The company sold its business to the respondent for one pound, but the respondent agreed to sublease computer equipment for an amount equivalent to the value of the company. The company defaulted, and the computer equipment was recovered. The respondent refused to pay under the sub-lease. The trustee of the company in liquidation sought to recover the payment on the basis that the agreement had been at an undervalue. The respondent had not genuinely sought to sub-lease the computer equipment.
Held: ‘The value of an asset that is being offered for sale is, prima facie, not less than the amount which a reasonably well informed purchaser is prepared, in arm’s length negotiations, to pay for it.’ The payments, repairing the sale at an undervalue, were recoverable.
Judges:
Lord Scott
Citations:
Gazette 22-Mar-2001, Times 23-Jan-2001, [2001] UKHL 2, [2001] 1 All ER 673, [2001] 1 WLR 143
Links:
Statutes:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – Re Thoars (Dec’d); Reid v Ramlort Ltd ChD 15-Nov-2002
The deceased had a valuable life insurance policy. Before an operation he wrote it in trust with no consideration. He died in the operation. He was insolvent. The issue was as to when the policy was to be valued.
Held: The property was to be . .
Cited – Re Thoars (Dec’d); Reid v Ramlort Ltd ChD 2003
The company claimed the benefit of an insurance policy. They had paid certain premiums and the trustee had made a declaration that it was held on trust for the company. The insured died in Scotland, intestate and insolvent.
Held: The . .
Cited – Ramlort Ltd v Michael James Meston Reid CA 8-Jul-2004
The company sought to claim under a life policy. The deceased had died in Scotland insolvent. The trustee of the policy had declared that he held it on trust for the claimant, but the defendant, the judicial factor of the estate, said the . .
Cited – OBG Ltd OBG (Plant and Transport Hire) Ltd v Raymond International Ltd; OBG Ltd v Allen CA 9-Feb-2005
The defendants had wrongfully appointed receivers of the claimant, who then came into the business and terminated contracts undertaken by the business. The claimant asserted that their actions amounted to a wrongful interference in their contracts . .
Cited – Feakins and Another v Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Civ 1513) CA 9-Dec-2005
The department complained that the defendants had entered into a transaction with their farm at an undervalue so as to defeat its claim for recovery of sums due. The transaction used the grant of a tenancy by the first chargee.
Held: The . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Insolvency
Updated: 04 June 2022; Ref: scu.162915