Sales or Plans: A Comparative Account of the ‘New’ Corporate Reorganization – Version 2.0

04 Oct Sales or Plans: A Comparative Account of the ‘New’ Corporate Reorganization – Version 2.0

In April, this blog highlighted research done by Seton Hall‘s Stephen Lubben and York University‘s Stephanie Ben-Ishai on similarities and differences between asset sales conducted under the US Bankruptcy Code and those proceeding under the Canadian Companies Creditors’ Arrangement Act (“CCAA”).

Last week, the authors offered a revised version of their earlier work, available here.  As noted by the authors’ abstract:

Ultimately, . . . questions of speed and certainty mark the biggest difference between [asset sales in the US and Canada], as the American approach [to asset sales] offers greater flexibility, which is apt to facilitate quicker . . . sales.  However, . . . the Canadian approach also provides significant benefits, particularly in the realm of employee protection and the ability of the monitor to act as an independent check on quick sales proceedings. . . . [W]hile the American approach is advantageous in situations with exceptional time constraints, the Canadian approach under the . . . CCAA is more beneficial for a typical corporate reorganization, insofar as the role of the monitor and other limitations of the CCAA will prevent overuse of the quick sales process.