Managing contract risks in times of turmoil: Leveraging force majeure and balancing insolvency risks
In the current environment of heightened geopolitical tension, including the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz and impacts on regional oil and gas infrastructure, global supply chain disruption and volatility in energy markets, force majeure provisions are more important than ever. Australian businesses in the mining, agriculture, transport and industrial sectors who rely on […]
ReadmoreNo more broken toys: DOCA flexibility powers Toys “R” Us restructure
The Federal Court of Australia recently reaffirmed the flexibility of the Deed of Company Arrangement (DOCA) regime under the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (the Act).[1] It is well established that a DOCA can be used to transfer shares with approval under s 444GA of the Act. In a decision which the Federal Court described as […]
ReadmoreA matter of trust: High Court rejects trust creditor claims against third party recipients of trust property
In a 4:3 split decision, the High Court of Australia clarified that a successor trustee does not owe a fiduciary duty to a former trustee in respect of the former trustee’s entitlement to indemnification from trust assets.[1] The High Court judgment confirms that former trustees (and their trust creditors) have no independent recourse against a […]
ReadmoreJudgment against ‘pre-insolvency’ adviser for involvement in asset-stripping scheme
The Federal Court of Australia recently handed down a landmark judgment against a third party adviser for devising an asset-stripping scheme and breaching the creditor-defeating disposition provisions of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth). A creditor-defeating disposition is a disposal of company property that prevents, hinders or significantly delays that property from becoming available for the […]
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