Powered by Lexis+®
Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
CASE STUDY

“It's hard to quantify, right now. But at a guess, I'd say it's probably more than 50% faster, at times. It's literally that quick. We've found to be an essential practical tool. We're very satisfied.”

Walsall Council

Access all documents on Accounts payable

Accounts payable meaning

What does Accounts payable mean?
Amounts a business, organisation or individual owes to suppliers for goods or services already received on credit. In legal and transactional practice, “accounts payable” describes trade creditors recorded as current liabilities on the balance sheet and ordinarily payable within agreed credit terms. It is a descriptive, cross‑context term rather than one defined by statute or case law, and usage is broadly consistent across England & Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Ireland. Key features include: obligations evidenced by purchase orders and supplier invoices; susceptibility to set‑off, credit notes and disputes; and possible interest and recovery costs for late payment (UK: Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998; Ireland: European Communities (Late Payment in Commercial Transactions) Regulations 2012). On insolvency, accounts payable are usually unsecured creditor claims unless security, trust or retention‑of‑title arrangements apply. In drafting and due diligence, accounts payable affect working capital, payment‑practices compliance, covenants and warranties (for example, no material payables overdue). Distinct from accruals (expenses incurred but not yet invoiced) and from notes or loans payable (financing liabilities).
Speed up all aspects of your legal work with tools that help you to work faster and smarter. Win cases, close deals and grow your business–all whilst saving time and reducing risk.

View the related News about Accounts payable

NEWS
FTT: Film LLPs not trading; Chapter 5 ITA 2007 inapplicable; sale of capital accounts generates no income tax or CGT charge (Hoyle v HMRC)

Hoyle and others v HMRC [2024] UKFTT 1060 (TC) The LLPs were established as part of a scheme to purchase film rights from a studio and then lease them for 15 years to a lessee—typically a studio SPV. Around 80% of the members’ capital was financed through borrowings from the Bank of Ireland (BOI). To secure the lease rentals payable over the 15-year term, the studio placed deposits with ABN Amro at sums at least equal to the loans; these deposits were later taken over by BOI. On the basis that they conducted a trade of exploiting film rights, the LLPs claimed film tax credits. The LLPs then allocated the ensuing trading loss to the appellants, who claimed sideways relief for their respective shares under sections 380 and 381 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988, in order to shelter other income. While the tax credit produced a significant tax saving up front for the appellants, that advantage was designed to be recouped over the balance of the...

Read More Right Arrow
NEWS
UK pensions law update: Autumn Budget 2024, PPF section 143 assumptions, TPO report, Virgin Media section 37 implications, dashboards readiness, key dates

In this issue: Autumn Budget 2024 The Pension Protection Fund The Pensions Ombudsman Scheme amendments Pensions dashboards Daily and weekly news alerts Dates for your diary Trackers Autumn Budget 2024 Key pensions announcements and views from the market In the Autumn Budget 2024, delivered on 30 October 2024, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, the Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, stated the government’s overriding aim is to repair the economy’s foundations and drive change by safeguarding working people, mending the NHS and rebuilding Britain. The principal pensions measures are: from 6 April 2027, unused pension pots and death benefits payable from a pension will be counted within an individual’s estate for inheritance tax purposes. As part of these reforms, pension scheme administrators will be responsible for reporting and settling any inheritance tax due on unused pension funds and death benefits...

Read More Right Arrow
NEWS
First-tier Tribunal orders SFO to disclose ENRC investigation costs, overturning ICO; public interest outweighs FOI law-enforcement exemptions

The Serious Fraud Office (SFO) 'was not entitled to withhold the information requested' on the ENRC investigation, the General Regulatory Chamber of the First-Tier Tribunal (FTT) said. The General Regulatory Chamber of the First-Tier Tribunal (FTT) has ruled that the SFO had no right to withhold the requested ENRC data and has directed the agency to release the figures within 42 days. The decision marks a win for George Greenwood of British newspaper The Times, who contested the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) decision permitting the SFO to invoke freedom of information exemptions and withhold the figures. The prosecutor’s decade-long probe into ENRC, the UK arm of Kazakhstan-focused miner Eurasian Resources Group, concluded in August 2023 without any charges, and is thought to have racked up costs totalling tens of millions of pounds. In December, the High Court held the SFO liable to ENRC for losses arising from the investigation, a finding confirmed on a recent appeal. The sum payable will be set at a trial next year; however,...

Read More Right Arrow

View the related Practice Notes about Accounts payable

PRACTICE NOTES
UK Company Finance, Accounting and Valuation Glossary for Legal Practitioners

Term Meaning Accounting reference date On incorporation, a company is typically assigned an accounting reference date, being the final day of the month that contains the anniversary of its incorporation. Directors can alter this by submitting the relevant form to the Registrar of Companies. It denotes the end of the annual accounting period and is also called the balance sheet date. Accounts payable Sums a business or individual owes to others for goods or services already received. Accounts receivable Sums due to a business or individual from others for goods or services supplied. Accrual In company accounts, recognition of income earned or costs incurred during a reporting period, even though the cash has not yet been received or paid. Adjusted earnings Where reported earnings are affected, positively or negatively, by exceptional one-off events in the year, directors may present adjusted earnings to clarify performance. These are earnings with exceptional items excluded, which they believe better indicate the underlying results...

Read More Right Arrow
PRACTICE NOTES
UK Corporation Tax Computation: Taxable Total Profits, Rates, Reliefs, Income Charging Provisions, Additional Assessable Amounts, and Historical Context (Schedular System and OTS Review)

Corporation tax Corporation tax is imposed on the profits of a company’s accounting period where the company is within the charge to UK corporation tax. For more on who must pay corporation tax and on what, see Practice Note: What is the basis of corporation tax? The eventual liability is influenced by the profits shown in the relevant company’s accounts for that period, but is also determined by specific tax rules (eg see Practice Note: Taxation of trading profits—basis, receipts and deductions). These tax rules set out, among other things: which types of income and gains are chargeable to corporation tax (eg trading income) what reliefs are available whether those reliefs can reduce: a particular amount of income or gains total profits or the corporation tax rate Typically, a company’s corporation tax calculation is prepared by its accountants—internal or external—rather than by tax lawyers. Even so, following the...

Read More Right Arrow
PRACTICE NOTES
Dividends in specie: lawfulness, accounting tests and procedure under the Companies Act 2006, including s845, articles powers, approvals, solvency considerations and additional listed/AIM requirements

A dividend Companies possess an implied authority to distribute profits to members, except where the articles say otherwise. A dividend is one form of distribution available, and in practice it is the form most frequently used. It is the familiar route by which companies pass profits to their members. That said, a company has no legal duty to declare or satisfy a dividend unless the share rights stipulate such a requirement. Any member’s entitlement to a dividend arises solely from the shares they hold; rights to dividends attach to classes of shares. Such rights, if any, must be set out in the terms attached to the shares. A dividend cannot be declared or paid other than in line with the respective rights of the company’s shareholders. Distinct classes of share commonly carry differing dividend entitlements. Compliance with those rights is a precondition to any declaration or payment. In ordinary usage, “dividend” denotes a portion of profits, whether at a fixed rate or otherwise, allocated to the...

Read More Right Arrow

View the related Precedents about Accounts payable

PRECEDENTS
Customisable precedent articles for a private company limited by guarantee (Companies Act 2006), excluding model articles

Part 1, interpretation and limitation of liability Unless the context requires otherwise, these articles use terms defined in the Companies Act 2006 (and any amending or subordinate legislation) and within these articles. Defined terms include: address; articles; bankruptcy (including similar overseas procedures); chair and chair of the meeting (articles 13 and 30); Companies Acts; director (including anyone acting as such); document (including electronic); electronic form/means and hard copy form; instrument; member; ordinary and special resolutions; eligible director; participate; proxy notice; relevant officer (non‑auditor officers of the company or any group undertaking, present or former); subsidiary; and writing (any visible representation, including electronic) The model articles are excluded. Unless otherwise stated, statutory expressions bear the meaning they had when these articles became binding. References to legislation include any modification, re‑enactment or replacement. Singular includes plural and vice versa; masculine includes feminine and neuter; persons include corporations Each member’s liability is limited to £1, payable on a winding up while a member or within one year of ceasing, towards:...

Read More Right Arrow
PRECEDENTS
Precedent articles provisions for preference shares: fixed and profit-linked participating dividends (non-leveraged investment)

Add the following new definitions in Article 2.1: Accounts • means, for each financial year of the Company, the audited [ consolidated ] balance sheet together with the profit and loss accounts of the Company and its subsidiary undertakings, prepared on the historical cost basis and in line with generally accepted accounting principles and all applicable accounting standards, Statements of Standard Accounting Practice, Financial Reporting Standards and Statements of Recommended Practice; After Tax Profit • means the amount of the profit [ (including any unrealised profits) ] of the Group for the relevant financial year (as shown by the Accounts): (a) before any provision or reserve has been made for or in respect of: i the payment of any dividend or other distribution on or in respect of any Shares or the transfer of any sum to reserves; ii the redemption of the [ Preferred Shares OR Loan Notes ]; and iii the amortisation or write-off of goodwill arising on consolidation; and (b) after provision has...

Read More Right Arrow

View the related Q&As about Accounts payable

Q&As
s.21 LTA 1985: Relevant costs summary—current or prior year?

Request under section 21 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (LTA 1985) The section 21 request under the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985 (LTA 1985) seeks a summary of 'costs incurred'. These are the 'relevant costs' tied to service charges that are payable, or have been demanded as payable, by the leaseholders of a dwelling. 'Relevant costs' means actual or estimated expenditure incurred, or to be incurred, by or on behalf of the landlord or any superior landlord in relation to matters for which a service charge is payable – LTA 1985, s 18. Such relevant costs may fall within the period for which the service charge is due, or within an earlier or later period, and may encompass overheads. Where service charge accounts are compiled on a 12-month accounting basis, any written summary can refer only to those accounts that were 'made up' in the last of those yearly periods before the date of the request...

Read More Right Arrow