Drelle v Servis-Terminal: Foreign Judgments & Bankruptcy
The Supreme Court has settled a question that has troubled cross-border insolvency practitioners for years: whether a creditor can petition for bankruptcy using a foreign judgment that has never been through English recognition proceedings. Drelle v Servis-Terminal LLC [2026] UKSC 29 confirms they can, reshaping the options available to creditors holding judgments from Russia, the US, China and other non-treaty jurisdictions, while leaving debtors’ substantive defences firmly intact. Here’s what changed, and what it means for you.
