Insolvent Jersey Companies: A Creditor's Options

There was a ripple of concern in both Jersey and the UK after the High Court's decision in HSBC Bank v Tambrook Jersey Limited [2013] EWHC 866 (Ch). The High Court held that section 426 of the Insolvency Act 1986, which allows the English Court to assist a Jersey Court, was not triggered because the Jersey Court was not acting "in its function as an insolvency court" by issuing a letter of request to the English Court.

The High Court held that without the Royal Court determining insolvency proceedings, it was not entitled to seek assistance from the English Court. The decision threatened to dismantle a developed practice by which creditors had been able to prompt Jersey companies to be placed into administration in the UK.