When a company becomes insolvent, particularly if it is a large company, this will often mean that there will be a large-scale redundancy process. The requirements of the process can be technical, but there is a list of obligations that must be adhered and these are set out within the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (TULRCA 1992).

Litigation funding has become an essential ingredient in collective actions for breaches of competition law brought in the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT). In the recent PACCAR proceedings, the Supreme Court was asked to rule on the nature and enforceability of litigation funding agreements (LFAs) between third-party litigation funders and group representatives where the success fee is determined as a percentage of the damages award.1 The Court held with a 4:1 majority (Lady Rose dissenting)2 that the LFAs in question are damages-based fee agreements (DBAs) and, as such, unenforceable. This judgment has wide-ranging consequences, as the CAT is unlikely to allow collective actions to proceed if the funding agreements cannot be relied on. The decision has caused uncertainty and upheaval in the funding market as a considerable number of funding agreements in collective proceedings contain DBAs. It also triggered legal challenges in collective proceedings where funders are seeking to amend the funding agreements to deal with the Supreme Court ruling.3 The fall-out from the decision suggests that funding rules for collective actions may need more legislative attention – litigation funding was given some thought during the drafting of the opt-out action regime, but the legal framework for litigation funding remains fragmented and open to interpretation.4

Force majeure (FM) clauses are designed to free both parties to a contract from liability when an event beyond their control prevents one or both of them from performing the contract. Examples of such events include inclement weather, natural catastrophes, political upheaval, changes in applicable rules or regulations, or unavailability of essential supplies or services. It is common to include FM clauses in manufacturing, construction or transportation contracts, where there is a high risk of such events occurring due to the length of time required to perform the contract, or the complexity of the performance obligations. Often a lot of money is at stake and pre-allocating the risk of such events is crucial to avoid disputes further down the line. While disputes regarding the meaning and effect of FM clauses may not be unusual, such disputes rarely reach the Supreme Court. MUR Shipping was one such rare case.