Readers’ forum: Last to know

I appreciate that in large corporate transactions there will be a team of corporate financiers lawyers and acquisition accountants. However in my modest practice I am quite often faced with the situation where directors/shareholders in an owner-managed business agree to sell their shares to one another and not tell me. Indeed several months may pass before I have details of the transaction.

When I do finally find out it usually falls to me to draft an agreement to reflect the transaction. I will also then attend to the J30 stock transfer form and Companies House form to record a director resignation.

I appreciate that documents cannot be backdated.

My queries are as follows.

• When I draft the agreement can I draft the terms to record the transaction date as occurring in the past even though it is signed in the...