Browsing by Author "Fromholdt, Oona"

This master’s thesis examines the new group coordination proceedings established in the renewed EU Insolvency Regulation (the Recast Regulation). The theme of this thesis as such is not new, as coordination of insolvency proceedings has been studied both in national and international levels. However, for the first time it is possible to study an actual solution for coordination of insolvency proceedings of multinational groups of companies, as the European Union tries to solve the problems of group insolvency by establishing rules for coordination of insolvency proceedings. This thesis aims to answer the following ostensibly simple question: what are group coordination proceedings? Because the rules concerning group coordination proceedings are so new, this kind of basic research conducted in this thesis is in order, especially as there is no knowledge on how the group coordination proceedings work in real-life and there is no case law that would demonstrate how the rules concerning the group coordination proceedings should be interpreted. As for the relevant theoretical framework, this thesis provides analysis on the definition of a group of companies in the context of the Recast Regulation. Furthermore, the separate legal nature of group members shall be discussed and the opposing theories, the theory of legal separateness and the theory of unification shall be examined. In addition, the cross-border aspect of the thesis shall be investigated as well as different ways to coordinate insolvency proceedings opened in respect of different group members. In the thesis, these different ways are divided into three different categories: coordinated cooperation, joint administration and substantive consolidation. The chapters before the conclusions are dedicated to the specific rules concerning group coordination proceedings. Thus, opening of the group coordination proceedings as well as the tasks of the coordinator shall be discussed. Not all the problematics shall be introduced as the length of the thesis is quite limited. The aim has been to highlight the most important problematics. It is concluded that the theory of legal separateness presents itself extremely well in the group coordination proceedings, thus it is clear that the theory is followed almost to the letter. As for the group coordination proceedings as a whole, it is suitable only to large insolvency cases where to costs of the coordination can be taken care of. In addition, the choice of an outside coordinator is probably not the best solution, as it takes time for the coordinator to get to know all the relevant proceedings. On the other hand, interests of conflicts are avoided better by choosing an outsider to act as the coordinator. However, the group coordination proceedings do not necessarily lead to efficient and effective coordination of insolvency proceedings opened in respect of group members. In conclusion, the concept of the group coordination proceedings is a beautiful idea, but the situations where such coordination is used are more of an exception than a rule.