The words the firm uses, and what they mean.
Precision in language prevents expensive misunderstandings. These are general definitions for orientation, not legal or financial advice; the governing documents always control.
How the firm classifies evidence.
- Executed
- A document signed by parties with authority to bind, with the signature and approvals verified. The only class that establishes an obligation.
- Proposed
- Terms put forward by one party and not yet accepted. A proposal invites negotiation; it binds no one.
- Draft
- A working version of a document. Drafts are dated and numbered; a newer draft does not replace an executed instrument.
- Reported
- A statement made by a source, such as a presentation, a letter or a conversation, that has not been independently checked.
- Modelled
- An output of a financial or demand model. It is as reliable as its assumptions, which are stated alongside it.
- Inferred
- A reasoned conclusion drawn by the firm from other evidence. Labelled as such, and never presented as fact.
The states money passes through.
- Committed
- Promised in writing by the payer. Not yet moved.
- Sent
- Instructed or debited from the payer’s account. Still in transit.
- Received
- Arrived at the recipient’s bank, but possibly subject to checks or recall.
- Cleared
- Available to the recipient without recall. Most government and lender processes turn on this state.
- Available
- Cleared, and free of any restriction for the purpose in question.
- Payable
- What may now properly be applied to a specific obligation under the governing agreement.
Financing and transaction terms.
- Moratorium
- A period during which payments are suspended. The debt itself continues and, unless the instrument says otherwise, interest continues to accrue.
- Deferral
- Moving a payment to a later date. Whether interest runs on the deferred sum depends on the drafting.
- Simple interest
- Interest calculated on principal only, not on previously accrued interest.
- Contingent acquisition right
- A right to acquire shares or assets that arises only after defined events, typically uncured default, and usually subject to notice, cure periods and valuation.
- Conditions precedent
- Events that must occur before an obligation takes effect, such as a regulatory approval or a creditor consent.
- Liability perimeter
- The proposed boundary between obligations a buyer will assume and those that stay behind. It has legal effect only once consents, novations or statutory provisions make it so.
- Novation
- Replacing a party to a contract with a new one, with the consent of all parties. The original party is released.
- Accession deed
- An agreement by which a new party, such as a newly formed holding company, joins an existing contract on pre-agreed terms.
- Recapitalisation
- Changing a company’s mix of debt and equity, often by injecting new equity and restructuring existing debt.
- Sources and uses
- A statement showing where a project’s money comes from and what it is spent on. The two sides must balance.