Something Old, Something New? The Potential Impact of the EU Preventive Restructuring Directive through an Irish Case Study

This article critically analyses the potential impact of the EU Directive on preventive restructuring and insolvency by specific reference to the existing Irish regime. The article questions whether the procedures under the Directive could possibly add anything ‘new’ to Irish laws, particularly the principal rescue process of examinership. Even if examinership may be considered a relatively robust model, there are deficiencies associated with the process in meeting the needs of all company types. The article concludes by reflecting on the overall nature of the Directive in terms of how rescue could be legislatively framed in the interests of viable companies.