THE SUPREME COURT ALLOWED TO REPLACE THE MANAGER DUE TO THE DOUBTS IN HIS IMPARTIALITY

When considering a complaint against the decision of a district court challenging the appointment of a new bankruptcy manager to replace the previous one, the Economic Board of the Supreme Court of Russia outlined the criteria, by which the courts should be guided in similar cases.

In the opinion of the highest court, a situation in which the arbitration manager is a person in the competence, good faith or independence of which the court has significant and justified doubts is unacceptable.

Consequently, when challenging the choice of one or another manager, the interested party only needs to generate reasonable suspicions regarding the chosen candidate.

At the same time, there is no need to prove the fact of affiliation with the debtor, only reasonable suspicion is enough.

In this case, the court always has the right to demand another candidate for the manager, without being bound exclusively by the will of the creditors. Thus, the process of appointing a new manager can be carried out by the method of random selection of a self-regulatory organization, one of the members of which will subsequently be chosen as a new candidate.

As a result, the fact of the appointment of an independent bankruptcy manager, who will be presented by the SRO on the basis of a random choice, must ensure a balance of compliance with the interests of all participants in the bankruptcy case (determination of August 26, 2020 No. 308-ES20-2721).