Companies Act 2014 section 508

Interpretation (Part 10)

Section 508 sets out the definitions and interpretive rules for the key terms used throughout Part 10 of the Companies Act 2014, which governs the examinership process for companies in financial difficulty.

• Key terms defined include "examiner" (a court-appointed person who oversees a company during financial difficulties), "director" (which extends to shadow directors), "independent expert" (the person who prepares the initial report on the company's situation), and "interested party" (a creditor or member of the company).
• The term "court" generally means the High Court, but in the case of a small company, it means the Circuit Court; and the term "petition" covers the formal application to the court for the appointment of an examiner.
• Any terms used in this Part that also appear in the EU Preventive Restructuring Directive must be given the same meaning as they have in that Directive, ensuring consistency with European rules on helping financially distressed companies restructure before insolvency.
• The examinership procedures under this Part are subject to the EU Insolvency Regulation, and where other parts of the Companies Act refer to a "liquidator", those provisions apply to examinership with "examiner" substituted for "liquidator" and any other necessary adjustments.