International
Australia’s limited insolvency reforms for small business
With our international trading partners recently meeting to examine ways to handle micro to small enterprise (MSE) insolvency impacted by COVID-19,[1] the Australian government –…
Australian lawyers attending UNCITRAL’s Working Group V on MSME insolvency – May 2021
UNCITRAL’s Working Group V - Insolvency is reconvening this week 4-7 May 2021, following its last meeting in December 2020. Australian lawyers are attending, remotely,…
World Bank insolvency principles – how does Australia compare?
The World Bank has released its updated Principles for Effective Insolvency and Creditor/Debtor Regimes (the Principles), emphasising the needs of micro, small and medium enterprises…
The new Attorney-General and business bankruptcies
As the new Attorney-General, Senator Michaelia Cash[1] will find her portfolio encompasses the current law reform debate about whether and for how long there should…
Australia’s corporate SME insolvency law may soon become law – and then….
The Corporations Amendment (Corporate Insolvency Reforms) Bill 2020 progressed through a third reading in the Australian parliament on 8 December 2020 and its passage is…
Insolvency and debtor in possession – hospital or home care?
If Joe thought he might have a serious medical condition, but did not want to go to hospital for a period of some weeks to…
Cross-border proof of an Australian bankruptcy
A certificate of appointment under Bankruptcy Regulation 8.02 in relation to a voluntary bankruptcy should generally be sufficient to support a trustee’s proposed application overseas…
Ombudsman’s company insolvency recommendations
The ASBFEO (Ombudsman) has asked that the government fix what is said to be a broken corporate insolvency system in Australia before the apocryphal ‘insolvency…
Virtual Panel Series – UNCITRAL Texts and COVID-19 Response and Recovery – MSMEs and access to credit and secured lending
An interest group in Australia, the UNCITRAL Coordination Committee for Australia (UNCCA), has a role in monitoring and attending UNCITRAL[1] sessions including those of UNCITRAL’s…
Managing Australian and New Zealand insolvency practitioners
CAANZ took a worthy leap some years ago in bringing the Australian and New Zealand accounting professions together. Given that an “accountant” has a limited…
UNCITRAL guidance on MSE insolvency – Insolvency Law Bulletin article
An article in the latest Insolvency Law Bulletin[1] reports on the progress of UNCITRAL Working Group V[2] in developing law reform guidance on the resolution…
ARITA’s ‘bushfire and COVID-19’ request to government for funding
ARITA – the main Australian industry body representing insolvency practitioners and lawyers - has asked the government[1] for funding to enable it to address various…
How to best handle a major airline collapse
When a government sets up an inquiry into how to deal with the insolvency of a certain industry, the industry and those involved in it…
The proposed reinvigoration of the UK’s business rescue culture through ‘recalibration of the balance of power’ – some steps too far for Australia?
A recent academic article from the UK has reviewed proposed restructuring reforms announced by the government in August 2018, although yet to be implemented. These…
Cross-border insolvency hearing between Australia and New Zealand
The Federal Court of Australia requested the High Court of New Zealand to help it jointly hear applications on 18 February relating to the pooling of…
Ombudsman’s insolvency inquiry and the nature of small business debt
The Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman has written a newspaper article about the 'Insolvency Practices Inquiry' in the context of the impact of…
Dealing with MSE insolvency – UNCCA Australia
Earlier in December 2019, LLM candidate and graduate lawyer Samantha Pacchiarotta and final year law student Cassandra Heaslip attended Insolvency Working Group V's 56th session…
Small businesses and their financial difficulties – the Ombudsman’s inquiry
A discussion paper[1] issued on 20 December from the Insolvency Practices Inquiry of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman examines the financial difficulties…