Vanessa Finch provides an interesting look at corporate insolvency laws and processes. She adopts an interdisciplinary approach to place two questions at the centre of her discussion. Are current UK laws and procedures efficient, expert, accountable and fair? Are fundamentally different conceptions of insolvency law needed for it to develop in a way that serves corporate and broader social ends? Topics considered in this wide-ranging book include different ways of financing companies, causes of corporate failure and prospects for designing rescue-friendly processes. Also examined are alternative asset distribution of failed companies, allocations of insolvency risks and effects of insolvency on a company's directors and employees. Finch argues that changes of approach are needed if insolvency law is to develop with coherence and purpose. This book will appeal to academics and students at advanced undergraduate and graduate level, and to legal practitioners throughout the common law world.

This volume analyses corporate insolvency law as a coherent whole, stemming from common fundamental principles and amenable to being justified or criticised on that basis. The author explains why consistency of principle must be sought and how it might be found in the relevant statutory and case law. He then constructs an egalitarian theory for the analysis of corporate insolvency law, based on the premise that all the parties affected by this law are to be treated as equals. He argues that this theory can reconcile the dictates of fairness with the demands of economic efficiency. The theory is employed to analyse some of the most important aspects of insolvency law. Why should the individualistic method of enforcing claims against solvent companies give way to a collective method during insolvency? Why are there different formal mechanisms for dealing with troubled companies? What role does the pari passu principle play in the distribution of an insolvent company s assets?The controversial issues of whether and when secured creditors should be accorded priority over others receive detailed consideration. The functional role of the floating charge and its relationship with receivership are also analysed in this context. The many questions relating to the operation of the new administration procedure introduced by the Enterprise Act 2002 are considered in the light of principle. The book also analyses the role of the wrongful trading provisions. It examines, finally, why insolvency law objects to certain transactions at an undervalue and those having a preferential effect. This volume aims to enhance understanding of this important branch of the law, and to suggest principled solutions to problems which have not yet received judicial attention.

Covering the subject of insolvency law, this text contains detailed academic analysis where necessary and also covers areas of debate and controversy in the subject. Insolvency is set in its social, economic and historical context and brief extracts for judgements and statutes are given.

This text explores in depth the fundamental principles of corporate insolvency law and the many conceptual and analytical problems posed by the legislation and offers both theoretical and practical solutions.

Written by IMF's Legal Department, this book outlines the key issues involved in designing and implementing orderly and effective insolvency procedures, which play a critical role in fostering growth and competitiveness and may also assist in the prevention and resolution of financial crises. The book draws on lessons learned from firsthand experience by some of the IMF's 182 member countries. It includes an analysis of the major policy choices that countries need to address when designing an insolvency system, a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of these choices, and a number of specific recommendations.