You can file the bankruptcy petition alone or together with other creditors.

Submitting the petition

Your lawyer starts the procedure by submitting a petition to the district court. In this, your lawyer asks on your behalf for your debtor to be declared bankrupt. You are the applicant.

Multiple requests for the same debtor to be declared bankrupt

Are other creditors also petitioning for your debtor to be declared bankrupt? In that case, the court will deal with the oldest request that meets the legal requirements. The other requests will then not be processed for the time being.

For detailed information, see:

• Procesreglement verzoekschriftprocedures insolventiezaken rechtbanken (Procedural rules for application procedures in insolvency cases at district court) (pdf, 625,7 KB)
  

Your lawyer will receive notice of the hearing from the court within a few weeks. This will state where, when and at what time the hearing is to take place. Your debtor will also receive notice. Bankruptcy hearings usually take place on a fixed day of the week, which is often Tuesday.

Does your debtor disagree with the bankruptcy petition? In that case, the debtor (defendant) object to it. The debtor can do so by submitting a verweerschrift (statement of defence) or putting forward an oral defence during the hearing. Your debtor does not have to be represented by a lawyer.

Statement of defence

In the statement of defence, the debtor writes their response to your petition. The debtor will indicate why they disagree with your petition and can attach copies of evidence to support their view. The district court will provide you with a copy of this statement of defence and any appendices.

The hearing is not public.

You, as the creditor/applicant, as well as your lawyer, must appear at the hearing. If, without prior notification, no one appears at the hearing on your behalf as the applicant, the court may reject the petition.

Your debtor does not have to attend

It is not mandatory for the debtor/defendant to be present at the hearing. However, if the debtor/defendant does not appear at the hearing and has not submitted a written statement of defence, the court can declare the debtor bankrupt in a verstekvonnis (default judgment). The debtor can appeal against a default judgment.

Oral proceedings

As the creditor, you will be given the opportunity to explain your petition verbally. Your debtor can put forward an oral defence or explain their defence in writing. Does your debtor want to rely on documentary evidence in their oral defence? Then the debtor must submit this in triplicate, not later than at the hearing. The district court will ensure that you receive one copy of the documents submitted. The judge will ask questions during the hearing in order to assess whether or not to approve the petition. In all cases, for your petition to be approved, the debtor’s situation must meet the legal requirements (in Dutch).

The judge usually makes a decision (judgment) during the hearing. If this is impossible, the decision will follow as soon as possible, usually within 1 or 2 weeks. You, your lawyer and your debtor will be sent a copy of the judgment.

Petition granted

If the court grants the request and declares the debtor bankrupt, your debtor can appeal against or object to a default judgment.

The bankruptcy will still take effect. With the judgment:

• the debtor is bankrupt with immediate effect;
• the court appoints an administrator (in Dutch)
• the court appoints an bankruptcy judge (in Dutch)

Publication

The registrar of the district court registers the judgment in the court’s bankruptcy register and in the Centraal Insolventieregister (CIR, Central Insolvency Register). The judgment is also published in the Government Gazette (Staatscourant).

Consequences of being declared bankrupt

Opposition

Has the court declared your debtor bankrupt in a default judgment? The debtor can oppose this decision before the same district court. A lawyer must submit the opposition within 14 days of the decision.

Appeal

You can appeal against the dismissal of your bankruptcy petition. This means that you submit your case to the Court of Appeal for reconsideration. You must do this within 8 days of the court’s decision. The appeal must be lodged by a lawyer.

Judicial review

If you subsequently disagree with the Court of Appeal’s decision, you have 8 days to apply to the Supreme Court for judicial review. Judicial review is an application made to the Supreme Court of the Netherlands to quash an earlier Court of Appeal decision. You will need a lawyer to do this on your behalf.