Bankruptcy Law in China
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BANKRUPTCY LAW IN CHINA Dr. Konstantin HOPPE Referent: Nathan KAISER August 2009 www.eigerlaw.com Page - 2 Inhaltsverzeichnis Abkürzungsverzeichnis ............................................................................................................... 5 Literaturverzeichnis .................................................................................................................... 6 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 9 I. Development Lines of Bankruptcy Law in the PRC until 2006 ............................................ 9 A. Key Insolvency-Related Rules prior to 1986 ................................................................. 9 B. The 1986 Bankruptcy Law .......................................................................................... 10 C. "Political Bankruptcy" under the 1994 Notice ........................................................... 11 D. Interpretations and guidelines by the PRC's courts ................................................... 12 E. Interim Notes ............................................................................................................. 12 II. The New 2006 Bankruptcy Law - Background ................................................................... 13 A. Legislative History ...................................................................................................... 13 1. Key Data .............................................................................................................. 13 2. Driving factors for the implementation of the new 2006 Bankruptcy Law ...................................................................................................................... 16 3. Summary: Key considerations driving the legislative process ............................ 17 a) Insufficiency of the existing bankruptcy regime ..................................... 17 b) Safeguarding the stability of the finance sector ..................................... 17 c) Particularities of state-owned enterprises .............................................. 18 d) Further Observations............................................................................... 19 B. Overview: Major Differences of the New 2006 Bankruptcy Law compared to pre-existing Bankruptcy Rules ............................................................................... 19 1. Broader application on more diverse types of enterprises ................................ 19 2. Bankruptcy administrator to replace the government-appointed liquidation committee ......................................................................................... 20 Page - 3 3. Right to file a bankruptcy application ................................................................. 20 4. Reorganization proceedings ................................................................................ 21 5. Creditors' protection ........................................................................................... 21 C. The influence of foreign laws ..................................................................................... 21 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 21 2. Historical perspective .......................................................................................... 22 3. Current influence ................................................................................................. 23 D. Traditional cultural aspects of bankruptcy in China ................................................... 24 III. The 2006 Bankruptcy Law - Selected Topics ..................................................................... 25 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................... 25 2. Scope of applicability - potential debtors ........................................................... 26 3. Grounds for insolvency ........................................................................................ 26 4. The Insolvency Administrator.............................................................................. 28 5. The Role of the People's Court ............................................................................ 29 6. Creditors' Meetings and the Creditors' Committee ............................................ 30 a) Creditors' Meetings ................................................................................. 30 b) The Creditors' Committee ....................................................................... 31 7. Procedural Milestones in a Chinese Insolvency .................................................. 31 a) Application ............................................................................................... 32 b) Acceptance of the Application................................................................. 32 c) Steps following the Acceptance of the Bankruptcy Application ............. 33 8. Legal effects of the acceptance of the bankruptcy application .......................... 34 a) Contractual Obligations ........................................................................... 34 Page - 4 b) Claw-back provisions ............................................................................... 34 c) Set-off ....................................................................................................... 36 d) Secured creditors' and employment-related claims ............................... 37 9. Reorganization and compromise ......................................................................... 37 a) Reorganization ......................................................................................... 37 b) Compromise ............................................................................................. 38 10. Costs and Effectiveness ....................................................................................... 38 IV. International Law Aspects .................................................................................................. 39 1. Cross-border issues addressed in the new 2006 Bankruptcy Law ...................... 39 a) Article 5 of the 2006 Bankruptcy Law ...................................................... 39 b) No territorial insolvency proceedings in international insolvencies .............................................................................................. 41 c) Assessment .............................................................................................. 41 2. Recognition of a People's Court’s judgment under German law ........................ 42 a) Introduction ............................................................................................. 42 b) Applicable law .......................................................................................... 42 c) No lack of jurisdiction of the Chinese People's Court .............................. 44 d) No violation of German ordre public ....................................................... 46 e) Guaranteed mutual recognition .............................................................. 49 f) Resulting options for Chinese insolvency administrator ......................... 50 V. Summary ............................................................................................................................ 52 VI. Lebenslauf .......................................................................................................................... 53 VII. Erklärung ............................................................................................................................ 54 2. Driving factors for the implementation of the new 2006 Bankruptcy Law ......... 16 3. Summary: Key considerations driving the legislative process ............................ 17 a) Insufficiency of the existing bankruptcy regime ..................................... 17 b) Safeguarding the stability of the finance sector ....................................... 17 c) Particularities of state-owned enterprises ................................................ 18 Page - 5 Abkürzungsverzeichnis 1986 Bankruptcy Law Enterprise Bankruptcy Law (for trial implementation) of the People's Republic of China, promulgated December 2, 1986 1994 Notice Notice on Issues Relevant to Tentative Implementation of Bankruptcy of State-Owned Enterprises in some cities from October 25, 1994 2006 Bankruptcy Law Enterprise Bankruptcy Law of the People's Republic of China from August 27, 2006 CCP German Code of Civil Procedure e. g. For example EIR European Insolvency Regulation et seq. And the following GDP Gross domestic product i. e. That is NPC National People's Congress NPL Non-Performing Loan PRC People's Republic of China SOE State-Owned Enterprise U.S. United States of America USD U.S. Dollars WTO World Trade Organization Page - 6 Literaturverzeichnis Berube, Cardine; Pu, Patrick, Bankruptcy and Insolvency in the PRC: A Myth?, IPBA Journal 3/2009, Seite 22 Chua, Eu Jin, Chinas New Bankruptcy Law: A Legislative Innovation, China Law & Practice, October 2006, Seite 17/zitiert: Chua, China's New Bankruptcy Law Economist, The, Bankruptcy in China: Silent Busts, ed. October 9, 2008 Fehl, Elske, Das neue Konkursgesetz der Volksrepublik China, ZInsO 2008, Seite 69 Fung, Will, Policy-oriented vs. market-oriented Bankruptcy: A tour on the PRC New Enterprise Bankruptcy Law, in Best Practices for Bankruptcy