Sky News reports today that the Insolvency Service is considering reforms to insolvency laws which may include a moratorium on winding up petitions against companies and the suspension of rules on wrongful trading.

Businesses will be considering dramatic changes over the next few days and weeks. The Government last week closed certain business such as pubs, theatres, restaurants and cinemas. Last night, the Government went further and ordered that all non-essential retail businesses and hotels should close and that people should not leave their homes to work unless it absolutely cannot be done from home.

Last week, the Government announced a number of measures to provide financial support to businesses struggling with the impact of COVID-19, including two new Government-backed funding schemes.

Addleshaw Goddard is monitoring those measures closely, with our latest updates found here.

Notwithstanding, it is inevitable that we will see more companies collapse over the coming months, as they struggle to cope with the indefinite business disruption.

As we see more businesses having to close doors or adapt to a new set of rules, we set out a summary of some of the issues we anticipate for those needing to shut down but preserve their businesses at least until the lockdown is over. We will produce a more detailed client alert as matters develop although one message is clear – employers, employees, suppliers and customers are facing unique challenges and the best way to survive is to identify the issue, understand the options, and engage with pragmatism.

Employees

This article does not provide legal advice nor should it be relied upon by anyone receiving it for the purpose of making decisions in relation to their business or otherwise. This article sets out some general concepts which may be relevant for business owners and managers to consider bearing in mind the current uncertain financial landscape.

Current Issues

Nicola Sharp of Rahman Ravelli outlines a recent judgement that allowed a dissolved company to seek an order.

The judgement in the case of Yuzu Hair and Beauty Ltd (Dissolved) v Selvathiraviam [2019] is the first time that the High Court in England has given permission for a company that has been dissolved to apply for a freezing order.

The dissolved company applied for the continuation of a freezing order against its accountant. It had alleged that fraudulent activity by the accountant had led to the company being struck off the register at Companies House.

The onset of the coronavirus has created an unprecedented (in peace time) environment of restriction of movement which will impact significantly on how businesses operate.

Business leaders / key decision makers are faced with considerable challenges in identifying how their businesses will function going forward in these uncertain times.

Background

On 6 March 2020, the restructuring of Doncasters Group's 1.22 billion funded debt was completed. Following a successful non-core disposals program, the Doncasters Group (a leading worldwide supplier of high quality engineered components for the aerospace, industrial gas turbine and specialist automotive industries) operates from 12 principal manufacturing facilities based across the United Kingdom, the United States, Germany, Mexico and China.

As COVID-19 continues to cause widespread economic disruption, the UK government has announced lending measures to support struggling businesses. This alert summarises:

• the measures available;
• key legal considerations for directors hoping to take advantage of new debt; and
• practical steps directors can take to protect themselves from personal liability.

This alert is relevant to directors of disrupted, stressed, and distressed companies who are considering additional borrowing.

What has the government announced?

Those who have had experiance with making office-holder remunerastion applications to court will know jow tedious and difficult they