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Friday, 15 May 2026

"US bankruptcy fights are heading to London"Dr Narine Lalafaryan (Assistant Professor of Corporate Law; CERF Fellow; Fellow, Pembroke College) has been cited and quoted by the Financial Times [paywall link] in its piece "US bankruptcy fights are heading to London" for her paper 'The Global Law of Debt', co-authored with Professor Jared Ellias (Harvard Law School).

The research project, 'The Global Law of Debt', examines the historical evolution and contemporary influence of global debt finance and restructuring laws. It highlights the deeply entangled nature of legal systems across jurisdictions and considers the consequences of this entanglement for investors, clients, courts, regulators, and governments. The global law of debt has emerged from the close interconnection between London's and New York's debt ecosystems, creating unprecedented opportunities for companies, investors, and professionals to raise capital and restructure debt across borders. At the same time, this system poses significant challenges for regulators, courts, and policymakers, and facilitates the spread of practices that remain controversial. The project highlights the increased entanglement of corporate debt and restructuring systems around the world, and the increased significance of London (and the UK’s Part 26A, Part 26 of the Companies Act 2006) as a bona fide restructuring rival to the US' Chapter 11.

The Financial Times article is centred around the notion of cross-border restructuring. It cites the concept of 'the global law of debt' and quotes in particular the definition provided by the co-authors, who describe it as a "transnational system shaped more by law firms, investment banks, and investors in New York and London than by national laws or court decisions."

This research project was generously funded by the Cambridge Law Faculty's HSF Kramer Global Visitors’ Exchange Fund, enabling Dr Lalafaryan to visit Harvard Law School on several occasions.

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