THE PROVISION ON THE SALE OF THE DEBTOR'S PROPERTY SHOULD NOT DELAY THE PROCEDURE

THE PROVISION ON THE SALE OF THE DEBTOR'S PROPERTY SHOULD NOT DELAY THE PROCEDURE

THE PROVISION ON THE SALE OF THE DEBTOR'S PROPERTY SHOULD NOT DELAY THE PROCEDURE
The debtor applied to the court for the resolution of disagreements with the secured creditor on the issue of approving the regulations on the sale of a real estate object (case no. A41-90775/22).

Resolving disagreements, the courts of two instances were guided by the fact that the disputed property is a liquid asset in high demand in the commercial real estate market, this property can be used for renting and generating high income, while the price offered by the collateral creditor was determined in 2021, that is, more than three years ago.

The courts agreed with the debtor's arguments that it is advisable to set a threshold for reducing the sale price (minimum price) in the amount of 70% of the initial sale price at auction through a public offer, to set the amount of reduction in the initial sale price of the property in the amount of 5% of the initial sale price of the property every 10 working days.

The cassation sent the dispute for reconsideration, pointing out that the bank in the courts of both instances stated reasonable doubts that the establishment of a high cut-off price would lead to a delay in the bankruptcy procedure and an increase in the cost of bidding if the property was not sold at the cut-off price set in the regulation.

In the opinion of the instance, the arguments of the collateral creditor in order to sell the debtor's property in order to more fully satisfy the collateral creditor's claim and maintain a balance of interests in the bankruptcy case on setting a cut-off price of 40 percent did not receive a legal assessment.

The collateral creditor drew the attention of the courts to the fact that setting a low reduction value (5%) for a longer period of 10 working days, on the contrary, would increase the duration of the procedure, which would negatively affect the interests of bankruptcy creditors interested in the timely sale of property at the lowest cost, in addition, taking into account the established high cut-off price, after that, if the property is not disposed of at the cut-off price set in the first public offer, the procedure for selling this property through a public offer will, in fact, be interrupted and uncertainty will arise regarding its further sale.

The courts did not take into account that setting the cut-off price at 70 percent, that is, setting an unnecessarily high price, can significantly delay the bankruptcy procedure.

18.11.2024