Vanessa Stuart is a director in the Restructuring & Insolvency Practice Group in Manchester. She advises insolvency practitioners, lenders, corporates and directors on a wide range of contentious and noncontentious restructuring and insolvency matters, with particular expertise in complex, high-value and time-critical situations.
Vanessa is recognised by Chambers and Partners as an “Associate to Watch”, with market commentators highlighting her technical strength, commercial judgement and ability to navigate challenging and fast-moving mandates. She is increasingly regarded by clients and insolvency practitioners as a go-to adviser on matters requiring both strategic oversight and detailed legal execution.
Her practice spans formal insolvency appointments, distressed transactions, group restructurings and insolvency-related litigation. She regularly advises on accelerated business and asset sales, as well as complex restructurings involving cross-collateralised debt structures, multiple stakeholders and regulatory considerations.
Vanessa also has significant experience in contentious insolvency matters, including bringing and defending high-value claims, applications for injunctive relief and disputes involving allegations of breach of duty, asset recovery and enforcement.
Her ability to operate seamlessly across both contentious and non-contentious matters is a key strength.
She is Joint Insolvency Examination Board (JIEB) qualified and a member of R3. She is also a founding member of the Northwest sub-committee of the International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation (IWIRC).
Noncontentious Restructuring and Insolvency
Advising administrators on the appointment and accelerated sale of a national recruitment group’s business and assets to a management-backed vehicle, including associated disposals and transitional arrangements to preserve continuity of trading and employment.
Advising administrators on an expedited sale of business assets in the energy sector, enabling the continuation of consumer contracts and preservation of value in a distressed, cash-constrained environment.
Advising a holding company and its trading subsidiaries on a complex restructuring arising from financial distress, involving cross-collateralised liabilities in excess of £100 million, including review of key contracts and accreditations, and coordination of multidisciplinary advice to preserve operations and employment.
Advising on pre-pack and accelerated sale processes, including transactions involving connected party purchasers and innovative sale structures designed to preserve value where pre-appointment marketing is constrained.
Advising insolvency practitioners on all aspects of formal appointments and business and asset disposals.
Contentious Insolvency
Acting in the defence of high-value, multiparty insolvency and commercial claims, including a claim brought by Manolete Partners Plc involving allegations of knowing receipt and breaches of directors’ duties, together with associated injunctive proceedings including freezing orders and proprietary claims over a substantial property portfolio.
Acting for defendants and other stakeholders in claims involving allegations of fraudulent misrepresentation, restitution and unjust enrichment, including successful resolution of substantial claims at an early stage.
Advising on complex insolvency litigation involving asset recovery, enforcement strategy and competing proprietary claims across multiple parties.
Advising on insolvency-related court applications and appeals, including matters concerning the interpretation of insolvency legislation, annulment applications and challenges to prior decisions.
Advising trustees in bankruptcy and officeholders on recovery actions, including challenges to transactions and settlements entered prior to insolvency.
Advising administrators in relation to a high-profile and complex trust insolvency, including obtaining an administration order and a Berkely Applegate Order, implementation of a court-approved distribution plan and recovery of underlying investments.
Advising insolvency practitioners on all aspects of investigations into antecedent transactions, remuneration applications and insolvency act related claims.
Advisory and Distressed Situations
Advising lenders, creditors and investors in distressed scenarios, including reviewing security structures and preparation of security review reports, advising on enforcement options and analysing competing claims to assets.
Advising boards of directors on their duties where they may be trading in the "zone of insolvency", including managing risk where companies are facing financial distress.
Advising suppliers and customers on supply chain disputes arising in distressed situations, including the interplay between contractual rights and insolvency risk.