In Short -
The Situation: The High Court of Australia has confirmed in Bryant v Badenoch Integrated Logging Pty Ltd [2023] HCA 2 that the "peak indebtedness rule" is no longer available to liquidators when assessing the...more
In Short -
The Situation: When winding up a company, liquidators must distribute any surplus funds following the satisfaction of any secured debts. The Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) contains a regime which provides that...more
More Detail: Regulation of Litigation Funding in Class Actions
In 2009, the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia, in Brookfield Multiplex Ltd v International Litigation Funding Partners Pty Ltd [2009] FCAFC 147,...more
Background -
In February 2020, the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) ("Act") was amended to add a new class of voidable transactions for companies that are being would up known as "creditor-defeating dispositions". This change was...more
This edition of the Update covers:
1. Recent legal and regulatory developments, including the release of APRA's policy and supervision priorities for 2021, the launch of APRA's Cyber Security Strategy 2020 – 2024,...more
This edition of the Update addresses:
1. Recent legal and regulatory developments which relate to licencing and regulatory relief, consumer protection, financial markets, anti-money laundering and capital and prudential...more
The Situation: When determining and quantifying unfair preference claims in Australia, does the Corporations Act permit liquidators to value transactions forming part of a single "continuous business relationship" (such as a...more
The Situation: Should liquidators be personally liable for the costs of unsuccessful appeals, without an entitlement to reimbursement by the company or its creditors in relation to those costs?
The Conclusion: The general...more
The Situation: A liquidator can reject a "double proof" for what is, in substance, the same debt as another accepted proof of debt.
The Question: When are liquidators justified in rejecting what could arguably be a double...more
The Federal Court of Australia rules that receivers appointed to a company in liquidation are entitled to pay employee entitlements and fees.
In Kirman v RWE Robinson & Sons Pty Ltd (in liq), in the matter of RWE Robinson...more
The Situation: Section 553C of the Corporations Act 2001 (WA) ("Act") provides that if a creditor and a company in liquidation have mutual dealings, the creditor must offset any sum the creditor owes to the company in...more
The Situation: The statutory moratorium period for voluntary administrators to restructure an insolvent company often is too short to find a solution. Administrators frequently utilise "holding" deeds of company arrangement...more
The Background: The administrators of an Australian auction house and gallery business applied to the Federal Court of Australia for directions to recover in excess of $1 million in fees and costs incurred with respect to...more
In Mighty River International Ltd v Hughes [2017] WASCA 152, the Western Australian Court of Appeal delivered a landmark decision approving the use of a "holding" deed of company arrangement ("DOCA")....more