Limitation in winding up is tested at petition date, so a then-valid debt remains provable despite later expiry.

In company winding up, a debt that was within limitation on the date the petition was presented remains a provable debt even if limitation expires before the winding up order is made. The statutory relation-back treats the presentation date as the operative date for limitation purposes, and the relevant Companies Act provisions are read with the insolvency rules governing provable debts. On that basis, a claim not time-barred when the petition was filed should be admitted in liquidation. The creditor's claim was therefore entitled to be entered in the list of proved debts.

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Issues: Whether a debt which was within limitation on the date of presentation of the winding up petition but became time-barred before the winding up order could still be treated as a provable debt in the company's liquidation.

Analysis: The relevant provisions of the Companies Act were read together with the insolvency law by virtue of the section governing provable debts. The winding up is deemed to commence from the date of presentation of the petition, and the order operates for the benefit of all creditors as if made on a joint petition. On the analogous insolvency provisions, debts provable when the petition was filed are not defeated merely because limitation expires before the order is made. The same approach applies in company winding up, since the statutory relation-back gives effect to the petition date as the operative date for limitation purposes.

Conclusion: The debt was provable and was not barred by limitation; the claim ought to have been admitted.

Final Conclusion: The appeal succeeded and the creditor's claim was directed to be entered in the list of proved debts.

Ratio Decidendi: In winding up, where the statute makes the proceeding relate back to the date of presentation of the petition, limitation is tested with reference to that date and a debt then within time remains provable even if it becomes barred before the winding up order.

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