Over the past year, the Covid-19 pandemic upended many industries. While the construction industry has largely been able to operate throughout the pandemic, albeit with increased and ever-changing restrictions on jobsites, one consequence of these disruptions may be an increase in construction-related bankruptcy filings. Already in 2021, there have been over 70 construction-related bankruptcy filings across the country. For many property owners and real estate developers, these filings create a nightmare scenario where work may slow or even stop entirely.

El pasado 18 de junio entró en vigor la Ley 11/2015 de recuperación y resolución de entidades de crédito y empresas de servicios de inversión (la "Ley 11/2015"), que deroga y refunde la antigua Ley 9/2012, de 14 de noviembre, de reestructuración y resolución de entidades de crédito (la "Ley 9/2012").  

El pasado miércoles 27 de mayo de 2015 se produjo la entrada en vigor de la Ley 9/2015, de 25 de mayo, de medidas urgentes en materia concursal. Se termina así el proceso de conversión en Ley del Real Decreto-Ley 11/2014, de 5 de septiembre (ver e-bulletin publicado).

Act 9/2015, of 25 May, regarding urgent measures on insolvency, entered into force in Spain on 27 May 2015, thus concluding the process to give Royal Decree Law 11/2014, of 5 September, the status of an Act in its own right (see published e-bulletin).

On Friday 5 September, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved Royal Decree Law 11/2014, of 5 September, regarding urgent measures on insolvency. The Royal Decree Law brings in a series of significant reforms to the Spanish Insolvency Act 22/2003, of 9 July (the "Insolvency Act"). The new Royal Decree Law entered into force on 7 September 2014.  

Royal Decree-Law 14/2013 ("RD-L 14/2013"), of 29 November, of urgent measures to adapt Spanish law to European Union regulations on the supervision and solvency of financial institutions, that entered into force on 1 December, clarifies the insolvency qualification regime applicable to the credits transferred by SAREB, to third parties, thus modifying section h) of article 36.4 of Act 9/2012, of 14 November, on the restructuring and resolution of credit institutions ("Act 9/2012").

Act 38/2011, of 10 October, which reforms the former Spanish Insolvency Act, introduces a number of measures, including the possibility of obtaining court approval for refinancing agreements meeting certain requirements to extend the agreed debt rescheduling to certain creditors that have either opposed the refinancing agreement (i.e. dissident creditors), or that have not participated in it.

Additional Provision 4 of the Insolvency Act establishes that court approval for refinancing agreements may be sought by the debtor if they meet the following conditions:

In general, a company has two bankruptcy alternatives: liquidation under Chapter 7 and reorganization under Chapter 11.

Under Chapter 7, upon the filing of a bankruptcy petition, a trustee is appointed to gather and sell all of the debtor’s assets as quickly as possible. Once the trustee liquidates all of the assets, it must pay creditors in accordance with the priority scheme mandated by the Bankruptcy Code:

In today’s economy, we continue to see bankruptcies occurring in the construction sector. An owner, contractor, or subcontractor in financial distress can easily delay a project — or worse, jeopardize the project in its entirety. Contractors need to understand their rights in order to minimize their exposure in bankruptcy-related situations.

Protecting Contractors — Frequently Asked Questions