[CALS-TU-INSOL] Restructuring & Insolvency Academic Forum 2026

Following the success of its inaugural edition in 2025, the Restructuring & Insolvency Academic Forum (“RIAF” or the “Forum”) returned for its second iteration on 18-19 June 2026. This year, the Forum was hosted by the Thammasat University Faculty of Law in Bangkok, Thailand, co-organised with the Centre for Asian Legal Studies and INSOL International (Asia Hub), and supported by the Asian Law Centre at Melbourne Law School and the Insolvency Law Academy.

The Forum featured a Keynote Address by Professor Wisit Wisitsora-at from Thailand’s Securities and Exchange Commission and the Electronic Transactions Development Agency, and Mr Sumant Batra from the Insolvency Law Academy. On the first day, Professor Wisit Wisitsora-at delivered the Keynote Address titled “Thailand’s Insolvency Reform Experience and the Future of Cross-Border and Digital-Age Restructuring“. Professor Wisitsora-at traced the evolution of Thailand’s insolvency law from the Bankruptcy Act 1940 (derived from the English Bankruptcy Act 1914) to developing a more discerning approach in transplanting foreign models. His address also emphasised that good laws, tailored to the local context, are only part of the equation – effective implementation and institutional capacity are equally critical. On the second day, Mr Sumant Batra gave the opening lecture, titled “Tracing and Recovering Assets in Insolvency of Smaller Enterprises“, shedding light on how small and medium-sized enterprises face three main obstacles in asset tracing – a lack of information, funds and stakeholder cooperation. He also proposed practical solutions to overcome these challenges, including the establishment of information registries to facilitate trading and the creation of insolvency funds to subsidise investigations.

Over two days, the Forum featured five academic panels and a practitioners’ panel, bringing together scholars and practitioners from across Asia. A total of 17 papers were presented by academics from 11 jurisdictions – Australia, Bhutan, Hong Kong SAR, India, Indonesia, Japan, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and Vietnam – spanning topics from technology and insolvency to asset tracing and recovery. The Centre was represented by our Research Assistant, Mr Toh Ding Jun, who presented his paper titled “What is Being Transplanted? An Examination of China’s Reception of Pre-Packaged Bankruptcy”. His research critically examined China’s adoption of the American pre-packaged bankruptcy model, arguing that the resulting system entrenches local government involvement rather than enable market-based corporate rescue. In addition, Ms Emma Shuen Lee, an undergraduate student at the Faculty of Law, National University of Singapore, presented her research, titled “Abolishing the Statutory Trust in Liquidation”. In her presentation, she argued that the statutory trust reasoning should be abolished as it would achieve greater doctrinal clarity and consistency in Singapore.

A significant milestone this year was the inclusion of undergraduate presenters, reflecting the Forum’s key ethos to promote and cultivate student scholarship and interest in the field. Besides Ms Lee, other undergraduate presenters include Ms Akanskha Tripathy (BML Munjal University), as well as Mr Aditya Jain and Ms Dhaya Jha (Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law). By opening the floor to emerging voices alongside established academics and practitioners, RIAF 2026 underscored its commitment to nurturing the next generation of insolvency researchers and sustaining a vibrant regional ecosystem.

As insolvency reforms accelerate across Asia, there is a growing need to cultivate thinking that is attentive to the region’s cultural, economic and social contexts, rather than relying predominantly on Western models. In this spirit, the Centre, together with INSOL International (Asia Hub), remain committed to developing RIAF into a sustained platform for scholars to articulate how corporate insolvency law in Asia ought to develop. In this regard, it is delighted to announce that RIAF 2027 will be held on 12-13 May 2027 at the University of Sydney.

We look forward to seeing you there!