For information only - not an official document
UNIS/L/141
5 July 2010
UNCITRAL Legislative Guide (Part III) on Insolvency Law Adopted
VIENNA, 5 July (UN Information Service) - On 1 July 2010, the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law adopted part three of the UNCITRAL Legislative Guide on Insolvency Law, dealing with the treatment of enterprise groups in insolvency.
In approving the text, the Commission recognized that the business of corporations is increasingly conducted, both domestically and internationally, through enterprise groups, which are therefore an important feature of the global economy and significant to international trade and commerce. Notwithstanding that significance, and the importance of knowing how a group will be treated in insolvency if its business fails, as well as the need for fast and efficient resolution of its financial difficulties, the Commission noted that very few, if any, States recognized enterprise groups as distinct legal entities or had a comprehensive regime for their treatment in insolvency.
The purpose of this text is to address that lack and provide timely guidance to States on how to develop and improve the administration of the insolvency of enterprise groups, both domestically and in the cross-border context.
The Commission also considered a number of topics for future work in the insolvency field and agreed to commence work on the following: developing guidance on the interpretation and application of selected concepts of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency relating to centre of main interests; considering the liabilities and responsibilities of officers and directors of enterprises in the context of insolvency; preparing a study on various aspects of cross-border resolution of the insolvency of large and complex financial institutions; and preparing a text providing information for judges on the use and interpretation of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency.
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The United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) is the core legal body of the United Nations system in the field of international trade law. Its mandate is to remove legal obstacles to international trade by progressively modernizing and harmonizing trade law. It prepares legal texts in a number of key areas such as international commercial dispute settlement, electronic commerce, insolvency, security interests, sale of goods, transport law, procurement and infrastructure development. UNCITRAL also provides technical assistance to law reform activities, including assisting Member States to review and assess their law reform needs and to draft the legislation required to implement UNCITRAL texts. The UNCITRAL Secretariat is located in Vienna, Austria, and maintains a website at www.uncitral.org.
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For information contact:
Jenny
Clift
Senior Legal Officer
UNCITRAL Secretariat
Email:
jenny.clift@uncitral.org
