Rules of the Superior Courts (Bankruptcy) 2016.

• Jurisdiction: Ireland
• Citation: IR SI 232/2016

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 13th May, 2016.

We, the Superior Courts Rules Committee, constituted pursuant to the provisions of the Courts of Justice Act 1936 , section 67, by virtue of the powers conferred upon us by The Courts of Justice Act 1924 , section 36, and the Courts of Justice Act 1936 , section 68 (as applied by the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 , section 48), the Courts (Supplemental Provisions) Act 1961 , section 14, and of all other powers enabling us in this behalf, do hereby make the following Rules of Court.

Dated this 7th day of April, 2016.

Susan Denham Peter Kelly William McKechnie Mary Laffoy Mary Finlay Geoghegan Michael Peart Anthony Barr Conor Dignam Gerard Meehan Stuart Gilhooly Mary Cummins Noel Rubotham John Mahon

I concur in the making of the following Rules of Court.

Dated this 9th day of May, 2016.

FRANCES FITZGERALD,

Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality.

S.I. No. 232 of 2016

RULES OF THE SUPERIOR COURTS (BANKRUPTCY) 2016

1. (1) These Rules, which may be cited as the Rules of the Superior Courts (Bankruptcy) 2016, shall come into operation on the 1st day of June 2016.

(2) These Rules shall be construed together with the Rules of the Superior Courts.

(3) The Rules of the Superior Courts as amended by these Rules may be cited as the Rules of the Superior Courts 1986 to 2016.

2. Where, on the day of coming into operation of section 4 of the Bankruptcy (Amendment) Act 2015 a statutory sitting has been appointed under section 17 (3) of the Bankruptcy Act 1988 for that day or a subsequent day or on that day of coming into operation a statutory sitting stands adjourned, the proceedings to which that statutory sitting relates shall continue as if the amendments made by rules 3(i) and 3(iii) to (xiv) inclusive of these Rules has not been made.

3. Order 76 of the Rules of the Superior Courts is amended:

(i) by the deletion from rule 1(1) of the definition of “the statutory sitting”;

(ii) by the insertion in rule 1(1) immediately following the definition of “trustee” of the following:

“any reference to any book, paper or record includes, where the context so admits or requires, reference to any copy of such book, paper or record in electronic form.”;

(iii) by the substitution therein for paragraph (c) of rule 19(1) of the following paragraph:

“(c) contain an undertaking by the petitioner to advertise notice of the adjudication in the manner directed by the Court, and to bear the expenses of such advertisement;”;

(iv) by the substitution therein for paragraph (g) of rule 19(1) of the following paragraph:

“(g) contain an indemnity on the part of the petitioner, indemnifying the Official Assignee as to such costs, fees and expenses of the Official Assignee as the Court may upon the application of the Official Assignee direct, and”;

(v) by the substitution therein for rule 23 of the following rule:

“23. In all cases the petitioning creditor shall indemnify the Official Assignee against such costs, fees and expenses as the Court may, upon the application of the Official Assignee, on notice to the petitioning creditor, direct.”;

(vi) by the substitution therein for rule 26(1) of the following sub-rule:

“26. (1) A debtor’s petition shall be in the Form No 13 and shall:

(a) contain an undertaking by the debtor to advertise notice of the adjudication in the manner directed by the Court and to bear the expenses of such advertisement;

(b) contain an undertaking by the debtor to lodge such sums, if any, as the Court may from time to time direct to cover the costs, fees and expenses incurred or to be incurred by the Official Assignee;

(c) contain:

(i) statements that the Insolvency Regulation applies to the proceedings and that the debtor’s centre of main interests is situated in the State and the facts and grounds supporting each statement; or

(ii) statements that the Insolvency Regulation applies to the proceedings, that the debtor’s centre of main interests is situated in another specified Member State and that the debtor has an establishment within the State and the facts and grounds supporting each statement; or

(iii) a statement that the Insolvency Regulation does not apply to the proceedings, and in such case, shall contain a statement that the debtor is domiciled in the State or that, within a year before the date of the presentation of the petition, he has ordinarily resided or had a dwellinghouse or place of business in the State, or that he has carried on business in the State personally or by means of an agent or manager, or that he is or within the said period has been a member of a partnership which has carried on business in the State by means of a partner, agent or manager and the facts and grounds supporting that statement, and

(d) where the Insolvency Regulation applies to the proceedings, contain a statement that, to the debtor’s knowledge, no insolvency proceedings have been opened in respect of the debtor in any Member State or Member States (other than the State), or that such insolvency proceedings have been opened and if so, whether those insolvency proceedings are main proceedings, secondary proceedings or territorial proceedings.”

(vii) by the deletion of rule 42;

(viii) by the substitution for rule 43 of the following rule:

“43. From and after adjudication, the Official Assignee shall be at liberty to choose and appoint a solicitor to have carriage of the proceedings on his behalf and to advise him in the course of the proceedings.”;

(ix) by the substitution for sub-rule (1) of rule 64 of the following sub-rule:

“(1) Notice of the adjudication shall be given as required by section 17(2) of the Act in the Form No. 19.”;

(x) by the substitution for rule 67 of the following rule:

“67. An application to the Court for confirmation of the appointment of a creditors’ assignee under section 18(1)(b) of the Act shall be by motion on notice to the Official Assignee.”;

(xi) by the substitution for rule 80(1) of the following sub-rule:

“(1) A statement of affairs filed by a debtor under section 11(5) or for the purposes of section 14(2) of the Act shall be in the Form No. 23, with such modifications as are necessary, and shall particularise those affairs (including the assets and liabilities of the debtor) as of the following dates:

(a) where filed under section 11(5) of the Act, as of the date of presentation of the petition and

(b) where filed for the purposes of section 14(2) of the Act, as such date as the Court may direct.”;

(xii) by the substitution for rules 80(4) and 80(5) of the following sub-rules respectively:

“(4) Where the Court has given a direction referred to in sub-rule (3), the statement of affairs filed by the debtor shall, for the purpose of this Order, be treated as his statement of affairs as a bankrupt.

(5) Unless the Court otherwise directs, the bankrupt shall:

(a) in the case of an adjudication to which section 14 of the Act applies, not later than 14 days after service on the bankrupt of the copy order of adjudication, or

(b) in the case of an adjudication to which section 15 of the Act applies, not later than seven days after the making of the order of adjudication,

lodge with the Official Assignee his statement of affairs in the Form No 23 and the Official Assignee shall examine same so as to ascertain whether it be complete, and shall refuse to stamp same, and the bankrupt shall not file same, until presented to the Official Assignee complete, unless the Court shall otherwise direct.”;

(xiii) by the substitution for rule 100 of the following rule:

“100. When the proposal of a bankrupt or an arranging debtor for the future payment or compromise of his debts involves any other person becoming surety for the payment or compromise, the consent and undertaking in writing of that person to the proposal shall be in the Form No 31 and shall be filed at or before the meeting called under section 39(1) of the Act. Such consent and undertaking shall be executed in the presence of the Official Assignee at his office, and the same shall not be filed until the surety shall be identified to the satisfaction of the Official Assignee.”;

(xiv) by the substitution for rule 102(1) of the following sub-rule:

“(1) The Official Assignee or any creditor whose debt has been admitted may apply to the Court by motion for liberty to put a proposal to the creditors of the bankrupt at a meeting of such creditors, that the estate of the bankrupt be wound up by a trustee and a committee of inspection, and for directions as to the convening of such meeting.”;

(xv) by the substitution for rule 103 of the following rule:

“103. Where a resolution to appoint a trustee and a committee of inspection has been adopted at a meeting of creditors in accordance with section 110 of the Act, an application to the Court to order that the property of the bankrupt be wound up by the trustee and committee of inspection shall be made by motion on notice to the Official Assignee.”;

(xvi) by the substitution for rule 132 of the following rule:

“132. The provisions of these rules relating to adjudication in Bankruptcy and the procedure to be followed thereafter shall, as far as applicable and with appropriate modifications, apply to an order made for the administration of an insolvent deceased’s estate. Notice of the making of such order shall be in the Form No 34.”;

(xvii) by the substitution for rule 161 of the following rule:

“161. An application for a certificate of the Official Assignee required by section 85(3G) of the Act confirming that an estate or interest in a family home, shared home or principal private residence has re-vested in a bankrupt in accordance with section 85 of the Act may be made in writing to the Official Assignee and such...