1. Subject of the dispute – imposition of joint and several liability on the former managers of the bankrupt company for failure to satisfy the creditors’ claims.
2. The court of cassation noted that the joint and several liability of the bankrupt’s manager has a tortious nature and arises if the manager did not apply to the court in time with a bankruptcy petition, thereby causing losses to the creditors. The amount of these losses should be equal to the difference between the amount of creditors’ claims and the value of the bankrupt’s property that was discovered and sold during the liquidation procedure. The court emphasized that the claim for the imposition of joint and several liability is premature if the sale of the bankrupt’s property and settlements with creditors have not yet been completed, since only after that it is possible to establish the amount of losses caused to creditors. In this case, the courts of previous instances did not investigate the completeness of the identification and sale of the bankrupt’s property, therefore, the conclusion regarding the amount of joint and several liability is unfounded. The court departed from previous practice, noting that the claim for joint and several liability is premature until the completion of the liquidation procedure and settlements with creditors.
3. The court overturned the decision of the appellate court and upheld the ruling of the court of first instance refusing to satisfy the application for the imposition of joint and several liability.
