Insolvency

The question arose in proceedings between the liquidators and former directors of a company as to whether the right to appeal against a tax liability constituted the ‘property’ of the company. Consideration was given to s 436 of the Insolvency Act 1986. The court ruled, first, that the classical definition of a chose in action was that it described “all personal rights of property which could only be claimed or enforced by action and not by taking physical possession.” A bare right to appeal against what would otherwise be a liability did not satisfy that definition. Secondly, the authorities maintained a distinction between a chose and the remedies available for its enforcement. The right to a remedy was an incident of the ownership of the chose. It was not something that was capable of being sold or assigned separately from the right to which it related. The right of appeal was a right conferred on