HANJIN REHABILITATION STRATEGIC OPTIONS FOR OWNERS
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the of position of other members of 20 Essex Street Michael Collett QC 2016
Ports and retailers have been thrown into confusion with ships marooned and cargo trapped on board affected vessels as Hanjin Shipping Co Ltd ("Hanjin")'s creditors decided not to extend further financial support to the company.
Introduced by the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020, the restructuring plans regime set out in Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006 (Plans) has quickly proven a popular route for corporate financial rescue. This is in large part due to the fact that it allows for a plan to be imposed upon dissenting creditor classes in certain circumstances. This is known as "cross-class cramdown".
Summary
Welcome to the Corporate Briefing, where we review the latest developments in UK corporate law that you need to know about. In this month’s issue we discuss:
As practitioners we pour over notices of intention to appoint (NOIA) and notices of appointment of administrators (NOA) to make sure every detail is accurate. Why? Because no one wants to risk an invalid appointment because there was a minor mistake or error that was overlooked. Understandably errors occur, particularly when the appointment of administrators often happens at speed, with all parties inevitably juggling many balls. Prescribed information may have been missed, or incorrectly stated and procedural steps may have been inadvertently forgotten.
In Tynefield Care Ltd (and others) v the New India Assurance Company Ltd1 the indemnity claims of the insured Claimant companies were dismissed, and policies avoided from inception for breach of the duty of fair presentation under the Insurance Act 2015. The breach related to the insolvency history of one of the de facto or shadow directors of the Claimant companies.
This judgment therefore adds to the post-2015 Act case law considering breach of the duty of fair presentation.
Our series focused on privacy and transparency considers issues encountered by practitioners across a range of different dispute resolution specialities. This article provides a reminder for Insolvency Practitioners about their obligations when processing personal data.
For those that are that way inclined (which includes us at #SPBRestructuring!), the 500 plus page Wright v Chappell judgment which sets out the BHS wrongful trading claim against its former directors makes for an interesting read. It paints a colourful picture of the downfall of the BHS group, from the point that it was sold for £1 to its eventual demise into administration and then liquidation. You can make your own mind up about the characters involved, but the story is a sorry one, with creditors ultimately suffering the most.
Welcome to the first issue of Insolvency Matters, our round-up of recent legal developments affecting insolvency and restructuring.
Case round-up
Elon Musk recently said he has a "super bad feeling" about the economy, pithily declaring what most financial commentators have been predicting in more technical terms.
Elon Musk recently said he has a "super bad feeling" about the economy, pithily declaring what most financial commentators have been predicting in more technical terms.