On 23 April 2020 the Government announced a temporary ban on landlords using statutory demands (made between 1 March 2020 and 30 June 2020) and winding up petitions (presented from Monday 27 April through to 30 June,) where “a company” cannot pay its bills due to coronavirus. The measures will be included in the Corporate […]

New legislation that stops forfeiture Most standard commercial leases include a right of re-entry which entitles the landlord to forfeit the lease in the event of a default by the tenant, including non payment of rent. Typically, the landlord will be allowed to re-enter the property if the rent is unpaid for 14 or 21 […]

Insolvency Practitioners and others should be aware of a number of changes to the format and content of witness statements that are effective from today. Any witness statements signed from today onwards need to be in the new format. The latest amendments to the Civil Procedure Rules bring in changes to both witness statements and […]

Right on cue, law firms up and down the country are issuing briefing notes to their clients and contacts about directors’ duties, and the risks that directors run if they breach those duties. The content of these suggests a lack of understanding of the commercial world in which directors operate and what their current priorities […]

The Court has recently published procedures that it will follow for upcoming hearings including winding up petitions. Further to our recent bulletins, although the Courts will still be trying to deal with some winding up and bankruptcy petitions by Skype or telephone many will still be adjourned. One possible consequence of the lengthy adjournment of […]

It has been confirmed that the Insolvency & Companies Court has adapted rapidly to the existing emergency situation and now intends to progress winding-up cases remotely, so far as possible, rather than continuing to adjourn them. The court has increased and improved the ways in which audio and video technology can support hearings. Currently, individuals […]

On 28 March 2020, Alok Sharma, the UK Business Secretary confirmed that the Government will be introducing new insolvency laws to reduce the burden on businesses and give them breathing space during COVID-19 outbreak. Although full details of the new legislation are awaited in the coming days, it has been confirmed that the legislation will […]

The impact of COVID-19 on businesses and individuals is already enormous. There has been a huge reduction in demand for non-essential goods, hospitality and transportation. Recent days have also seen plunging capital markets, the potential for companies to ‘furlough’ employees and a slowdown of international trade transactions. Not surprisingly, there is the looming prospect of […]

On 23 March 2020, Insolvency and Companies Court Judge Mullen set out the Court’s emergency response to managing winding up hearings during the COVID-19 lockdown. Upon considering the current situation it was decided that the general winding up list cannot presently be conducted remotely. The court ordered, by the courts own motion, that existing winding-up […]

Overview COVID-19 has already caused significant disruption and uncertainty in the legal sector, but how is it going to impact on the operation of the courts and tribunals? Lord Chancellor, Robert Buckland QC, in his official statement on 18 March 2020, stated that it was “essential” that courts remain open and continue to deliver justice. […]