Pre-Pack Administration 

Our specialist insolvency team advises lenders, qualifying floating charge holders, insolvency practitioners, buyers, investors, directors and shareholders on every aspect of the pre-pack administration process. This is from early options analysis through to completion and post-completion integration. 

A pre‑pack administration is a way of selling a business very quickly at the same time as it goes into administration. The key feature is that the sale is agreed in advance before the administrators are formally appointed and then completed immediately after they take office.  

A pre-pack administration offers a structured way to sell a business and its assets quickly, helping to safeguard jobs, maintain continuity of trade and maximise returns for creditors. A pre‑pack is often used when a company is in serious financial difficulty but parts of the business are still valuable. Acting quickly can: 

• preserve jobs 

• protect relationships with customers and suppliers 

• maximise the value of the business before it deteriorates further 

• avoid the disruption and cost of a long administration process.  

However, it is a process that requires careful planning and specific execution. That is where our experience and sector understanding adds real value. 

Our pre-pack administration services 

We offer a full-service, end-to-end advisory capability, including: 

• strategic options review 
• structuring and planning the transaction 
• appointment documentation 
• sale and purchase documentation and ancillary documents 
• employment and TUPE advice 
• property and assets advice 
• intellectual property and contracts. 

How Birketts can help 

We advise on all aspects of pre-pack administration transactions. 

For lenders and investors, we help protect and realise value, managing risk and reputation throughout the pre-pack administration process. Our work typically includes: 

• reviewing security packages and enforcement options 
• advising on strategy, including pre-pack versus alternative routes 
• supporting the appointment of insolvency practitioners 
• structuring, documenting and completing sales to connected or third-party buyers 
• managing intercreditor issues and competing claims. 

Whether you are an existing management team, trade buyer, or private equity investor, we help you acquire businesses and assets out of distress efficiently, with a clear understanding of the risks and opportunities. We: 

• assess the proposed deal structure and associated risks 
• carry out targeted legal due diligence, focusing on what really matters in a distressed context 
• negotiate the terms of the acquisition documents 
• advise on funding arrangements and security 
• support on integration issues, including contracts, property and employees. 

For directors and shareholders navigating financial distress, the mix of legal duties and commercial pressures is complex. We provide: 

• early-stage advice on directors’ duties and personal risk 
• an independent view on whether a pre-pack insolvency is appropriate 
• guidance on stakeholder communications and managing competing interests 
• support where directors or shareholders are considering backing a pre-pack buy-out. 

For insolvency practitioners, we work closely with administrators and other office-holders to deliver pre-pack transactions that are compliant, transparent and capable of surviving challenge. Our support covers: 

• advice on appointments and statutory duties 
• marketing and sales processes, including compliance with regulatory guidance 
• drafting and negotiating sale and purchase agreements 
• handling TUPE, pensions and employment issues 
• property, IP and contractual aspects of the transaction.