A trustee’s interest in a bankrupt’s interest in trust property – Boensch v Pascoe
A seven member bench of the High Court was convened for the hearing in Boensch v Pascoe on 11 October 2019. It is an appeal
14/10/2019
The evolution of bankruptcy and insolvency laws and the case of the deed of company arrangement
This is a thoughtful and instructive article on the process of the historical development of the bankruptcy and insolvency laws in the United Kingdom, the
05/10/2019
NZ insolvency practitioner costs recovery fees
The New Zealand government has released a discussion paper on proposed regulations concerning fees and other arrangements in preparation for the commencement of the co-regulatory
02/10/2019
Digital disruption is here but “progress towards a digital insolvency practice has to date been slow”
A recent journal article on the impact of artificial intelligence and its use by the insolvency profession has good and bad news – the good
19/09/2019
‘A good idea’ – assignment of a liquidator’s recovery rights
A liquidator has transferred, with court approval, potential recovery claims to the ATO, as the major and only creditor in a liquidation. The law concerning
18/09/2019
ASIC’s deterrence message – “no point just communicating this into the Fin Review”.
ASIC gave some useful insights before the recent Senate oversight hearing[1] on 13 September as to the reality of the effectiveness of its proposed and
16/09/2019
Use of referees in insolvency litigation
Justice Michael Lee of the Federal Court of Australia has called for a more proactive response from liquidators and trustees and their lawyers in pursuing
14/09/2019
ASIC’s period of external scrutiny
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is properly subject to parliamentary oversight, apart from the on-going scrutiny it receives from its various stakeholders. At least
11/09/2019
Climate change and the law
Here are details of two recent events on climate change and the law, followed by details of a range of other issues covered by Murrays
10/09/2019
Regulation of Australian insolvency practitioners – UK and NZ compared
I am pleased to be soon presenting to various groups on the regulation of Australian insolvency practitioners, with some comparisons with England and New Zealand.
08/09/2019
International Association of Insolvency Regulators’ Conference – 2019
Australia is attending and presenting at the annual insolvency regulators’ conference, along with regulators from the UK, the US, New Zealand, Singapore and others.
07/09/2019
A liquidator found liable for breach of confidence and invasion of privacy
“To say there is bad blood between David Henderson and Robert Walker is an understatement. From the time Robert Walker was appointed liquidator of Property
06/09/2019
A legal ‘affront’ – the Chorley exception – has gone
In raising the fundamental equality of all before the law in the context of a lawyer’s costs in their own court proceedings, the High Court
05/09/2019
Accountants’ insolvency code updated
A new standard for insolvency practitioners – APES 330 – has just been issued written in APESB’s unique style and offering guidance on issues in
02/09/2019
Democracy, Human Rights and the Judiciary: the common law and the wider world
The Australian Academy of Law is hosting a presentation by Sir Nicholas Blake on this Wednesday 4 September 2019, in Melbourne. Sir Nicholas is a
02/09/2019
ASIC’s Corporate Plan 2019-2023 – Insolvency Practitioners
ASIC’s corporate plan 2019-2023 contains much detail about the various sectors it regulates and what regulatory approaches it is taking. This is a list of
29/08/2019
Winding up a company for $2,000?
A court has suggested that the minimum debt amount for which a creditor can proceed to apply to wind up a debtor before the court
27/08/2019
Insolvency practitioner offence reporting – a need for reform
If liquidators in Australia are investigating and reporting to ASIC “thousands” of breaches of the law by those involved in insolvent companies each year, most
26/08/2019
ARITA’s 8 (plus?) point plan for insolvency law reform
One of the main insolvency professional bodies in Australia – ARITA[1] – has released what it calls its “8 point plan” to comprehensively review and
24/08/2019
A policy question with insolvency preferences
Is the essence of a preference payment in insolvency that the pool of the debtor’s assets are lessened by the debtor’s payment to the preferred
24/08/2019
Flying low – an airline’s ‘extraordinary’ response to a $19m penalty
A major international airline turned up to court to seek a stay of a A$19m penalty with evidence so inadequate that the Judge described it
20/08/2019
International insolvency law and Australia’s UNCCA
A newly qualified Australian lawyer who was sponsored through UNCCA and LAWASIA to attend Insolvency Working Group V in Vienna in December 2018, is pursuing
18/08/2019
Views of former High Court judges, on reasoned [sic] government decision making
Here are two rather politically telling comments of former Australian High Court judges from which we may each make our own assessment about how this
07/08/2019
NSW Law Society’s Specialist Accreditation Conference 2019
I am presenting to senior lawyers at the NSW Law Society’s Specialist Accreditation Conference 2019 on 9-10 August, in the Business Law component. The topic
05/08/2019