Classification of sale or acquisition of company shares as a business transfer

Verslo praktikoje nemažai bendrovės akcijų pardavimo sandorių tikrasis ekonominis tikslas būna ne akcijų, kaip vertybinių popierių, pirkimas-pardavimas, bet verslo perleidimas. Tokiais atvejais sandoriai pasižymi tam tikrais ypatumais, kurie leidžia teigti, jog sandorio šalių santykių aiškinimui ir teisės taikymui turėtų būti naudojamos kiek kitokios taisyklės. Visų pirma tai susiję su akcijų pardavėjo atsakomybės aspektais. Šiame straipsnyje, remiantis Lietuvos bei užsienio valstybių teisės aktų, teismų praktikos bei doktrinos analize, siekiama atskleisti verslo perleidimo sampratą, nustatyti kriterijus, kurie suponuoja akcijų pardavimo sandorių pripažinimą verslo perleidimu bei atsakyti į klausimą, ar toks pripažinimas daro įtaką ir kaip veikia akcijų pardavėjo atsakomybę bei pirkėjo interesų gynybą.Object of this study is the legal framework for the sale or purchase of company shares when the goal of the transaction is the sale of a business. The impact of such transactions on Lithuanian economic development underlines the importance of this study. The recent wave of mergers and acquisitions in Lithuania is likely to substantially increase the number of related legal disputes as well. Legislation on the purchase and sale of company shares and the resulting transfer of business has been enacted in Lithuania only recently. The regulation of such cases remains rather unclear, few cases have been brought to court, and the topic has been barely addressed by legal scholarship in Lithuania to date. It is unclear whether the fact that the real purpose of the transaction is not a simple reassignment of company shares, but business transfer, results in any differences in the interpretation and application of the law. An especially delicate question, raised in Lithuania and other European countries, is whether the buyer may submit a warranty claim to the seller regarding the business acquired. The purpose of this study is to introduce the concept of business transfer and to present the criteria for determining if the transaction should be classified as a sale of business. The authors also assess the possibility for the buyer to submit warranty claims to the seller regarding the company. Various analysis methods were used in this study: linguistic, document, logical, systematic, comparative, critical analysis and other methods. The authors conclude that the sale or purchase of shares should be classified as a business transfer when the intention of both parties of the transaction is not to merely sell or purchase company shares, but to transfer the ownership of the company to the buyer. The study also suggests that the buyer should be protected against undisclosed deficiencies in the business