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Municipalities’ path to recovery under the US Bankruptcy Code is just as clear The US Bankruptcy Code is one of the clearest and most respected in the world. Companies facing insolvency try to leverage off any US connection they might have to gain access to it. Corporates' use of Chapter 11 has increased tremendously over the last decade. Foreign companies including Overseas Shipholding Group, CEDC Vodka and Maxcom have all used US assets, subsidiaries or registrations as a means to file bankruptcy under US law. Debtors and creditors typically have more confidence in the outcome when a proceeding is handled in this well tested way.

Daniel Hayek, Christina Meyer and Chantal Joris of Prager Dreifuss examine the revised Swiss insolvency law and its implications for debtors and creditors

Mark Brown and Alex Ping of Al Tamimi & Company look at recent developments in the UAE legal system affecting the financial sector and the establishment of the Abu Dhabi Global Market

Companies will be forced to be more innovative in their funding The Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) recent proposal to further limit banks' exposure to a single corporate and connected parties could prompt companies to tap the local debt capital markets. In a March 27 discussion paper, the regulator proposed capping exposure to connected counterparties at 25% of a financial institution's eligible capital base.

John Breslin Karole Cuddihy Banks and other financial institutions operate in a highly regulated environment. Issues frequently arise where an institution has breached a regulatory requirement but seeks to enforce its contractual rights; for instance, where there is a regulatory breach in the formation of a loan contract and the institution seeks to recover the loan or enforce security for the loan. The legal issues which arise are complicated. In a recent decision (Quinn v IBRC [2015] IESC 29), the Irish Supreme Court indicated the general approach the courts should take. The plaintiffs had provided security for loans which were said to have been illegal under financial assistance prohibitions and market abuse rules. In brief, they alleged that the defendant bank had lent money to a number of corporate investors (effectively controlled by their father/husband) to enable those investors to fund contracts for difference (CFD) positions in the bank's shares (which were at the time listed on the Irish Stock Exchange). The plaintiffs claimed that this illegality rendered their obligations under the security contracts unenforceable. The High Court held, in determining this preliminary issue, that the plaintiffs were entitled to advance and rely on an argument that the security contracts and contracts of guarantee were unenforceable for reasons of public policy (on the basis that a court will not assist in the enforcement of an illegal contract). The bank appealed to the Supreme Court.

Pedro Cortés Marta Mourão This seems to be the year to focus on the economy of Macau. In light of the latest Policy Address delivered by the Chief Executive on March 23 2015, it is clear that the Macau Government needs to focus on stable and healthy economic adjustment, risk prevention and the promotion of economic restructuring. The goals in this sector include: maintaining the stability and health of the financial and monetary situation and the low unemployment rate; improving the business environment; actively promoting the stabilisation of products

Selva Quintero On November 12 2014, the Supreme Court of Justice of Panama issued a ruling on constitutionality on a case between Compañía Agrícola Industrial (CAISA), a major Panamanian pork producer, and Royal Dutch Airlines (KLM). The ruling concerned the requirement that parties involved in legal proceedings adhere to the principles of due process, as guaranteed by the Panamanian Constitution. The Supreme Court's ruling confirmed a lower court's decision on a constitutional action, wherein KLM had requested that a prior decision ordering the Dutch airline to pay millions of dollars in compensation to CAISA be declared invalid on the basis that KLM's due process rights were violated. The alleged violation arose from the trial judge's failure to serve KLM in accordance with the proper legal procedure for notifying companies domiciled outside of Panama. It is important to note that, unlike jurisdictions such as the United States, in Panama the responsibility to serve the defendant rests with the court. In such cases where the defendant resides outside of the national territory, the law authorises service by means of letters of request.

Nicola de Sylva When the Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) was first set up, only firms that provided services to the financial service industries were permitted to be established. That is no longer the case, and QFC licensed entities now serve a wide array of businesses. The permitted activities that can be undertaken in or from the QFC are prescribed by Qatari Law 7 of 2005, as amended (QFC Law) and are known as permitted activities, which include regulated and non-regulated activities.

Ignacio Buil Aldana José Luis Lucena During 2014, Spain's Insolvency Act suffered an accelerated shift. This was a response to the economy's need to adapt to unprecedented complex insolvency cases that the former wording of the law was unable to tackle. However, this sudden legal evolution has engendered a general feeling of uncertainty caused by the lack of case law and real life examples. In an attempt to remedy this situation, in late 2014 the commercial justices of Madrid drafted a unified document approving common criteria with which to approach the new Spanish Insolvency Act. In essence, light has been shed upon a number of issues that have been holding back investors from distressed investing opportunities in Spain.

Bruno Amiel The increased activity of investment funds in the Peruvian market during the last years has led to a rapid reshaping of the Peruvian corporate and M&A market. This increased activity came about both through the creation of new local investment funds and the heighted presence of foreign investment funds. Such investment funds have become major players particularly in private equity transactions, real estate and financing operations, where transactions are no longer limited to the acquisition of controlling stakes in large scale companies. They also now include acquisitions of controlling or minority participations in profitable small and medium companies operating in different sectors by investors pooling their funds through such investment funds. The increased activity was boosted by the Peruvian government enacting regulations to further local and foreign investment, executing investment treaties, simplifying administrative procedures for obtaining concessions, permits, and authorisations. This allowed the investment funds to further increase their investments in small and medium size companies operating in the different sectors. The consequent growth of such companies now requires a review of previously non-existent corporate governance regulations to protect new investors and maximise returns.