Vol 22 (2025) - Issue 1

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Sian Participation Corp (In Liquidation) v Halimeda International Ltd [2024] UKPC 16

Synopsis
'This appeal is about the dividing line between two areas of public policy in the British Virgin Islands (“the BVI”), namely insolvency and arbitration. Put in the broadest terms, it is in the public interest that there should be a relatively simple means whereby a company which is insolvent, because it is unable to pay its debts in full as they fall due, should (unless it can be reconstructed) be placed without undue delay into an insolvency process whereby its assets are divided fairly (mainly pari passu) between all its creditors. At the same time there is a public policy that those who agree together to resolve their disputes by arbitration should be held to that agreement without interference from the courts.' (per Lord Briggs and Lord Hamblen at [1])