Corporate Insolvency
The current world-wide credit crunch has thrown a spotlight onto insolvency and corporate reconstruction. 4 Stone Buildings enjoys an enviable reputation in these fields, not just for the high quality of its insolvency work, but also for its comprehensive coverage of all aspects of the field. Our reputation is reflected in having won the most recent Chambers Bar Award for Insolvency & Corporate Reconstruction Set of the Year.
This reputation is solidly based on many years’ experience, stretching back to cases such as Maxwell, BCCI and British & Commonwealth, and continuing to the present day with a series of high-profile cases, such as Powerhouse, Ballast, OBG v Allan, and Swissport.
Chambers’ reputation also reflects our involvement not just in domestic cases but also in substantial international insolvencies, such as Enron, Yukos, Transocean and Elektrim.
In addition, we have enjoyed a long tradition of advising and representing the Government on insolvency matters. Many juniors in Chambers are on the Attorney General’s Panels, and many of the senior members of Chambers held similar appointments before they took Silk. As a result, we can offer expertise both on the side of the regulator and of the regulated, and we also provide a significant public law perspective.
We also specialise in directors’ disqualification cases, having been involved in a string of significant CDDA cases over the years, stretching from Polly Peck to Barings and Trans Tec Plc. In addition, one member of Chambers is the joint author of Directors Disqualification: Law & Practice, a leading textbook on the subject.
It does not take a multi-million pound insolvency to throw up difficult points of law, sometimes wholly unconnected with insolvency as such. Any liquidation, receivership, administration or CVA, however small, can generate complicated issues of contract, retention of title, directors' duties or tracing. One of the advantages of a Chambers with experience in a wider range of work is that we can offer a service across the board in cases which may be difficult to classify. Our focus is principally on litigation, but our expertise in company law also means that we are well versed in finding solutions where the emphasis is on restructuring and recovery.
We are ranked by both Chambers UK and the Legal 500 in relation to insolvency, as are 5 out of our 6 silks. One member of Chambers was co-founder of the Personal Insolvency Litigation Advice and Representation Scheme (PILARS), which provides pro bono services in relation to personal insolvency.