Vol 21 (2024) - Issue 2

Article preview

Substantial Disposals by Administrators in the First Eight Weeks: When is the Purchaser a ‘Connected Person’? – Part Three, When Is an Evaluator Independent?

Synopsis
This paper looks at the connection tests relevant in deciding when an 'evaluator' is independent for the purposes of the restrictions from April 2021 on substantial disposals by an administrator within the first eight weeks of the administration. It looks at the relevant connection test for independence for an evaluator.
Where a proposed purchaser is a 'connected person', an evaluator report is one of the limbs allowing such a disposal.
The relevant tests for being a connected person are set out in the legislation: para. 60A of Schedule B1 to the Insolvency Act 1986. However, the tests are rather complex and use many other concepts (which themselves can be tricky) from other parts of the legislation – such as 'associate', 'director', and 'officer'. Part 1 of this article gave an overview and a potential checklist.
Part 2 gave a more detailed technical analysis. This Part 3 looks at the 'independence' test for an evaluator.
New statutory requirements were introduced on and from 30 April 2021 by regulations under the Insolvency Act 1986 ('IA 1986'), Schedule B1, paragraph 60A ('para. 60A'). The regulations are the Administration (Restrictions on Disposal etc. to Connected Persons) Regulations 2021 (the 'Administration Disposal Regs 2021').