Macfarlanes has advised the Dobbies Garden Centres, the UK’s largest operator of garden centres, on its restructuring plan under Part 26A of the Companies Act 2006.

The restructuring plan, which was approved by the Court of Session earlier today, allows Dobbies to address historically uneconomical rent costs, facilitates new funding and provides Dobbies with a path to return to sustainable profitability.

The restructuring plan is only the second to go through the Scottish Courts. Macfarlanes worked in collaboration with Ali Khaki and Lindsay Hallam at FTI as financial advisors, Allana Sweeny, Fiona Carlin and Gary Moffat at Burness Paull as Dobbies’ Scottish lawyers and Scots counsel Almira Delibegovic-Broome KC and Elisabeth Roxburgh to successfully obtain the Court’s sanction. Tom Smith KC and Matthew Abraham of South Square also provided English law advice.

The Macfarlanes team was led by restructuring and insolvency partners Paul Keddie and Jat Bains with assistance from senior associate Tim Bromley-White, associates Natalie Peacock and Tom Birt and paralegal, James Tyldesley. 

This is the second Part 26A restructuring plan this year in which Macfarlanes have advised the plan company following the sanctioning of Superdry’s restructuring plan in June, with Macfarlanes also advising other stakeholders in two other restructuring plans this year.