Case details

BTI 2014 LLC (Appellant) v Sequana SA and others (Respondents)

Case ID: UKSC 2019/0046

Case summary

Issue(s)
  1. Whether an otherwise lawful dividend may nevertheless in principle be a "transaction defrauding creditors" under section 423 Insolvency Act 1986.
  2. Whether the trigger for the directors’ duty to consider creditors is merely a real risk of, as opposed to a probability of or close proximity to, insolvency.
Facts

Sequana’s subsidiary was liable to indemnify BAT for costs arising from the clean-up of a polluted river. The directors of the subsidiary resolved that it should pay a substantial dividend to Sequana, without – BAT says – leaving enough money in the subsidiary to pay for the clean-up costs.

Judgment appealed

[2019] EWCA Civ 112

Parties

Appellant(s)

BTI 2014 LLC

Respondent(s)
  1. Sequana SA
  2. Antoine Courteault
  3. Pierre Martinet
  4. Clive Mountford
  5. Martin Newell
  6. Selarl C Basse

Appeal

Justices

Lord Reed, Lord Wilson, Lord Briggs, Lady Arden, Lord Kitchin

Hearing start date

25 Mar 2020

Hearing finish date

26 Mar 2020