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Transactions at an undervalue (TUV) meaning

What does Transactions at an undervalue (TUV) mean?
Transactions at an undervalue (TUV) describes dealings made before formal insolvency where a company or individual gives away assets, releases rights or incurs obligations for no consideration, or for consideration significantly less than the value provided. It is a statutory avoidance ground. In England & Wales, it is defined in the Insolvency Act 1986: section 238 (companies, within the relevant time before liquidation or administration) and section 339 (individual bankruptcy). An office-holder may ask the court to unwind the transaction and restore the estate; remedies include re-transfer, payment, or other orders to reverse the detriment. The company or individual must have been insolvent when the transaction was made, or become insolvent because of it; where the counterparty is connected, insolvency is presumed. Defences include, for companies, transactions entered into in good faith for the purpose of carrying on the business with reasonable grounds to believe they would benefit the company. Scotland uses the parallel concept of gratuitous alienation (companies: Insolvency Act 1986; individuals: Bankruptcy (Scotland) Act 2016), with different look-back periods and tests. Northern Ireland has equivalent provisions in the Insolvency (Northern Ireland) Order 1989. In Ireland, similar avoidance rules allow challenges to gifts or transfers for inadequate consideration in corporate insolvency...
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View the related Practice Notes about Transactions at an undervalue (TUV)

PRACTICE NOTES
A-Z glossary of UK corporate restructuring and insolvency: key terms, procedures, enforcement and cross-border issues

This glossary sets out numerous expressions frequently encountered in the restructuring arena. Words appearing in the definitions in bold are explained in other entries in this glossary. For further banking terminology, see the principal Banking & Finance Glossary. Restructuring glossary—A Acceleration: Acceleration means the agent, acting on directions from the majority lenders after an event of default, takes formal action, for example calling for early repayment of the facility. Ad-hoc committee: A temporary creditors’ group (often contrasted with a formal committee) that lacks any entitlement to official recognition. Administration: A process under the IA 1986 in which a financially distressed company is operated by an administrator as a going concern before longer-term outcomes, such as break-up and sale, are pursued. Administrator: An Insolvency Practitioner named by the court, a Qualifying floating charge holder, the directors or the company, to take control and fulfil one of the purposes in IA 1986, Sch B1. Administrative receivership: Arises when a company breaches the terms of...

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PRACTICE NOTES
Comprehensive glossary of UK restructuring and insolvency terms, covering Companies Act schemes, Part 26A plans, IA 1986 processes, and cross‑border concepts including COMI, UNCITRAL and assimilated EU rules.

This glossary sets out numerous expressions regularly encountered in the restructuring & insolvency sphere. Words shown in bold within definitions are themselves explained in other entries in this glossary as well. A Article X The MLIJ contains a single provision named Article X, aimed at jurisdictions that have already implemented the MLCBI, like England, or are weighing its adoption. Article X states: ‘Not withstanding any prior interpretation to the contrary, the relief available under [insert a cross-reference to the legislation of this State enacting Article 21 of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency] includes recognition and enforcement of a judgment’ (see Practice Note: UNCITRAL model law on recognition and enforcement of insolvency-related judgments (MLIJ): Article X). Asset-backed security (ABS) A form of security anchored by asset pools, for example loans, leases, and credit card receivables. Assimilated law From 1 January 2024, ‘retained law’ has been retitled ‘assimilated law’. The body of domestic law originally arising from EU obligations, created by the European...

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PRACTICE NOTES
Section 423 Insolvency Act 1986: Transactions Defrauding Creditors—Undervalue, Purpose, Procedure, Standing, Remedies, Defences, Limitation and Key Case Law

Section 423 of the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986) Section 423 provides a route to set aside dealings engineered to prejudice creditors. The regime is aimed at stopping parties from shifting assets in a manner that thwarts creditor claims. Put shortly, it targets arrangements by which assets are moved so creditors are kept at bay. A claimant may proceed under IA 1986, s 423 against a company or an individual following a transaction at an undervalue (TUV) executed with the intention of placing assets out of creditors’ reach. Though there are parallels with a TUV under IA 1986, s 238 (for corporate insolvency) and IA 1986, s 339 (for personal insolvency), the following distinctions are central: Relief under IA 1986, s 423 does not necessarily have to be connected to any formal insolvency proceedings Under IA 1986, s 423 the transaction’s purpose is decisive, whereas under IA 1986, ss 238 and 339 the purpose is not a relevant criterion IA 1986, s 423 requires...

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Q&As
Lease at undervalue: third-owner relief; AST rent rise/forfeiture

If a lease was granted at undervalue, you are the 3rd owner, and you knew it was at undervalue, if creditors ask for an order returning the property to the original owner you cannot claim relief? Transactions at an undervalue (TUVs) are regulated by the Insolvency Act 1986 (IA 1986). The relevant provisions are: sections 238, 240 and 241 of the IA 1986 for companies sections 339 to 342 of the IA 1986 for individuals These powers are available to trustees in bankruptcy, liquidators (in both compulsory and voluntary liquidations), and administrators. They permit the office-holder to review dealings made by the insolvent person or company in the lead-up to insolvency and to assess whether assets should be recovered for the insolvent estate. In particular, an order under: section 241 of the IA 1986 (for companies), or section 342 of the IA 1986 (for individuals) cannot be made against the other party to a...

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