Articles
October 2015
Green -v- Gigi Brooks Limited
This was an application for an administration order by a former director and alleged creditor of the company. The applicant had been excluded from the business by her fellow director. From the facts it appears that the company was a start-up and that its business plan did not anticipate it making a profit for some time.
October 2015
New Rules Under SBEEA 2015
Author: Nigel Cook
There is a hotchpotch of provisions in these Acts containing amendments to the Insolvency Act 1986 and the Rules.
Some provisions have already into effect (as anticipated in our previous IP Alerter) and others have been brought in during October 2015.
October 2015
Ex Turpi Causa Lives
Author: Chris Millar
Ex Turpi Causa (Non Oritur Actio) essentially means that no action should arise based upon an illegal act. This equitable principle has been developed by the Courts over many years, latterly by the House of Lords in Tinsley v Milligan (1994) and Stone & Rolls Limited v Moore Stephens (2009), when the Court struck out a claim against auditors for failing to discover the fraudulent activities of a director, upon the basis that the claimant company was attributed with the illegal activities of that director.
October 2015
English Schemes of Arrangement
Author: Chris Millar
It remains the case that many foreign companies (particularly those with their COMI in the EU) wish to avail themselves of the English Schemes of Arrangement for compromising or re-structuring liabilities. The English Courts have in recent years accepted jurisdiction where they have considered that there is “sufficient connection” with the laws of England.
October 2015
Validation Orders and Good Faith
Author: Nigel Cook
The case of Wilson and 375 Live Limited v SMC Properties Limited was an application for a Validation Order under Section 127 of the Insolvency Act 1986. It was heard by Mr Registrar Briggs. The case involved 375 Live Limited taking a bridging loan and granting a mortgage over freehold property to the lender as security. Under pressure from the lender the company sold the property unaware that prior to completion of the sale HMRC had presented a winding up petition. The purchaser applied to Court for a retrospective Validation Order which was opposed by the liquidator who claimed that the property had been sold at an undervalue and the transaction declared void.
October 2015
Increase in Bankruptcy Level
Author: Laura Marchington
Historically, the service of a Statutory Demand has been the precursor to commencing insolvency proceedings, whether it was bankruptcy proceedings against an individual or a Winding up Petition against a corporate director.
October 2015
Licensing & Registration for Landlords in Wales
Author: Caroline Walton
The Housing (Wales) Act 2014 was introduced with the aim of improving letting and management standards for people who rent private accommodation across Wales. From this Autumn all private landlords who have a rental property in Wales must register themselves and the addresses of their rental properties. Landlords who undertake letting and property management activities at a rental property in Wales must apply for a licence via Rent Smart Wales unless they instruct an agent to do the work on their behalf in which case the agent must be licensed.
September 2015
Unfair Dismissal where HR overstepped the mark
Author: David Seals
In the recent case of Ramphal –v- Department for Transport, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (“EAT”) held that a dismissal was potentially unfair where it had been too heavily influenced by the HR department. The case has serious implications on the limit to HR’s role in dismissal cases.
August 2015
Ilott v Mitson - Estranged Daughter Wins Inheritance Battle
Author: Zara Munday
English law has historically provided that you should (with some exceptions) be able to leave your estate to whomever you wish. The exception lies in the ability for certain disappointed family members to make a claim under the Inheritance (Provision for Family Dependants) Act 1975 for ‘reasonable provision’. It is usually very difficult to prove that you have not been left a ‘reasonable provision’ by the deceased.
July 2015
Draft Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm Regulations
Author: Caroline Walton
The Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarm (England) Regulations 2015 contain the draft proposals which are expected to come into force on the 1 October 2015. They will require residential landlords in the private rented sector to...
