Laura Smith

• Associate to Watch for 'Restructuring/Insolvency (North West)'
  "Laura Smith is recommended for advice on corporate and personal insolvency. She is also instructed on fraud disputes arising from bankruptcies."
  "Laura is commercial in her approach, assessing the likely responses from the other side and helping us form our strategy."
  "She has excellent technical knowledge and offers sensible practical solutions."
  Chambers UK 2021
• Recommended Lawyer for 'Insolvency and corporate recovery (North West)'
  The Legal 500 UK 2019/20
• Recommended Lawyer for 'Insolvency and corporate recovery (North West)'
  The Legal 500 UK 2018/19
• “...experienced in high value, cross-border insolvency litigation.”
  Legal 500 UK 2017

Following qualification, Laura has been involved in a number of interesting, high value, complex cross border insolvency litigation cases, some of which have involved consideration of novel points of law:

• Re Phoenix Kapitaldienst GmbH [2012] BPIR 392. This case involved advising high net worth investors in respect of a multi-million € claim brought against them by the German administrator of a German investment entity which had operated as a fraudulent ponzi scheme. The claim was for the recovery of the payments made out to them as investors by the company prior to it entering administration pursuant to section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 and a claim for unjust enrichment. There was no direct legal authority/precedent in the jurisdiction in relation to the legal issues raised in this case.
• Revenue & Customs Commissioners & South African Revenue Service Commissioner V Ben Nevis (Holdings) Ltd & Ors [2012] S.T.C 2157. This case involved advising the South African Revenue Service in relation to pursuit of a tax debt owed to it in the sum of c. £222m by way of a request for assistance made to HM Revenue & Customs pursuant to a new Protocol that had come into force between England and Wales and the Republic of South Africa which amended an existing double taxation convention already in force. The claim also raised issues regarding transactions defrauding creditors pursuant to section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986.
• Re Hellas Telecommunications (Luxembourg) II S.C.A (1) A Hosking (2) S Bonney – V- (1) Nauta Dutilh Avocats & Ors [2013] BPIR 756. This case involved advising the Joint Liquidators of the company in relation to an application against its former Luxembourg lawyers for information and disclosure of certain documentation pursuant to sections 234 and 236 of the Insolvency Act 1986. This matter involved a 5 day fully contested hearing including expert evidence on Luxembourg legal professional secrecy. This case is an important decision for cross border insolvency litigation in terms of the potentially significant implications it has for foreign lawyers and parties involved in multi jurisdiction restructuring cases, in particular where a company’s centre of main interests (COMI) has been transferred to England and Wales as part of a restructuring, as in this case.