Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law
Compulsory enforcement of claims, objections to debts and liquidation proceedings.
ABOUT THIS FIELD
Enforcement and bankruptcy law regulates the compulsory satisfaction of claims arising from private-law relationships and the enforcement methods that may be applied to a debtor’s assets. Enforcement with or without judgment, attachment, foreclosure of security, bankruptcy and restructuring by composition are among its principal institutions.
The creditor selects the enforcement route appropriate to the document on which the claim is based and the nature of the debt. The debtor and creditor must observe the statutory time limits for steps such as payment orders, objections, attachment, sale and ranking schedules.
PROCESS AND TIME LIMITS
Types of enforcement
Where the claim is based on a court judgment, enforcement proceeds on the judgment; otherwise, enforcement without a judgment is available. Special attachment proceedings exist for claims based on cheques, promissory notes and bills of exchange, and enforcement by realisation of the pledge for claims secured by a pledge or mortgage.
Objection to a payment order
In enforcement without a judgment, the debtor may object within seven days of service of the payment order, and a timely objection stops the proceedings (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, Arts. 62 and 66). The creditor may apply to have the objection lifted or bring an action to annul the objection within one year of being notified of it (Art. 67). In proceedings based on negotiable instruments, the time limit for objection is five days and the objection is filed with the enforcement court (Art. 168).
Attachment and sale
Once the proceedings become final, the debtor’s assets are attached; the law lists assets that cannot be attached and the limits on the attachment of wages (Arts. 82 and 83). Attached assets are sold at public auction and the proceeds are distributed among creditors according to a ranking schedule.
Debtor protection and concordat
A debtor may assert that no debt exists through a negative declaratory action and reclaim a debt paid under compulsion through an action for restitution (Art. 72). A debtor unable to pay debts as they fall due, or at risk of being unable to do so, may request a concordat; during the temporary moratorium granted by the court, enforcement proceedings against the debtor are, as a rule, suspended.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
How much of a salary can be attached?
Salaries and wages may be attached after deducting the amount the enforcement officer considers necessary for the maintenance of the debtor and family; the amount attached may not be less than one quarter of the wage. Where there are several attachments, they are ranked and the next one starts only after the earlier one is completed (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, Art. 83).
What is the time limit for objecting to enforcement based on a cheque or promissory note?
In enforcement specific to negotiable instruments, the payment period is ten days. Within five days of service of the payment order, the debtor notifies the enforcement court of a complaint that the document is not a negotiable instrument, an objection that the signature is not his or hers, or an objection to the debt (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, Arts. 168 and 170).
What happens if no objection is made to the payment order?
Once the period in the payment order expires, the enforcement becomes final and the creditor may request attachment of the debtor's assets; if an objection was made, attachment is requested after it is set aside (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, Art. 78). The debtor may later assert that the debt is not owed through an action for a negative declaration or for restitution.
Which assets cannot be attached?
Household goods jointly used by the debtor and family, other than valuables, items needed by a debtor whose livelihood depends on physical work to continue that work, and other assets listed in the law cannot be attached (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, Art. 82). The debtor raises the attachment of such an asset by complaint to the enforcement court within seven days of learning of it (Art. 16).
What happens in enforcement for unpaid rent with a request for eviction?
The payment order informs the tenant of the statutory payment period and that eviction may be sought from the enforcement court if payment is not made; for residential and roofed business premises the period is at least thirty days (Code of Obligations, Art. 315). The tenant notifies the enforcement office of any grounds of objection within seven days (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, Art. 269).
Within what period can enforcement court decisions be appealed?
Apart from decisions the law declares final, enforcement court decisions in disputes above the statutory value threshold can be appealed to the regional court within two weeks of service (Enforcement and Bankruptcy Law, Art. 363). The period was extended from ten days to two weeks in 2024.
DOCUMENTS
The following documents are usually used when a file in this field is reviewed:
- Payment order and its service envelope
- The promissory note, cheque, contract or court decision on which enforcement is based
- Payment receipts and account statements
- UYAP record of the enforcement file
- Attachment records
- Documents showing income and living circumstances
Principal areas of work
- 01
Enforcement with and without judgment and proceedings specific to negotiable instruments
- 02
Objections to payment orders, actions to annul objections and requests for removal of objections
- 03
Attachment, preservation, sale and distribution-list procedures
- 04
Negative declaratory, restitution and release-from-debt actions
- 05
Third-party ownership claims and actions to set aside dispositions
- 06
Enforcement of judgments for delivery of movables and eviction of immovables
- 07
Enforcement through foreclosure of pledged or mortgaged property
- 08
Bankruptcy and restructuring by composition