Shopping and Scheming, and the Rule in Gibbs
South Square Digest, March 2017, 58-63
5 Pages Posted: 24 Feb 2017 Last revised: 15 Mar 2017
Date Written: February 22, 2017
Abstract
The Singapore High Court’s decision in Pacific Andes Resources Development Ltd. [2016] SGHC 210 provides the opportunity to examine the origin, rationale, limits, and defensibility of the so-called ‘rule in Gibbs,’ named after though considerably pre-dating the judgment of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales in Gibbs v. Societe Industrielle (1890) 25 QBD 399. The focus is exclusively on the rule’s application to the indebtedness of distressed debtors, that is to say, those who are actually or imminently insolvent. A principled way is proposed of distinguishing objectionable from legitimate forum shopping, and the application of the rule in the context of schemes of arrangement receives particular attention.
JEL Classification: K35, G33
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation