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- Art. 96 para. 1 FC
- Art. 96 para. 2 lit. a FC
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- Art. 633 CO
- Art. 701 CO
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- Art. 808c CO
- Transitional provisions to the revision of the Stock Corporation Act of June 19, 2020
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- Vorb. zu Art. 1 FADP
- Art. 1 FADP
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- Art. 5 lit. c FADP
- Art. 5 lit. d FADP
- Art. 5 lit. f und g FADP
- Art. 6 para. 3-5 FADP
- Art. 6 Abs. 6 and 7 FADP
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- Art. 31 para. 2 lit. e FADP
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- Art. 2 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 3 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 4 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
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- Art. 8 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 9 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
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- Art. 12 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 16 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 18 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 25 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 27 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 28 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
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- Art. 32 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 33 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 34 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
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- Art. 2 para. 1 AMLA
- Art. 2a para. 1-2 and 4-5 AMLA
- Art. 2 para. 3 AMLA
- Art. 3 AMLA
- Art. 7 AMLA
- Art. 7a AMLA
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FEDERAL CONSTITUTION
MEDICAL DEVICES ORDINANCE
CODE OF OBLIGATIONS
FEDERAL LAW ON PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW
LUGANO CONVENTION
CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE
FEDERAL ACT ON POLITICAL RIGHTS
CIVIL CODE
FEDERAL ACT ON CARTELS AND OTHER RESTRAINTS OF COMPETITION
FEDERAL ACT ON INTERNATIONAL MUTUAL ASSISTANCE IN CRIMINAL MATTERS
DEBT ENFORCEMENT AND BANKRUPTCY ACT
FEDERAL ACT ON DATA PROTECTION
CRIMINAL CODE
CYBERCRIME CONVENTION
COMMERCIAL REGISTER ORDINANCE
FEDERAL ACT ON COMBATING MONEY LAUNDERING AND TERRORIST FINANCING
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT
FEDERAL ACT ON THE INTERNATIONAL TRANSFER OF CULTURAL PROPERTY
I. General
1 Art. 266 DEBA allows for an exception to the rule that the distribution of funds takes place as soon as the assets and liabilities have been definitively determined (Art. 261 DEBA in conjunction with Art. 83 OAOF). It authorizes proceed with one or more provisional distributions of the proceeds of the bankruptcy as soon as the deadline for challenging the statement of claims has expired (Art. 250 DEBA), including in the event of pending legal action. This article allows certain claims to be extinguished in whole or in part by early distribution before the final distribution, before the closure of the bankruptcy proceedings, and before the establishment of the final distribution table within the meaning of Art. 83 OAOF. Since August 1, 2021, it even applies in the case of bankruptcy liquidated by summary proceedings following the repeal of Art. 96(c) OAOF, which until then prohibited the bankruptcy office from making provisional distributions in such cases.
2 The fact that the statement of claims has become final for all claims is not decisive. Before the right to disputed claims is known, holders of claims that are definitively admitted to the statement of claims may thus receive their share of the expected dividend. Creditors are free to accept the early distribution or to wait for the final distribution.
3 Creditors whose claims have not yet been admitted or are disputed are not entitled to a provisional distribution before the order of priority is determined. According to Art. 82 para. 2 OAOF, the bankruptcy administration does not proceed with the immediate provisional distribution of dividends relating to disputed claims or claims subject to a condition precedent or an uncertain term (Art. 264 para. 3 DEBA ). This article also applies when only the ranking of the claim is disputed. The same applies to claims on which a final decision has not yet been made and to late submissions, which are nevertheless taken into account if they are made before the provisional distribution has taken place (Art. 251 para. 3 DEBA ; Art. 82 para. 2, 2nd sentence OAOF). Dividends relating to a claim secured by a pledge abroad and which are not included in the bankruptcy estate opened in Switzerland are retained until the pledge is realized abroad and will only be paid to the creditor to the extent that the claim remains uncovered after such realization (Art. 62 OAOF). The amounts corresponding to the above-mentioned claims are retained and deposited by the bankruptcy administration for subsequent distribution and bear interest (cf. Art. 209 LP). If the status of the claim changes before the final distribution, for example if a condition precedent is fulfilled, this may be taken into account in subsequent provisional distributions.
4 Art. 266 DEBA only mentions a temporal condition for determining when a provisional distribution is possible. Such a distribution can only be considered once the composition of the list of claims is sufficiently precise to assess the prospects of a distribution of funds (N. 1). Case law and doctrine have developed two additional conditions.
5 First, provisional distribution is subject to compliance with Art. 220 LP. Within the same class, creditors must be treated equally. They thus receive an advance payment at the same percentage (Art. 220 para. 1 DEBA ; principle of equality of creditors in the same class). Preferential creditors must be paid in full before creditors in the third class receive a partial dividend (Art. 220 para. 2 DEBA ).
6 Secondly, the above-mentioned payments and advance payments require that the bankruptcy estate has sufficient funds available to avoid compromising the final distribution. Simple estimates of future income and expenditure are not sufficient, as the administration of the bankruptcy must be based on the actual proceeds from the sale of assets already realized. The provisional distribution must be calculated in such a way that the payment of the estate's debts, any other estate costs and procedural costs within the meaning of Art. 262 DEBA and claims secured by pledge are covered, even if these costs arise at a later date. The costs of the provisional distribution must also be covered by the proceeds of the sale, which must be sufficient to allow a provisional dividend to be paid. This is generally the case when a property encumbered with a lien is sold. However, the proceeds from the pledged assets may only be used to cover the costs of inventory, administration, and realization of the pledge (Art. 262 para. 2 DEBA ). They may not be used to satisfy unsecured creditors. Any remaining amount will be transferred to the general liquidation account.
II. Procedure
7 There is no obligation to distribute an interim dividend. The decision is left to the discretion of the competent body.
8 The bankruptcy administration is competent to make interim distributions. It is also competent to refuse to pay the interim dividend, for example by invoking set-off against one of the creditors. It is also competent to demand the repayment of any surplus interim dividend unduly paid to creditors, including bringing an action for restitution when the amount overpaid is known. The bankruptcy administration is liable if the missing amount cannot be recovered (Art. 5 LP). The second creditors' meeting or a subsequent meeting is convened after the statement of claims has been filed (Art. 252 para. 1 LP) and also has the sovereign power to order one or more provisional distributions (Art. 253 para. 2 LP). In this scenario, the amount of the provisional distribution will be determined by the bankruptcy administration. If it has been established and the provisional distribution falls within its remit, the supervisory commission has the authority to order the provisional distribution (Art. 237 para. 3 no. 5 LP). The creditors' meeting may withdraw this authority from the supervisory commission, as the supervisory commission does not have independent authority to carry out the provisional distribution (see Art. 237 para. 3 LP). In the latter case, and where no supervisory commission has been set up, the authority to order provisional distribution lies with the bankruptcy administration and the second creditors' meeting.
9 Before proceeding with each provisional distribution, the bankruptcy administration draws up a provisional distribution table, which remains on file at the office for ten days (Art. 263 para. 1 LP applicable by reference from Art. 266 para. 2 LP; Art. 82 para. 1, 1st sentence OAOF; cf. Art. 231 para. 3 no. 4 LP, according to which it is not necessary to file the distribution table in the case of summary liquidation). Notice of this filing shall be given to the creditors by sending each of them an extract relating to their dividend (Art. 263 para. 2 LP; Art. 266 para. 2 LP; Art. 82 para. 1, 2nd sentence OAOF).
10 The entry into force of the provisional distribution table is a prerequisite for the distribution of funds (see N. 4). Before distributing the proceeds of the bankruptcy among the creditors, the bankruptcy administration must ensure that no complaints relating to the distribution table have been sent to the supervisory authority within the legal time limit of ten days (Art. 88, 1st sentence OAOF). It shall wait until the complaints have been settled before proceeding with the distribution (Art. 88, 2nd sentence OAOF). However, it may already pay out provisional dividends that are not the subject of any dispute, given that the provisional distribution table is partially enforceable with regard to these distributions.
11 Art. 150 LP applies by reference to Art. 264 para. 2 LP, so that the same rules as those relating to the seizure procedure apply to the return of the title to the claim. The bankruptcy administration would be well advised to require these titles to be sent in advance before proceeding with provisional distributions.
III. Complaint (Art. 17 LP)
12 The provisional distribution table and the decision to proceed with a provisional distribution may be appealed to the supervisory authority within ten days of the date on which the complainant became aware of the measure (Art. 17 LP). The starting point of the time limit is, in principle, the day on which the creditor receives the notification provided for in Art. 263 para. 2 LP and Art. 82 para. 1 OAOF (N. 9). Provisional distributions made without a provisional distribution table are also subject to complaints (Art. 17 LP in conjunction with Art. 241 LP), in which case the dies a quo of the ten-day period starts from the date on which the measure becomes known. A complaint directed solely against the final distribution table with a view to challenging the provisional distribution table is late and therefore inadmissible.
13 According to the rules in connection with Art. 17 LP, the creditor(s) has/have the right to lodge a complaint. The creditor who has filed his claim or the creditor of the estate has an interest worthy of protection in opposing a provisional distribution if he considers that the bankruptcy dividend to which he is entitled is threatened. However, they lose their practical and current interest in filing a complaint as soon as they have been fully repaid.
14 Insofar as, subject to their right to be consulted on the submissions (Art. 244, 2nd sentence LP; OK-Constantin, Art. 265 LP N. 12), the law does not provide for the participation of the bankrupt debtor in the procedure for verifying and ranking claims, his legal position is not affected by the fact that a dividend is paid in advance to a creditor as part of a provisional distribution within the meaning of Art. 266 LP. In the absence of a legally protected interest, the debtor does not, in principle, have standing to bring a complaint and, if he does so, the complaint will be declared inadmissible. An interest only exists if the bankrupt debtor claims that the total proceeds of the realizations exceed the total amount of the claims collated, with the result that the payment to certain creditors, by way of provisional distribution, of amounts to which they would not be entitled would jeopardize the payment of the liquidation surplus in his favor.
15 The grounds for filing a complaint are the same as those that can be invoked against the final distribution table. Where applicable, the complainant may invoke a violation of Art. 82 OAOF if the bankruptcy administration proceeds with a provisional distribution without first establishing a provisional distribution table (N. 12). If the debtor is entitled to file a complaint (N. 14), his grievances are limited exclusively to the fact that the distribution table does not correspond to the state of collocation and that the circumstances allowing for a subsequent modification of a state of collocation in force are not met. The debtor is not entitled to raise substantive legal issues relating to the existence and amount of the claims entered in the provisional distribution table.
16 The complaint procedure is free of charge (Art. 20a para. 2 no. 5 LP; Art. 61 para. 2 let. a OELP) and no costs are awarded (Art. 62 para. 2 OELP).
17 The question of whether the supervisory authority to which a complaint has been submitted within the meaning of Art. 17 LP has the power to carry out a provisional distribution in place of the bankruptcy administration is controversial. Some authors consider that this is not the case, given the right to self-determination and the sovereign power of the second creditors' meeting (Art. 253 para. 2 LP) and the risk of setting excessively high advance payments if the supervisory authority does not have sufficient information compared to the bankruptcy administration. Jeandin, for his part, considers that other bodies may decide on the provisional distribution. I agree with the latter author, emphasizing that the supervisory authority may proceed with a provisional distribution provided that it respects the principle of prudence and has sufficient information to determine the amount of the provisional dividends in order to avoid jeopardizing the final distribution.
Bibliography
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