Court of Appeal judgment in £3bn Thames Water restructuring plan
The Court of Appeal has now handed down judgment giving reasons for its previously-announced decision upholding the order of Mr Justice Leech sanctioning the first of two envisaged restructuring plans for the Thames Water group, the largest water and sewerage company in the UK.
William Day and Lucas Jones (together with Dr Riz Mokal and Rabin Kok of South Square, and Niamh Davis of XXIV Old Buildings) acted pro bono for Mr Charlie Maynard MP who pursued public interest objections to the restructuring plan, instructed by Brett Israel and Simon De Broise of Marriott Harrison LLP.
Mr Maynard MP was successful in part of his second ground of appeal, overturning Mr Justice Leech’s decision to sanction the releases of Thames Water’s directors and advisers (at [224]-[245]). However, the Court of Appeal rejected Mr Maynard MP’s broader public interest arguments, primarily concerned with the cost of the restructuring plan (at [170]-[222]).
The judgment contains a detailed analysis of the position of out-of-the-money creditors (who opposed the restructuring plan alongside Mr Maynard MP) and third parties (here, Thames Water customers) in the exercise of the Court’s sanction discretion.
The judgment ([2025] EWCA Civ 475) and can be found on the National Archive website here.
