Jetivia SA and another (Appellants) v Bilta (UK) Limited and others (Respondents) – Supreme Court
Jetivia SA and another (Appellants) v Bilta (UK) Limited and others (Respondents) [2015] UKSC 23 (YouTube)
Supreme Court, 22nd April 2015
Category: insolvency
Bilta (UK) Ltd (in liquidation) and others v Nazir and others (No 2) (Revenue and Customs Commissioners intervening) – WLR Daily
‘The defence of ex turpi causa non oritur actio is not available to company directors in a claim by the company for conspiracy to defraud the company because the directors’ conduct cannot be attributed to the company in the context of its claim for a breach of the directors’ duties. Section 213 of the Insolvency Act 1986 has extra territorial effect and can be invoked against the directors.’
WLR Daily, 22nd April 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
In re Melodious Corpn; Pui-Kwan v Kam-Ho and others – WLR Daily
In re Melodious Corpn; Pui-Kwan v Kam-Ho and others [2015] EWHC 621 (Ch); [2015] WLR (D) 162
‘Rule 7.55 of the Insolvency Rules 1986 had no application in circumstances where a meeting of the board of directors of the company purporting to place the company into administration out of court pursuant to paragraph 22(2) of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986 was inquorate and accordingly the resolution to appoint an administrator was invalid.’
WLR Daily, 10th March 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Solicitors’ client accounts: whose money is it anyway? – Hardwicke Chambers
‘If a potential defendant is insolvent, it is a matter of critical importance to the potential claimant if they are able to assert a proprietary right over money or goods as opposed to a mere personal claim for damages.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 24th March 2015
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
Income payment orders and pensions revisited: The decision in Horton v Henry – 11 Stone Buildings
‘The recent High Court decision in Horton v Henry has now thrown the debate over the extent to which the pension pot of a bankrupt can be made available to his creditors wide open.’
Full story (PDF)
11 Stone Buildings, January 2015
Source: www.11sb.com
Just like that! – New Square Chambers
‘The recent decision of Mr Justice Edis in DavisonSebry v Companies House and the Registrar of Companies [2015] EWHC 115 (QB) has highlighted how, in the interconnected age of the internet, the careless click of a mouse button can have incredibly far-reaching consequences and abruptly destroy the business of a successful company. The unusual facts would suggest that further cases against the Registrar (against whom judgment was entered) would be unlikely, not least because the reporting procedures are bound to be tightened up.’
Full story (PDF)
New Square Chambers, February 2015
Source: www.newsquarechambers.co.uk
SRA overrides opposition to ditch insolvency regulation – Law Society’s Gazette
‘The Solicitors Regulation Authority has ignored most respondents to its consultation on ceasing to regulate insolvency practitioners (IPs) and will press ahead with the plan.’
Law Society’s Gazette, 12th March 2015
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
Plans to restrict use of conditional fee agreements in insolvency cases dropped ‘for the time being’ – OUT-LAW.com
‘Successful parties to insolvency cases will not be prevented from recovering conditional fee agreement (CFA) “success” fees and legal insurance premiums from their opponents from April, after the UK government extended a temporary exemption from the general ban “for the time being”.’
OUT-LAW.com, 4th March 2015
Source: www.out-law.com
JSC Bank of Moscow v Kekhman and others – WLR Daily
JSC Bank of Moscow v Kekhman and others [2015] EWHC 396 (Ch); [2015] WLR (D) 82
‘When considering whether to exercise its discretion to make a bankruptcy order on a debtor’s petition, the court was to have regard to whether the petitioner could show (1) that he had a sufficiently close connection with England and Wales; (2) that there was a reasonable possibility of benefit resulting from the making of a bankruptcy order; and (3) that one or more persons interested in the distribution of assets were persons over whom the English court could exercise jurisdiction.’
WLR Daily, 20th February 2015
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Court Appeal overturns ruling that law firm wrongly paid out £2.3m from client account – Legal Futures
‘The Court of Appeal has overturned a High Court decision that a Sussex law firm wrongly paid out £2.28m it had received from a group of investors in what turned out to be a doomed airport investment scheme.’
Legal Futures, 20th February 2015
Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk
ATE insurer not estopped from avoiding policy, High Court rules – Litigation Futures
‘After-the-event (ATE) insurer Temple Legal Protection was not estopped from avoiding payment on a policy after a fraudulent misrepresentation, the High Court has ruled.’
Litigation Futures, 18th February 2015
Source: www.litigationfutures.com
UK restructuring laws already geared towards business rescue, says government – OUT-LAW.com
‘UK procedures allowing businesses to restructure in order to avoid insolvency already meet EU plans for a more ‘rescue-orientated’ approach to business failure and insolvency, according to a discussion document published by the Insolvency Service.’
OUT-LAW.com, 10th February 2015
Source: www.out-law.com
The £8.8m typo: how one mistake killed a family business – The Guardian
‘The Welsh engineering firm of Taylor & Sons has won a major claim against the government agency after they mixed it up with another firm of a similar name.’
The Guardian, 28th January 2015
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Modified Universalism – Privy to Singular Clarification – RPC Commercial Disputes Blog
‘While most jurisdictions provide liquidators with wide investigative powers to locate and realise assets locally, the exercise of such powers becomes more complicated when the assets are situated overseas. As more and more businesses expand globally and corporate structures become equally more complex, the liquidators’ task becomes more problematic in winding up such companies.’
RPC Commercial Disputes Blog,
Source: www.rpc.co.uk
New rules governing UK banks and investment firms in financial difficulty come into force – OUT-LAW
‘UK regulators have published final rules governing how they will treat banks and investment firms in financial difficulty, following changes to EU law which will require investors and bondholders to bear the cost of bank failure.’
OUT-LAW.com, 22nd January 2015
Source: www.out-law.com
Horton v Henry – WLR Daily
Horton v Henry [2014] EWHC 4209 (Ch); [2014] WLR (D) 551
‘There was no power vested in the court pursuant to section 310 of the Insolvency Act 1986 to make an income payments order in respect of an uncrystallised pension not yet in payment.’
WLR Daily, 17th December 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Salford Estates (No 2) Ltd v Altomart Ltd – WLR Daily
Salford Estates (No 2) Ltd v Altomart Ltd [2014] EWCA Civ 157; [2014] WLR (D) 527
‘The stay provisions in section 9(1) of the Arbitration Act 1996 did not apply to a winding up petition where the ground of the petition was that the company was unable to pay its debts and what was in dispute was that issue generally or, more specifically, whether there was outstanding and due a particular debt mentioned in the petition.’
WLR Daily, 8th December 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Krys and another v Stichting Shell Pensioenfonds – WLR Daily
Krys and another v Stichting Shell Pensioenfonds [2014] UKPC 41; [2014] WLR (D) 516
‘There is no principle in insolvency proceedings which prevents an anti-suit injunction being made against a foreign creditor so as to restrain him from resorting to the courts of his own country. A creditor may not seek or enforce an order from a foreign court which will result in his enjoying prior access to any part of the insolvent estate.’
WLR Daily, 26th November 2014
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
High Court ruling will create new market for pensions debts, says expert – OUT-LAW.com
‘A new market for trading the pension debts of insolvent companies will be created as a result of a recent High Court ruling. The ruling will also result in more efficient, earlier winding up of pension schemes when companies go out of business.’
OUT-LAW.com, 4th December 2014
Source: www.out-law.com
Constructing safety nets – Hardwicke Chambers
‘Notwithstanding the economic upturn, many UK contractors are still tendering for work at negative margins; sustaining losses; and arguably operating one major dispute away from the brink. This article examines the common forms of security used by employers to safeguard performance by contractors, and/or protect against insolvency, and considers the degree of comfort they afford.’
Hardwicke Chambers, 16th October 2014
Source: www.hardwicke.co.uk
