Mason v Lewis is a Court of Appeal decision that held that the test for determining what reckless trading under section 135 of the Companies Act 1993 is an objective one.

[9] In the High Court Justice Salmon held, "that there must be a conscious decision to allow the business to be conducted in a way that creates a substantial risk of serious loss to the company's creditors or a wilful or grossly negligent turning of a blind eye to the particular situation; in other words, some element of subjectivity.

[1] The essential pillars of the present section are as follows: • the duty which is imposed by s 135 is one owed by directors to the company (rather than to any particular creditors); • the test is an objective one; • it focuses not on a director’s belief, but rather on the manner in which a company’s business is carried on, and whether that modus operandi creates a substantial risk of serious loss; and

"[11] The Court then stated, "Directors must take reasonable steps to put themselves in a position not only to guide but to monitor the management of a company.

The days of sleeping directors with merely an investment interest are long gone: the limitation of liability given by incorporation is conditional on proper compliance with the statute.