Bankruptcy
Directors' obligation & duties
liquidation & winding-up
workout & special situations
Corporate rescue
distress transaction
receivership
RESTRUCTURING & INSOLVENCY
Our dedicated restructuring and insolvency team is made up of experienced practitioners. We advise banks, borrowers, directors and investors, as well as insolvency practitioners in all types of insolvency situations. We have the expertise to affect all types of restructuring transactions, including moratoriums; rescheduling of debts; debt to equity swaps; capital restructuring; restructuring by means of corporate finance transactions (e.g. buy-outs, M&A, new equity investment, etc.); structured receiverships; corporate restructurings, and restructurings through insolvency processes. In addition, we have extensive experience advising and acting in relation to disputes and applications arising in restructures and workouts, voluntary administrations, liquidations and receiverships.
Bankruptcy
For individuals who are facing debt or solvency issues, we can also advise on disputes with creditors (or debtors) as well as bankruptcy and alternatives to bankruptcy, including individual voluntary arrangements between you and your creditors. Personal bankruptcy is a difficult situation, and we have the skills to assist you and explore both in court and out of court options with you.
Corporate Rescue
Our experienced team of lawyers are experts at devising creative solutions to resolve tough credit problems. We have a track-record of successfully restructuring the balance sheets of distressed companies to maximise value by considering all options, providing analysis and options for a re-capitalisaton, and leveraging off our network of financial professionals in the market. This includes the extensive re-negotiation of credit facilities across the capital structure of the group, both at the operational and holding levels of the corporate structure, deploying tool such as schemes of arrangement, often across multiple jurisdictions, to tapping the markets through capital raising.
Directors' Obligations & Duties
We can assist with the full spectrum of issues that you may face in a contentious and non-contentious financial distress scenario from retention of title claims, security package reviews, enforcement of security, general debt recovery procedures through the courts, to the appointment of receivers, and/or liquidators’ investigations. Having acted for creditors, steering committees, investigating accountants, independent financial advisers, and officeholders (receivers, liquidators), we are able to generate options that maximise value recovery and to apply careful scrutiny to restructuring proposals so you can fulfil your statutory duties as a director and best defend your interests during corporate restructuring and reorganisations.
Corporate Streamlining
We have extensive experience with solvent winding ups, business wind-downs, and the statutory corporate amalgamation procedures. These same expertise in corporate restructuring are often deployed in non-distress situations, particularly post-acquisition or integration following mergers and acquisition deals and we can help you streamline the corporate structure (pre- or post-merger), transfer or dispose of certain businesses, or implement other tax optimised structures with your tax and financial advisers.
Liquidation & Winding-up
For business facing financial distressed or end of their useful life cycle, we can assist with unlocking value and bringing finality to joint venture and other business arrangements. Even prior to the appointment of the liquidator, we can work with you to explore and unlock remaining value in the business, as well as to minimise risks from exiting a business. Given global supply chains and worldwide operations, it is common to be faced with situations where there are issues not only in Hong Kong, but in other multiple jurisdictions around the world. Our experience, deep connections, and we have extensive experience in handling cross-border issues, including conflict of laws and insolvency representation or recognition applications as well as the new opportunities that arise from the Hong Kong – Mainland recognition arrangements for court orders and insolvency practitioners.
Receivership
We have acted for secured creditors and charge holders, doing security reviews and analysis all the way through to handling the enforcement. The exercise of these rights must be done strictly in accordance with the terms of the security and an invalid appointment is very risky. Therefore, our pre- and post- appointment work ensures that the lenders and the receivers appointed to act can recover maximum value at minimum risk and delay. Our experience also extents to court appointed receivers, which may be the best solution in some cases, such as shareholder disputes.
Workout & Special Situations
Our team has experience in dealing with distressed debt transactions, high yield investments, and alternative investments. These special situations and investment opportunities can provide both an avenue for corporates to realise value in difficult times, and unique returns for astute or specialist investors seeking upside from capital appreciation and/or value creation through a restructuring process. We can assist you in detailed analysis prior to investing or give you strategic alternatives to existing investments with a view to taking your high yielding investment and turn it into an enterprise value investment.
We have on the ground resources enabling us to provide you with local access, connections, and insight into the markets where you are investing.
