What actions should not be taken by bankruptcy trustee when bidding

Tula Department of the FAS of Russia considered the complaint of an auction participant. He considered the actions of the debtor’s bankruptcy trustee as unlawful. The anti-crisis manager moved the deadline for accepting applications on his own initiative, which led to the victory of another participant.

According to the terms of the auction, they were supposed to end on January 12, 2022. The initiator of the complaint filed his application the day before, but subsequently received a message about the extension of the deadline due to technical malfunctions on the website.

After it turned out that at the end of the originally set bidding period, another company offered a higher price and won.

The trustee explained the situation by the fact that he was pursuing the interests of creditors and the debtor, filling the bankruptcy estate at the expense of the proposed larger amount for the lot. It was not possible to confirm the alleged malfunctions on the platform. Later it turned out that the company encountered technical difficulties. It subsequently submitted an application and won the auction, but belatedly.

The OFAS considered such behavior of the trustee to be inconsistent with the law and held him accountable, having explained to the failed winner that he had a right to challenge the result of the auction (decision of the Tula OFAS of Russia in case No. 071/10/18.1-64/2022 dated February 10, 2022).