About this Event
Order of Activities
*9.30am to 10:30am - Registration and Breakfast.
10.30 am – 10:40/10:50 am, Conference to be declared open by Professor Timothy Nichol, Pro Vice Chancellor (Faculty of Society and Culture)
10:50- 11:00 am Message from convenor of the conference – Dr Francis Okanigbuan, Senior Lecturer, School of Law and Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University - 10:50- 11:00am
11:00 – 11.40/11:45 Keynote Lecture – Professor David Milman, Professor Emeritus, School of Law, Lancaster University. Questions/answers until 12:00
12 noon -1.30 - break-out sessions (three sessions will run concurrently) 12 noon -1.30pm - Light refreshment will be available before and during the breakout sessions.
1.30 – 2.00pm – Lunch break/networking. Lunch will be provided.
2.00pm- 2:40/2.45 -Guest Lecture - Professor Paula Giliker, Professor of Comparative Law, University of Bristol Law School. Questions/answers until 2:55/3:00pm
Next - Panel Session – until 3:45/4:00pm
Not later than 4.00pm Closing remarks– Dr Alison Lui (Associate Professor in Corporate and Financial Law) School of Law and Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University.
The Modern Corporation Conference – Liverpool | Wednesday | 13th May 2026
List of Speakers
1. Professor David Milman – Keynote Speaker and Chair of Panel
Professor Milman is Professor Emeritus, School of Law, Lancaster University. He has wide interests in the area of international business law. He is an expert in Corporate Law and Insolvency Law. His research interests are in the fields of company law, insolvency law, international business law and partnership law. He has held editorial and advisory positions for leading publications including The Company Lawyer, Insolvency Intelligence, Sweet and Maxwell's Company Law Newsletter, and the Bankruptcy and Personal Insolvency Reports. He co-authors the renowned Sealy & Milman: Annotated Guide to the Insolvency Legislation (currently in its 28th edition). He has worked on research projects for various governmental and non-governmental institutions. He is a founding member of the University of Manchester’s Centre for Law and Business, and a Professorial Associate at Exchange Chambers
2. Professor Paula Giliker – Guest Speaker and Panel Member
Professor Giliker is Professor of Comparative Law at the University of Bristol Law School and Co-Director, Centre for Private and Commercial Law, University of Bristol, having previously worked at the Universities of Oxford and Queen Mary, University of London. She is a former Chair of the British Association of Comparative Law, and former President and Honorary Secretary of the Society of Legal Scholars of the UK and Ireland (SLS). She is a Visiting Professor at the University of Hong Kong. She is a Titular Fellow of the International Academy of Comparative Law and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. Her areas of expertise include comparative private law, tort law, contract law and European private law.
3. Mr David Wafer - Panel Member
Mr Wafer is Founder and CEO, McIver Scott Recruitment Limited, Former Chair, Institute of Directors, Liverpool, Advisory Board Member, Liverpool Football Club Foundation.
Mr Wafer has extensive experience of working with senior leaders to help them shape their businesses and careers. Using psychometric personality profiles with both clients and their candidates. He works with Liverpool Football Club Foundation as an advisory board member. He also serves as an advisor to the Liverpool and Sefton Chambers of Commerce Business and Policy Committee.
4. Mr Joe McManus - Panel Member
Mr McManus is Senior Manager, Entity Compliance & Governance, EY” Ernst & Young LLP. He is a company secretary and governance professional. He is a Fellow member of the Chartered Governance Institute UK & Ireland and the Branch Chair of the North-West Chartered Governance Institute UK & Ireland Branch. He has over 10 years’ experience in board support, AGM project management, assisting with annual report project management and subsidiary governance within listed companies, and specialises in the financial services sector.
Panel session that consists of representatives from academia and industry participants will provide insights on challenges of corporate insolvency on creditor interests, the economy, directors’ duties, the role of shareholders, and comparative approaches towards resolving similar jurisdictional challenges.
The main sessions from selected abstracts will run concurrently
Session One – Redmonds Building Room 523
Chair Professor David M. Ong, School of Law and Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University
1. Professor Rebecca Parry, Nottingham Law School, Nottingham Trent University
Title of paper - Digital Infrastructure Insolvency and the Public Interest: Private Equity, Systemic Risk, and the Case for Reform
2. Dr Andelka M. Phillips
Associate Professor, School of Law, University of Leicester
Title of paper - Their Best Intentions Don’t Mean Much – Leaking Sensitive Data
and Accountability – the case of 23andMe
3. Dr Chijioke Oforji
Visiting lecturer, Kings College London
Title of paper - Is the Wrongful Trading Prohibition in S214 of the Insolvency Act 1986 Still Fit for Purpose in 2026?
4. Dr. Sotirios Santatzoglou, Lecturers, Law School | Keele University and
Dr. Diane Blenkiron, Lecturer, Law School | Keele University
Title of paper - Managerial discretion during financially stressed times and the objective test of dishonest
Session Two - Redmonds Building Room 519
Chair - Dr Alison Lui (Associate Professor in Corporate and Financial Law) School of Law and Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University
1. Dr. Murat Can Pehlivanoğlu, Associate Professor of Commercial Law | Director of Vocational School | Academic Administrator of Visiting Researcher Program Office at Istanbul Kent University
Title of paper - Rethinking Directors’ Liability for Public Law Debts of The Company
2. Dr John Wood, Lecturer in Company and Insolvency Law, Lancaster University
Title of paper - Directors in times of financial distress: the rescue paradox
3. Dr Angharad James, Lecturer in Law, Department of Law and Criminology, Aberystwyth University.
Title of paper -Monitors, Management and Moratoria: Is the CIGA Moratorium Truly Director-Led?
4. Dr Fiona Lakareber Lecturer, School of Law, University of Manchester
Title of paper - Banks, boards and busts: A cross-regional analysis
Session Three Redmonds Building Room 520
Chair - Dr Blanca Mamutse, Senior Lecturer, School of Law and Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University
1. Dr Llona Schembri
Senior Lecturer, L-Universita ta’ Malta
Title of paper - Embedding Corporate Social Responsibility alongside Enlightened Shareholder Value: A Comparative Analysis of Legal Systems and Insolvency Mitigation
2. Dr Ibukun Omisore –
PhD, School of Law, University of Leeds, Senior Legal Counsel - Bank of Industry, Nigeria, Former Legal Consultant, World Bank Group
Title of paper - From Shareholder Primacy to Sustainability: Rethinking Insolvency in Emerging Economies- A Case Study of Nigeria
3. Chijioke Njemanze, PhD Candidate, School of law and Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University
Title of paper The Capacity and Limitations of Directors In Preventing Corporate Insolvencies In The 21st Century: The Emerging Role of Artificial Intelligence
4. Dr Francis Okanigbuan, Senior Lecturer, School of Law and Justice Studies, Liverpool John Moores University
Title of paper - Preventing insolvent liquidation: directors, shareholders and stakeholder engagement
In furtherance of the objectives of the Research Development Fund of the Faculty of Society and Culture, Liverpool John Moores University, corporate law and comparative legal research enthusiasts are hereby invited to The Modern Corporation Conference, scheduled for Wednesday 13th May 2026, at Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Theme - Preserving the 21st century corporation and protecting the economy: perspectives and challenges.
Keynote speaker - Professor David Milman. Professor Milman is Professor Emeritus, School of Law, Lancaster University. He has wide interests in the area of international business law. He is an expert in Corporate Law and Insolvency Law. His research interests are in the fields of company law, insolvency law, international business law and partnership law. He has held editorial and advisory positions for leading publications including The Company Lawyer, Insolvency Intelligence, Sweet and Maxwell's Company Law Newsletter, and the Bankruptcy and Personal Insolvency Reports. He co-authors the renowned Sealy & Milman: Annotated Guide to the Insolvency Legislation (currently in its 28th edition). He has worked on research projects for various governmental and non-governmental institutions. He is a founding member of the University of Manchester’s Centre for Law and Business, and a Professorial Associate at Exchange Chambers.
Guest speaker - Professor Paula Giliker. Professor Giliker is Professor of Comparative Law at the University of Bristol Law School and Co-Director, Centre for Private and Commercial Law, University of Bristol, having previously worked at the Universities of Oxford and Queen Mary, University of London. She is a former Chair of the British Association of Comparative Law, and former President and Honorary Secretary of the Society of Legal Scholars of the UK and Ireland (SLS). She is a Visiting Professor at the University of Hong Kong. She is a Titular Fellow of the International Academy of Comparative Law and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. Her areas of expertise include comparative private law, tort law, contract law and European private law.
Panel session - A Panel Session, that consists of representatives from academia and industry participants will provide insights on challenges of corporate insolvency on creditor interests, the economy, directors’ duties, the role of shareholders, and comparative approaches towards resolving similar jurisdictional challenges.
Submission
Please submit a-250 word abstract with innovative research ideas or research methods about any aspect of the theme of the conference in (a), (b) or (c) below, to Dr Francis Okanigbuan, [email protected] not later than Wednesday 1st April 2026.
(a) the capacity and limitations of directors in preventing corporate insolvencies, (b) the role of shareholders in preserving companies from insolvent liquidation, since shareholders are vested with quasi-management powers. (c) the ways that similar challenges that affect various company stakeholders when a company becomes insolvent are addressed in different jurisdictions, especially challenges that affect creditors and the economy.
Edited Book – selected research papers from the conference (full drafts are expected to be completed by Monday 4th January 2027) will be published as book chapters, in a peer-reviewed edited book.
Background
Data from the UK Insolvency Service indicates that the rate of corporate insolvencies remains quite high in England and Wales in 2024 (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/company-insolvencies-december-2024/commentary-company-insolvency-statistics-december-2024).
Unsecured creditors of several large insolvent companies, such as British Home Stores (BHS), Thomas Cook PLC, Carillion PLC and several other defunct companies were informed that they will only be repaid part of the money owed to them.
In August 2025, the collapse of Liberty Steel led to swift government intervention, not just to protect over 1,500 employees that would have been made redundant, but the intervention was necessary to ultimately avert the detrimental impact that the collapsed company would have had on the economy. For example, in March 2020, the Institute for Government reported that the collapse of Carillion PLC led to the insolvencies of 780 small UK construction companies in the first quarter of 2018 (IFG Insight, March 2020 page 4, see Smithers R, ‘Insolvencies in UK building firms rise 20% after Carillion collapse’, The Guardian, retrieved 10 January 2020, www.theguardian.com/business/2018/oct/01/insolvencies-in-uk-building-firms-rise-20-after-carillion-collapse).
In June 2024, two former directors of BHS were held liable for wrongful trading and misfeasance and breach of directors' duties for failing to consider the interest of creditors (Wright v Chappell [2024] EWHC 1417 (Ch), see [1154 - 1155]. However, the amount of money awarded against both directors is significantly less than what is owed to creditors, indicating that unsecured creditors are unlikely to be repaid a significant amount of their capital.
These challenges demonstrate that this is the ideal time to engage in discussions relating to the following.
a. the capacity and limitations of directors in preventing corporate insolvencies,
b. the role of shareholders in preserving companies from insolvent liquidation, since shareholders are vested with quasi-management powers.
c. the legal framework relating to the ways that the challenges that affect various company stakeholders when a company becomes insolvent are addressed in different jurisdictions, especially challenges that affect creditors and the economy.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Liverpool John Moores University, Redmonds Building (5th Floor), Liverpool, United Kingdom
GBP 0.00
