At INSOL Europe’s Annual Congress in Paris, Catherine Ottaway was elected as INSOL Europe’s new President. Robert Van Galen becomes the Deputy President and Alberto Nunez-Lagos the Vice President.

Catherine Ottaway, a member of INSOL Europe’s Council since 2006, is a Partner at Hoche Société d'Avocats law firm in Paris. She specialises in commercial law and has developed a consulting, pre-litigation and litigation (contractual responsibilities placed on guarantees) in business law, including arbitration, mediation and enforcement procedures. She became a mediator in 2001 and is a member of the Association des Médiateurs Européens.

In 2011 Catherine Ottaway was Nominated for “Best in Commercial Arbitration”, European Women in Business Law Award 2011, by the International Financial Law Review.

INSOL Europe is a membership organisation of professionals specialising in insolvency, bankruptcy and business reconstruction and recovery. With over 1,100 members across 48 countries made up of lawyers, accountants, judges, regulators, academics and bankers, INSOL Europe makes a significant contribution to the work of European international bodies on insolvency, bankruptcy and business recovery.

In its 30 year history, INSOL Europe has uniquely been at the forefront of research and education in the area of cross-border insolvency and restructuring. Past achievements include the Coco guidelines in 2009 which set the standard for cross-border co-operation on insolvency cases. Present projects are focused on development of Europe-wide Best Practice Rules for insolvency practitioners, and development of a post-graduate insolvency and restructuring degree.

In addition, the INSOL Europe Case Register is an ongoing project, in English and the relevant national language. It is an invaluable storehouse of precedents, monitoring and interpreting the development of the considerable case law which the Regulation has generated. http://www.insolvencycases.eu/

In 2012, INSOL Europe launched its proposal for revision of the European Insolvency Regulation by officially submitting it to the Commission of the European Union in Brussels, which received wide attention internationally.

In September this year, the European Commission chose INSOL Europe to carry out work on a pre-insolvency investigation involving 27 member states.