L’istituto del concordato preventivo con continuità aziendale (art. 186-bis della legge fallimentare) e il suo impatto sul quadro normativo dei contratti pubblici (sul punto cfr. “Concordato preventivo con continuità aziendale nei contratti pubblici”, giugno 2013, in www.nctm.it/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CPCP) hanno dato origine ad applicazioni di giurisprudenza contrastanti, che portano allo stato attuale ad identificare per esso diverse modalità applicative.

a) Continuità diretta e indiretta

Nella precedente esperienza applicativa del concordato, la conservazione dei complessi aziendali in esercizio assai di rado avveniva in capo allo stesso imprenditore, quanto piuttosto solo in via “indiretta”, attraverso la formale cessione ad un soggetto terzo, procedendo, prima del deposito della domanda di ammissione al concordato, alla concessione in affitto al fine di preservarne l'operatività.

The procedure of composition with creditors aimed at business continuity (“concordato preventivo con continuità aziendale”, provided by art. 186-bis of the Bankruptcy Law) has a major impact on the rules governing public contracts, above all with reference to the requirements requested both for the participation of economic operators in the public tender procedures and for their capacity to enter into agreements with public entities.

The Minister for Justice and Equality has brought more provisions of the Insolvency Act 2012 (the Act) into force and has designated 1 March 2013 as the establishment day of the Insolvency Service of Ireland.

Under the Personal Insolvency Act 2012 (Commencement) (No. 2) Order 2013, the following provisions of the Act came into operation on 1 March 2013:

This Act provides for the winding up of IBRC, the appointment of a Special Liquidator and other connected matters. This legislation was signed into law by the President on 7 February 2013.

The Minister for Justice and Equality has made an order which sets the 18th day of January, 2013, as the date on which Part 6 (Specialist Judges of the Circuit Court) of the Personal Insolvency Act 2012 comes into operation.

On the 12 December, the European Commission announced the proposal to update Council Regulation 1346/2000 on insolvency proceedings. They also announce a separate initiative whereby it will be highlighting the differences between national laws that have the greatest potential to hamper an efficient insolvency legal framework across the EU.

This Q&A focuses on the need to modernise the EU Insolvency Regulation to facilitate the restructuring of businesses in financial difficulty.

Questions include: why do the current rules need updating, what is the impact of the insolvency rules on the economy, how many businesses are affected and what are the next steps?

On 26 December last, the Personal Insolvency Act 2012 was signed into law by the President.

The various provisions of the Act will come into force through commencement orders which will be made by the Minister for Justice. It is expected that certain sections of the Act relating to its Establishment Day and related provisions, will be commenced shortly.

The remaining provisions will then come into operation on a phased basis under Section 1(2) of the Act, as designated by orders to be made by the Minister.

The Personal Insolvency Bill has now passed through the Dail and will commence in the Seanad. The Minister for Justice has commented that the intention is still to have the Bill enacted by Christmas.