The Insolvency Law Academy has constituted a Standing Committee on UNIDROIT (ILA Working Group) under the Chairmanship of Dr. M.S. Sahoo, Distinguished Professor, National Law University, Delhi, and former Chairperson, Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India, to take up for discussion the projects and programmes of UNIDROIT relevant to the activities of ILA.
Presently, there is no provisions or law to legislate in case of conflict between the Aircraft Protocol of the Cape Town Convention (Cape Town Convention) and any other law in force in India. The need for a law has been felt over many years. The insolvency of two airline companies Jet Airways and Go first have brought this issue under spotlight.
ILA organised a round table on Sunday, 2nd July 2023, in New Delhi, to discuss the Cape Town Convention and its applicability under the Indian Insolvency Regime. The roundtable was attended by judges, Prof. Ignacio Tirado, Secretary-General, UNIDROIT and Stakeholders from the insolvency industry. In the roundtable, the stakeholders expressed the need to address the issues due to provisions creating compatibility between the Cape Town Convention and other laws in force, including Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (Code).
Following the round table, the ILA Standing Committee considered the issues raised, and concerns expressed in the roundtable, the ILA Standing Committee prepared a draft thought paper outlining Aircraft Protocol of the Cape Town Convention and its applicability under Indian Insolvency Regime (Thought Paper). The draft Thought Paper was shared with stakeholders and consultation held on Wednesday, 9th August 2023.
Based on the feedback, comments and observations received from the stakeholders, ILA Standing Committee has finalised this Thought Paper on the Aircraft Protocol of the Cape Town Convention and its applicability under the Indian Insolvency Regime, for the benefit of policy makers and stakeholders.
ILA acknowledges the contribution of ILA Standing Committee in particular, Mr. Suharsh Sinha, Partner, AZB & Partners and his team for their invaluable contributions in this finalisation of the Thought Paper.
