A New Role for Secondary Proceedings in International Bankruptcies

Abstract:     
Secondary proceedings – the ugly stepsisters to main proceedings – get short shrift in international bankruptcy scholarship. This article seeks to remedy that deficiency. First, it describes what it argues are the traditional conceptions – both stated and implicit – of secondary proceedings in cross-border insolvencies. Second, it offers a revised way of thinking about secondary proceedings, proposing to restrict their scope through the use of “synthetic” hearings. Third, it addresses some problems with the proposed new role of secondary proceedings and sketches a possible solution involving the creation of an international priorities registry.

Number of Pages in PDF File: 22

Keywords: international bankruptcy, corporate bankruptcy

JEL Classification: F30

Accepted Paper Series