The Insolvency Regulation addresses jurisdiction, recognition and applicable law, and also contains

specific conflict-of-laws provisions. It provides that the courts of the member state where the centre of a
debtor’s main interest is situated shall have jurisdiction to open insolvency proceedings.51 The law
applicable to insolvency proceedings shall be the law of this member state- lex fori . The insolvency
proceedings shall be recognised in all other member states.52 The Regulation also provides for the
possibility under certain circumstances to open secondary insolvency proceedings.53 It subjects, inter
alia, the bankrupt estate and the claims of creditors, as well as the right of set-off, to the law of the state
of the opening of proceedings. However, the right of set-off shall not be affected by the insolvency
proceedings, except under rules for voidability, voidness and non-enforceability.54 The regime under
the Winding-up Directive for insurance undertakings will apply to reorganisation measures and winding-
up proceedings with regard to insurance companies. The Directive also applies to reorganisation
measures and winding-up proceedings concerning branches of insurance undertakings within the
European Union, including branches of such undertakings having their head office outside the European
Union. In the case that an insurance undertaking with branches in other EU member states becomes
insolvent, the entity ill be subject to a single insolvency proceeding in the member state where it has its
registered office (the home member state). These proceedings will be governed by a single insolvency
regime, namely the laws of the home member state. This approach is consistent with the home country
control principle, which constitutes one of the pillars of EU financial law. Coordinated rules for
reorganisation measures are intended to enable the preservation or restoration of the financial
soundness of an insurance undertaking and to prevent to the extent possible a winding-up situation. The
structure of the Winding-up Directive for insurance undertakings is similar to that of the Winding-up
Directive for credit institutions. Accordingly, the Directive reflects an approach based on mutual
recognition, and the interrelated principles of unity, universality, coordination, publicity, equivalent
treatment and protection of insurance creditors. It also contains some specific provisions of particular
relevance in the context of insurance activities

Under current English law, insolvency proceedings are predominantly regulated by the Insolvency Act
1986 (the Act). There are essentially four types of insolvency procedure in England: liquidation,
receivership, administration and voluntary arrangement. Liquidation (or winding-up) brings a company’s
existence to an end (dissolution). The liquidation process consists of the gathering of the company’s
assets, the determination of its liabilities, and the distribution of its assets amongst its creditors.
Liquidation can be in the form of a compulsory winding-up order by a court (commenced by petition of a
creditor), or a voluntary winding-up either by the company’s members or by its creditors

English courts may wind up foreign companies, ie those not registered under the Companies Act 1985
but incorporated under a foreign jurisdiction. Although in theory universal, the courts would in practice
exercise such jurisdiction only where there were assets of the company in the United Kingdom, the
company carried on business in the United Kingdom, or benefit might reasonably be expected to accrue
to creditors of the company from the making of a winding-up order in the United Kingdom. If the
company was already in liquidation in its home country, the English proceedings would be subsidiary to
such proceedings, sending details of assets and claims to the relevant competent authorities and aiming
principally to realise the UK assets of the company and deal with creditors which had lodged claims in