Insolvency is a subject that has gained considerable standing as an object of academic study and professional attention since its incipient origins as an offshoot of company law, or in the case of the bankruptcy of individuals, the law affecting the estates of individuals. Moreover, the study of insolvency is not solely a legal discipline, but also one that involves the study of economics, management and business relations. International insolvency, the subject of this book, is a newly established branch of the study of insolvency, which owes a great deal to the phenomenon of cross-border incorporations and the conduct of business in more than one jurisdiction. In addition to being a study of law and economics, there is the complication of private international law and the conflict of legal rules, due to the involvement of more than one legal order. This valuable book examines the texts that have formed part of the European experience at managing insolvency across frontiers and looks at insolvency as a phenomenon affecting the formation of the Single Market within the European Community (and later Union).