As we look back on the decisions handed down by the courts of the major offshore jurisdictions during 2013, I am struck again by the extraordinary variety of matters covered. We have seen decisions on matters ranging from when a fund can pay redemption requests by making distribution of assets in kind to when the protector of a trust can be removed; from the freezing of assets of persons not actually sued for any wrongdoing to the powers to be given to a foreign insolvency office-holder.
A key theme for 2013 was the ramifications in our jurisdictions of decisions of the UK Supreme Court: in the insolvency area the courts were grappling with the effect of the decision in Rubin v. Eurofinance and in the field of trusts it was the decision in Pitt v. Holt. Beyond that, as always there is a heavy cross-border element in the cases covered, and we increasingly see decisions of one offshore centre cited in another.
We have distilled these varied decisions into five subject areas: Company Law, Trust Disputes, Insolvency and Restructuring, Fund Disputes, Civil Procedure and Remedies. Links to each of these appear below, enabling you to focus on those of greatest relevance to you. Many of you responded positively to last year's round-up of cases: we hope you will find this year's equally relevant, interesting and useful.
Decisions by Subject Area
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.