Key points

Agreements relating to costs in the course of their office could not be set aside by liquidators subsequently appointed.

The facts

In the November 2013 edition of Pensions Pieces we referred to the Olympic Airlines case where a UK pension scheme could not qualify for entry to the Pension Protection Fund ('the PPF') because its sponsoring employer was suffering main liquidation proceedings in Greece, and further insolvency proceedings could not be established to satisfy the current entry conditions

The High Court of England and Wales handed down judgment last week in the case of Christine Mary Laverty and others as Joint Liquidators of PGL Realisations PLC and others v British Gas Trading Limited [2014] EWHC 2721.  In an important decision for the insolvency industry, it was held that the statutory deemed contracts regime for gas and electricity supply could not be used by utilities companies to gain priority over other creditors.

The High Court has rejected the argument that amounts owing to British Gas Trading Ltd (BGT) under post-administration, deemed contracts for the  provision of gas and electricity are automatically classed as expenses of the administration. The  court has reserved for consideration, however, whether and if so how an administrator’s conduct may  give the liability super priority or bring the salvage principle into play.

Background and preliminary issue

It has been understood since the Hindcastle case in 1997 that a guarantor’s payment obligations under a lease survive disclaimer by an insolvent tenant’s liquidator.  What has been less clear is how that works, given that the tenant’s obligation to pay rent dies when the lease is disclaimed.

Schroder Exempt Property Unit Trust and another v. Birmingham City Council [2014] EWHC 2207

Summary

A landlord is liable for business rates where a tenant's lease is disclaimed, even if the landlord does not take possession of the property following a disclaimer.

Background

Key Point

Two recent cases have resulted in innovative structures for restructuring the finances of groups of companies being sanctioned by the English Courts pursuant to schemes of arrangement. The trend for using such a mechanism for financial restructuring shows no signs of abating. On the contrary the innovative scope of such schemes appears to be expanding

Stemcor restructuring

The scheme

Background

Key Point

The liquidation of an agent for service appointed by a Borrower under a loan agreement did not prevent the Lender from validly serving process on the Borrower by delivering documents to that agent.

The facts

A loan agreement contained the following clause:

"Service of process. Without prejudice to any other mode of service allowed under any relevant laws, each Borrower -

The regulatory amendments drawn up by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions following the outcome in Trustees of Olympic Airlines SA Pension & Life Assurance Scheme v Olympic Airlines SA have been drafted narrowly and may end up  protecting no one other than the beneficiaries of the Olympic Airlines pension scheme. 

The issue