Bankruptcy Law

1. The Ministry shall provide the Bankruptcy Committee with the financial resources necessary to exercise its powers and perform its duties, including remuneration of Committee members and allocations for contracting with experts, specialists, and employees, and shall provide the Committee with suitable premises. 2. The Bankruptcy Committee may charge fees for issuing licenses, rendering services, and organizing activities. The Minister shall determine the amount of such fees and methods of payment. 3. The Committee shall deposit its funds in an account opened under its name with one or more local banks, and shall disburse therefrom on its operations, secretariat, and employees in accordance with administrative and financial regulations set by the Committee and approved by the Minister. Chapter 3 Protective Settlement Procedure Article 13 Filing Petitions for the Initiation of a Protective Settlement Procedure 1 Without prejudice to any relevant law, the debtor may file a petition with the court to initiate a protective settlement procedure if he is: a) likely to suffer financial difficulties that may lead to distress; b) distressed; or c) bankrupt. 2 A debtor shall not file a petition for the initiation of a protective settlement procedure if he has previously been subject to such procedure or to a small debtors' protective settlement procedure during the 12 months preceding the filing of the petition for the initiation of the procedure. Article 14 Filing Petitions for the Initiation of a Protective Settlement Procedure 1. The petition for the initiation of a protective settlement procedure shall be registered with the court upon filing such petition along with the proposal and the relevant information and documents, as specified in the Regulations. 2 .The proposal must include information on the financial position of the debtor, effects of the economic situation thereon, and classification of creditors in accordance with Article 29 of this Law. Article 15 Court Powers in the Initiation of a Protective Settlement Procedure 1 .The court shall set a date for considering the petition for the initiation of a protective settlement procedure within a period not exceeding 40 days from the date of filing, and shall notify the debtor of the hearing date within five days from the date of registering the petition. The court shall take any of the following decisions: a) Initiate the procedure if: I. the debtor is likely to remain in business, and the claims of creditors are likely to be settled within a reasonable time; II. the debtor is bankrupt, distressed, or is likely to suffer financial difficulties that may lead to distress; III. the debtor provides the information and documents referred to in Article 14 of this Law; or IV. the debtor has fairly and with due diligence classified the creditors into classes. b) Reject the petition if: I. the petition does not satisfy the statutory requirements, or is unjustifiably incomplete; or II. the petitioner acts in bad faith, or commits any of the offenses stipulated in this Law. If the court rejects the petition, it may order the initiation of another suitable bankruptcy procedure. c) Postpone the hearing for a period not exceeding 21 days if: I. the court requires the debtor to provide additional information or documents; or II. the court requires the debtor to amend the classification of creditors stated in the proposal in a manner that ensures fair classification. The debtor shall provide the court with the required information, documents, or the amendment of classification of creditors on the set date, prior to the date set for the postponed hearing. The court shall initiate the procedure or reject the petition in accordance with the provisions of this Article. 2.The court may, on its own motion or upon the request of the debtor or any of the creditors, summon any person who has information or documents related to the petition for the initiation of the procedure to attend the hearing. The summoned person shall provide the court with such information or documents. 3.The debtor shall notify the creditors specified in the proposal of the court's decision in accordance with the Regulations, and shall deposit a copy of the decision at the Bankruptcy Register. Article 16 Court Powers in the Initiation of a Protective Settlement Procedure 1. In its decision to initiate a protective settlement procedure, the court shall set the date on which the creditors vote on the proposal within a period not exceeding 40 days from the procedure initiation date, unless it decides to set a later date, provided it is within a period not exceeding an additional 40 days. 2. The debtor shall publish the initiation of the procedure within seven days from the date of issuance of the court’s decision to initiate such procedure.