Conyers’ litigation and corporate teams were recently pleased to assist China Medonline Inc. (the “Company“) in relation to the withdrawal of a winding-up petition against the Company in the Cayman Islands Grand Court, and in...more
In the recent case of Dosanjh v Balendran, the High Court granted an order for the winding up of a company on the just and equitable ground following a petition by one of the company’s two shareholders. Winding up has been...more
A creditor commences winding-up proceedings against a debtor company on the basis that the company is insolvent. The petition debt relates to a dispute within the ambit of the arbitration agreement between the creditor and...more
Arbitration clauses are commonly found in commercial contracts. However, tricky issues arise when a company subsequently seeks an order for winding up, particularly in circumstances where the facts relied on in support of the...more
Frequently obtained, but rarely challenged, dissolution orders are an important final step in the process of liquidation. Dissolution represents the end of an official liquidation and the end of a company’s life. In a...more
The decision confirms that an arbitration agreement will be upheld in the face of insolvency proceedings only if it can be shown that the petition debt is genuinely disputed on substantial grounds....more
How does an arbitration clause, or an exclusive jurisdiction clause in favour of foreign courts, affect insolvency proceedings? The effect of an arbitration clause, or an exclusive jurisdiction clause in favour of foreign...more
In a very recent judgment in the wake of the Abraaj Group fallout, the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands refused to strike out a just and equitable winding up petition and, in the process, analysed the effect of a purported...more
Is it possible for a debtor company to issue debt (such as bonds) and contractually agree for that debt to rank lower in priority than debts owed by a company to other unsecured creditors? This article examines the commercial...more
The Hong Kong Court of Appeal has finally laid to rest the vexed issue of whether an arbitration agreement or a winding-up petition should take precedence in an insolvency situation. In two parallel decisions, the Court of...more
On 8 February 2024, the Honourable Mr Justice Paul Webster KC dismissed an application to set aside a statutory demand served on Angola Group Holdings Limited (the “Company”) by Bai Jun Tian Cheng Limited (“Bai Jun”). Conyers...more
The Honourable Mr Justice Kawaley granted a winding up order against Airstream Investment Ltd (the “Company”), an exempted company incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands. Conyers acted for the successful...more
Insolvency litigation witnessed intriguing developments across multiple aspects in Hong Kong in 2023, ranging from the court’s updated Practice Direction on Bankruptcy and Winding-Up Proceedings to on-going debate surrounding...more
Here we present a concise summary of significant cases and developments in company litigation in Hong Kong in 2023. Highlights include: 1. Subject company's participation in unfair prejudice proceedings: The Court once...more
New statutory provisions have come into effect that will modernise the way documents are filed with the Official Receiver in Hong Kong. The changes, which took place on the last working day of 2023, pave the way for the...more
The Singapore Court of Appeal has overturned the High Court decision in the case of Founder Group (Hong Kong) Limited (in liquidation) v Singapore JHC Co Pte Ltd [2023] SGCH 159, in the latest development concerning the...more
On 25 October 2023, the Hong Kong Court of First Instance granted leave to appeal the decision in Shandong Chenming Paper Holdings Ltd [2023] HKCFI 2065 to dismiss a winding up petition in favour of arbitration. This opens...more
The Singapore High Court has again confirmed that a winding-up application concerning a disputed debt that is subject to an arbitration agreement will be dismissed if the arbitration agreement is prima facie valid and covers...more
Three recent Hong Kong first instance court decisions have left undecided the question of whether a winding-up petition will trump an agreement to arbitrate when it comes to a winding-up and particularly in the context of...more
The Hong Kong Court confirmed that noteholders with beneficial interest in global notes do not have standing to present winding-up petitions against issuers. Meanwhile, the BVI Court reached the opposite conclusion in a...more
A recent ruling shows that an arbitration agreement alone is not necessarily a complete defence to a Hong Kong winding-up petition. The Hong Kong Companies Court recently issued a winding-up order against a debtor company,...more
In another blow to the concept of "soft touch" provisional liquidation, the Court of First Instance has granted an ancillary winding up order against a Hong Kong listed company that had already been wound up in its place of...more
On 11 November 2022, Mr Justice Kawaley ordered the first appointment of restructuring officers in Re Oriente Group Limited (FSD 231 of 2022) under the new Cayman Islands restructuring regime, with reserved written reasons to...more
The Hong Kong Court of Appeal has confirmed that the court should respect the effect of an exclusive jurisdiction clause in bankruptcy proceedings, just as it does in ordinary civil actions. To do otherwise, it said, it would...more