A trustee may recover transfers made on account of antecedent debt while the debtor was insolvent, within ninety days of filing or a year for insiders, that gave the creditor more than it would have received in a liquidation.

Ordinary course of business. The debt was incurred in the ordinary course of both parties’ business, and the transfer was made either in the ordinary course of dealings between them or according to ordinary business terms. Comparing payment timing before and during the preference period is the standard proof, and consistent payment history is the best defense a trade creditor has.

Contemporaneous exchange for new value. The parties intended a substantially contemporaneous exchange and it was in fact substantially contemporaneous — cash on delivery arrangements.

Subsequent new value. Value given after the preferential transfer and not secured or repaid, which offsets the exposure. This rewards creditors who kept shipping.

Insolvency. Presumed for the ninety days, and rebuttable with evidence.

Threshold amounts below which recovery is barred for non-consumer debts.

Procedure. The trustee must conduct reasonable due diligence considering known affirmative defenses before making a demand, which is a genuine constraint on mass demand letters.