Courts professions and regulation

Rethinking insolvency law – a follow up

We are pleased to see some further responses to our early ideas on reform of the structure of the insolvency

High Court confirms principles of judicial independence

The High Court of Australia has found that social communications between a judge and a lawyer for a litigant in

Electronic delivery of documents in bankruptcy and liquidation – continued

In my earlier comments trying to work out why we now have unharmonized drafting approaches and rules for electronic service

UK insolvency practitioners – “evidence of intimidation, deception, dishonesty and even misappropriation of assets”?

A very critical report on the insolvency profession in the UK – Resolving-Insolvency-APPG-on-Fair-Business-Banking-and-Humphries-Kerstetter.pdf (appgbanking.org.uk)  has come from the All Party

Reinventing the Australian Insolvency System

At a seminar on 4 August 2021, Jason Harris and I presented our ideas on reform of the insolvency system

Judicial impartiality report awaits the High Court decision in Charisteas – more dancing on pinheads

Following a recent Australian Law Reform Commission seminar – Impartiality from both sides of the Bench | ALRC  – held

Objections to a bankrupt’s 3 year discharge in Australia – mixed messages and unfair law

Apart from Australian law imposing a long period for a person to be subject to the restrictions and stigma of

You call that a lockdown? Australia’s bankruptcy laws

If those in small business think the lockdowns are tough, for weeks or even months at a time, the government

ASIC’s corporate plan, and the 27 August hearing before the PJC

With ASIC having appeared before the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services on 27 August 2021, ASIC’s Corporate

Review of Australia’s safe harbour protection from insolvent trading – remember s 588HA [updated]

The federal government has finally made arrangements to have Australia’s “safe harbour” from insolvent trading law reviewed – s 588GA,

Fees of insolvency practitioners and lawyers

After Jason Harris and I wrote about Justice Michael Lee’s comments on the high charge out rates of insolvency practitioners,

What do creditors get from ‘successful’ recovery actions by insolvency practitioners?

A Judge has ordered that Trustees in bankruptcy file “evidence that identifies the benefits the creditors of the bankrupt estate

Cleaning up after failed oil and mining operations – new New Zealand laws, and other ideas

The cost of environmental clean-up of mining and other resource projects where the company has gone into liquidation is a

The contributions of bankruptcy trustees to AFSA’s regulation of criminal conduct

Bankruptcy trustees, and liquidators, and creditors in insolvencies, contribute much to the government, in effect for free. In a recent

Bankruptcy – transfer of files from the Official Receiver to private registered trustees, with 20% to women

Australia’s AFSA has announced that since 29 July 2021, it has changed the way it allocates bankrupt estates to bankruptcy

The high cost of ASIC’s regulation of liquidators, in a deregulatory environment

The proposed annual ASIC ‘industry levies’ imposed on liquidators in Australia, to fund the cost of their regulation, prompts this

Assigning bankruptcy claims to a former trustee

A 5 day bankruptcy hearing was cancelled in March 2021, in relation to matters occurring in 2012, being challenged in

Insolvency practitioner charge-out rates – the cost of carrying the State

In making a winding up order against Forum Finance,[1] Justice Michael Lee made this comment about the hourly fees of

The insolvency rule in ex parte James – another in a series of cases ‘dancing on pinheads’

A trustee in bankruptcy in England rejected a £5.7m proof of debt lodged by the revenue authority [HMRC][1] on what

Australian small business insolvency law – a review

Several stars aligning at the end of 2020-2021 prompt this review of where Australia is at in the area of

Regulatory penalties

Sanctions imposed by courts for breaches of competition or regulatory laws have to tread a line between being so severe

Australian High Court – special leave sought in bankruptcy Ponzi case – 139ZQ

An application for special leave to appeal to the High Court[1] has been made in a bankruptcy matter involving a

Insolvency services for sale

There seem to be some rather unhappy insolvency practitioners at the moment bemoaning the low levels of insolvencies – yes,

Trustee “entirely blameless” in his dealings with a mentally infirm bankrupt

While there is now greater training available in dealing with those suffering mental illness for professionals working in debt counselling