The Evolution of Cross-Border Restructuring Processes
Chapter 15 Bankruptcy Issues, Venue, and Jurisdiction by Kristhy Peguero and Jennifer Wertz
Bill on Bankruptcy: Big Time Lawyers Pricing Themselves Out
he number of complex cross-border restructurings continues to rise as the various economies of the world become more integrated. A growing contingent of countries has enacted sophisticated restructuring regimes or refined...more
Courts disagree over whether a foreign bankruptcy case can be recognized under chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code if the foreign debtor does not reside or have assets or a place of business in the United States. In 2013, the...more
In the Eleventh Circuit (In re Al Zawawi), section 109(a)’s debtor eligibility requirements do not apply to chapter 15 cases, reinforcing a split between the Second and Eleventh Circuits. The Eleventh Circuit held that...more
The Bankruptcy Code bars certain individuals or entities from filing for bankruptcy protection, generally because they do not reside or have a place of business or property in the United States, fail to satisfy certain debt...more
"Comity" is a principle of jurisprudence whereby, under appropriate circumstances, one country recognizes within its borders the legislative, executive, or judicial acts of another nation. Many recent court rulings have...more
Determining a foreign debtor's "center of main interests" ("COMI") for purposes of recognizing a foreign bankruptcy proceeding in the United States under chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code can be problematic in cases...more
To file bankruptcy in the U.S., a debtor must reside in, have a domicile or a place of business in, or have property in the United States. 11 U.S.C. § 109(a). In cross border chapter 15 cases, courts have considered whether...more
Debtors in non-U.S. bankruptcy or restructuring proceedings commonly seek to shield their U.S. assets from creditor collection efforts by seeking "recognition" of those proceedings in the United States in a case under chapter...more
Corporate restructurings are not always successful for many reasons. As a consequence, the bankruptcy and restructuring laws of the United States and many other countries recognize that a failed restructuring may be followed...more
In In re Global Cord Blood Corp., 2022 WL 17478530 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Dec. 5, 2022), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York denied without prejudice a petition filed by the joint provisional liquidators...more
Like debtors, bankruptcy trustees, official committees, examiners, and estate-compensated professionals, foreign representatives in chapter 15 cases have statutory reporting obligations to the bankruptcy court and other...more
1. AUTOMATIC STAY - 1.1 Covered Activities - 1.1.a Court declines to enjoin third party claims against the debtor’s jointly liable parent corporation. The debtor manufactured earplugs for many years. A major...more
In recent years, Indonesian companies have shown both a greater willingness to use foreign restructuring processes, as well as a greater need to do so given the increasingly sophisticated financing structures and investor...more
A U.S. bankruptcy court recently denied chapter 15 recognition to a case in the Isle of Man (IOM). The court ruled that the foreign case was neither a foreign main proceeding nor a foreign non-main proceeding...more
The Hong Kong court has sanctioned a scheme of arrangement for a Hong Kong-listed, Bermuda-incorporated fertilizer manufacturer based in the mainland. In doing so, the Honorable Mr Justice Harris also warned holders of U.S....more
In February 2022, I wrote a blog article entitled Cross-Border Bankruptcy Cases: Chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code and Parameters of a Discovery Tool. Since the publication of that article, there have been approximately 40...more
FIFTH CIRCUIT WEIGHS IN ON BANKRUPTCY ASSET SALES FREE AND CLEAR OF LEASEHOLD INTERESTS - The ability of a trustee or chapter 11 debtor-in-possession (“DIP”) to sell bankruptcy estate assets “free and clear” of competing...more
What does it mean for an entity to be a “debtor” under chapter 15, and does it matter whether the entity is a “debtor” under that chapter of the Bankruptcy Code? While these may seem like strange questions with obvious...more
MODIFICATION OF SECURED LOAN UNDER CRAMDOWN CHAPTER 11 PLAN WARRANTED DUE TO PLAN FEASIBILITY THREAT - Many recent court rulings concerning the treatment of secured creditors under a chapter 11 plan have focused on...more
Chapter 15 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code provides a streamlined process for recognition (a form of comity) of a foreign insolvency proceeding. However, courts are divided as to whether a foreign debtor must satisfy the general...more
Two recent bankruptcy cases have further established the perfunctory nature of a petition to recognize a foreign bankruptcy petition in the United States under Chapter 15 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code (the “Bankruptcy Code”)....more
Procedure - Chapter 15 of the United States Bankruptcy Code was enacted in 2005 and represents the United States’ adoption of the “Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency so as to provide effective mechanisms for dealing...more
As with its neighbor to the south, Canada faced an influx of retail insolvencies during the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. For example, in 2020, Canadian-based clothing retailers such as the Aldo Group and Groupe Dynamite...more
The foundation of chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code and similar legislation enacted by other countries to govern cross-border bankruptcy cases is "comity" and cooperation among U.S. and foreign courts. The importance of these...more