Unusually, Northern Ireland, while part of the UK, shares a land border with another European Union (EU) member state, namely the Republic of Ireland. Consequently, not only do insolvency procedures in Northern Ireland differ from those in the rest of the UK, but have for some time, differed from the insolvency procedures available in the Republic of Ireland.
The EC Regulation (No. 1346/2000) on Insolvency Proceedings, which came into force on 31 May, 2002, was particularly welcomed by insolvency practitioners in Ireland, given that the objective of the regulation is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of insolvency proceedings across EU member states. As a result, the management of all Ireland insolvencies, spanning both jurisdictions, is likely to improve.
