing Covid-19 crisis are to be extended, we look here at some of the key questions arising under CIGA in the context of the commercial landlord and tenant relationship.
New regulations deriving from the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 have extended the effective prohibition on statutory demands and winding up petitions until 31 December 2020. Tim Symes, a partner in our Insolvency and Commercial Litigation teams, looks at the implications of this for debtors and creditors.
Corporate Insolvency: Temporary Measures extended
On 29 September 2020, The Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (Coronavirus) (Extension of the Relevant Period) Regulations 2020 ("the Regulations") will be laid before Parliament. It is expected that they will be passed without amendment.
The purpose of the Regulations is to extend certain of the temporary measures introduced by The Corporate Insolvency & Governance Act 2020 ("CIGA") to assist companies who are struggling to deal with the economic ramifications of lockdown.
The Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 came into force on 26 June 2020 introducing a number of temporary and more permanent reforms, summarised in my colleague Jess’ post here.
On 26 June 2020 the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (the Act) came into force. The Act included far-reaching wholescale reforms to the UK’s restructuring toolbox, including the introduction of the restructuring plan, which has the potential to be a gamechanger for restructurings.
It also included temporary measures dealing with COVID-19 impacts on companies. The two most significant temporary measures for companies facing financial difficulties as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic were:
Regulations laid before Parliament yesterday seek to extend the current restrictions on the presentation of winding up petitions to 31 December 2020. However, there will inevitably come a time when these temporary restrictions are lifted.
We recently acted for the successful respondent in an appeal against a winding up petition. Arnold Ayoo of 23 Essex Street was instructed.
There has been much speculation, but little certainty, as to whether the government intended to extend the provisions of the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (the 2020 Act).
Today (24th September) the Government has laid before parliament regulations designed to extend the protection offered to struggling businesses by the 2020 Act, beyond the original 30 September deadline.
While announcements have been made, and measures extended, to help corporate Britain, directors faced with the difficult decision of whether to trade on through the crisis could suddenly very exposed once again.