A New Regime
From 1 October 2017 a new pre-action protocol has come in to force which applies to claims brought by a business claiming a debt from an individual. The protocol sets out the conduct expected by the Court prior to legal proceedings being commenced against the debtor. It does not apply to business-to-business debts unless the debtor is a sole trader.
When faced with bankruptcy proceedings, it is paramount that you act quickly in order to avoid unnecessary costs and stress.
The bankruptcy proceedings
Shortly after the last ever Monarch Airlines flight landed at Manchester Airport in the early hours of Monday morning, the airline entered administration, prompting the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) to launch its "biggest ever peacetime repatriation" to bring home the 110,000 Monarch customers stranded abroad.
The impact on those travellers should be minimal, but an estimated 750,000 customers' future flights and holidays have been cancelled. Where they stand primarily comes down to whether their booking is protected by the UK's Air Travel Organisers' Licence (ATOL) scheme.
In this article the authors consider the practical aspects of the UK-wide rules for registration of company charges, including features of the new e-filing regime. Statute references are to the Companies Act 2006.
WHY REGISTER?
Senior associate Lucy Gould reviews the recent case of Davis v Jackson [2017] EWHC 698 (Ch), in which the court determined the beneficial interests a separated (but not divorced) married couple each held in a property. The property was owned in joint names but occupied only by the wife, who had solely financed its purchase and the mortgage.
Background
Caveat Creditor…
Following a lengthy consultation period, the Ministry of Justice has now published the new Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims (‘the Protocol’). This will be of general interest to everyone, but perhaps particularly to landlords with individual tenants.
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has recently made some significant decisions which have increased the value of payments to be made to employees, including in insolvency situations. Below, we highlight the key facts you need to know.
(1) Additional elements to be included when calculating holiday pay
When goods are delivered to a professional storage operator (“Warehouseman”) for safe keeping or storage, it is usual practice that the parties will enter into express terms which often contain a right of lien in favour of the Warehouseman. The benefit of having an express right of lien is that the terms are clear and unequivocal, especially those relating to enforcement of the lien and sale of the assets.
When you are not the only lender to a company or group, it can be daunting trying to fairly balance the commercial needs of the other creditors and at the same time make sure you are protecting your own position. Below are Gateley’s top tips for dealing with intercreditor arrangements.
1. Get the terminology right
The recent case of Breyer Group plc v RBK Engineering Limited considered the use of winding up petitions in construction contracts.
An application was made by Breyer to stop RBK from continuing with a petition to wind up the company. The court decided that winding up petitions can operate as a form of commercial oppression and may not be appropriate, especially when adjudication or ordinary proceedings would be a more appropriate forum for the dispute.
The background