Davidson Webber LLP completed the corporate demerger of a well known North Yorkshire based lawn mower and garden centre business.
The demerger saw business assets with a net value of circa £4.8M being split three ways to create 3 separate and distinct businesses each under their own corporate umbrella through a demerger structure which involved the formation of new companies, advance tax clearances, transfers of shares and assets both within the existing group and externally to third parties, an inter-group hive up, cash dividend payments and distributions in specie.
Davidson Webber acted for the corporate group and certain of the individual family shareholders. Tax advice to the group was provided by Sagars of Leeds. Langleys Solicitors and Burn & Co of York represented the other family shareholders involved in the demerger.
Neil Large, corporate partner at Davidson Webber, said “this was a complicated demerger which required careful and detailed tax planning. Acting for the company meant that we prepared all of the demerger documents for review by the other parties. The key was to separate the demerger out into several small transactions within itself and to then deal with and complete each stage in the right order. We had over 150 completion documents in the end.”
“It took us a little while to get detailed heads of terms signed, but what really impressed the clients was that once the heads were signed the demerger was completed within 3 weeks although we did end up working through the night on 31st April 2007 to achieve completion early hours on 1st May. The ability to complete such a complicated demerger in 3 weeks is a testament to the skill, dedication and commitment of everybody involved including my property and employment colleagues here at DW”
Neil added “the demerger has carved out three separate distinct businesses from one large combined business. Each business is now owned and operated by the relevant family member rather than jointly by all the family and I wish all the shareholders continued success with their respective businesses going forward”
