Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016

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The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016
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Parliament of India
  • An Act to consolidate and amend the laws relating to reorganisation and insolvency resolution of corporate persons, partnership firms and individuals in a time bound manner for maximisation of value of assets of such persons, to promote entrepreneurship, availability of credit and balance the interests of all the stakeholders including alteration in the order of priority of payment of Government dues and to establish an Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
Citation Act No. 31 of 2016
Territorial extent India
Passed by Lok Sabha
Passed5 May 2016
Passed by Rajya Sabha
Passed11 May 2016
Assented to28 May 2016
Commenced28 May 2016
Legislative history
First chamber: Lok Sabha
Bill titleThe Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016
Bill citation Bill No. 349 of 2015
Introduced by Arun Jaitley
Introduced21 December 2015
Committee report Report of the Joint Committee
Final stages
Reported from conference committee 28 April 2016
Status: In force

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) is an Indian law which creates a consolidated framework that governs insolvency and bankruptcy proceedings for companies, partnership firms, and individuals.

Contents

Background

Prior to the IBC, the legislative framework for insolvency and restructuring was fragmented across multiple legislations, such as the Companies Act 2013, the Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provisions) Act, 1985, Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002, the Recovery of Debts due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act (RDDBFI Act), 1993, and others. [1]

History

On 22 August 2014, the Ministry of Finance created the Bankruptcy Legislative Reforms Committee (BLRC). The committee was headed by T. K. Viswanathan, and tasked with drafting a new bankruptcy law. The Committee submitted its report, which included a draft bill, on 4 November 2015. A modified version of the draft bill, after the incorporation of public comments, was introduced in the Sixteenth Lok Sabha Lok Sabha by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley as the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2015. [2] The bill was tabled on 23 December 2015. A Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2015 (JPC) was set up and the bill was referred to it for detailed analysis. The JPC submitted its report, which included a new draft of the Bill, 28 April 2016. [3] It was passed by the Lok Sabha on 5 May 2016, and by the Rajya Sabha on 11 May 2016. Subsequently, it received assent from President Pranab Mukherjee and was notified in The Gazette of India on 28 May 2016. [4]

Early cases

The first insolvency resolution order under this code was passed by National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in the case of Synergies-Dooray Automotive Ltd on 14 August 2017. The plea for insolvency was submitted by company on 23 January 2017. The resolution plan was submitted to NCLT within a period of 180 days as required by the code, and the approval for the same was received on 2 August 2017 from the tribunal. The final order was uploaded on 14 August 2017 on the NCLT website. [5]

The First case under Indian Insolvency law before Supreme Court was in Innoventive Industries Ltd. v. ICICI Bank and Anr.

Key Provisions

Insolvency Resolution : The Code outlines separate insolvency resolution processes for individuals, companies and partnership firms. The process may be initiated by either the debtor or the creditors. A maximum time limit, for completion of the insolvency resolution process, has been set for corporates and individuals. For companies, the process will have to be completed in 180 days, which may be extended by 90 days, if a majority of the creditors agree. For start ups (other than partnership firms), small companies and other companies (with asset less than Rs. 1 crore), resolution process would be completed within 90 days of initiation of request which may be extended by 45 days. [6]

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2019 has increased the mandatory upper Time limit of 330 days including time spent in legal process to complete resolution process. [7]

Insolvency regulator: The Code establishes the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India, to oversee the insolvency proceedings in the country and regulate the entities registered under it. The Board will have 10 members, including representatives from the Ministries of Finance and Law, and the Reserve Bank of India. [8]

Insolvency professionals: The insolvency process will be managed by licensed professionals. These professionals will also control the assets of the debtor during the insolvency process. [8]

Bankruptcy and Insolvency Adjudicator: The Code proposes two separate tribunals to oversee the process of insolvency resolution, for individuals and companies: (i) the National Company Law Tribunal for Companies and Limited Liability Partnership firms; and (ii) the Debt Recovery Tribunal for individuals and partnerships.[ citation needed ]

Procedure

Time Limit

The IBC envisions that the entire Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) must take place within 180 days of the admission of the application. A CIRP must be mandatorily completed within 330 days, including any extension or litigation period. [9]

Initiating the CIRP

In the case of a corporate debtor, an application for insolvency proceedings must be submitted to the Adjudicating Authority (AA), which is the NCLT. The application may be filed by a financial creditor (Section 7), an operational creditor (Section 9), or the corporate debtor (Section 10) itself. Section 11 enumerates the persons not entitled to make an application, such as corporate debtor who was in a CIRP at the time of the application, or had been in one recently.

The maximum time allowed to consider the application is 14 days. If the application is allowed, the Adjudicating Authority: (i) declares a moratorium; (ii) causes a public announcement of the CIRP process and calls for the submission of claims; and (iii) appoints an Interim Resolution Professional (IRP).

Moratorium

On the date on which the insolvency commences, a moratorium is declared, and it remains in force until the end of the CIRP. The CIRP ends, either when the AA approves a resolution plan under Section 31(1), or when it passes a liquidation order under Section 33. The moratorium ensures that the CIRP has a free-rein and is the only mechanism through which claims are settled. It bars the institution of litigation against the corporate debtor, while at the same time suspending the corporate debtor's ability to move, sell, or transfer any of its assets. It bars actions both by and against the corporate debtor. However, the moratorium has certain exceptions, such as Section 14(2A), which allows the IRP to continue to supply of such goods and services as it considers necessary to preserve the value of the corporate debtor.

For the said period, the board of directors of the company stands suspended, and the promoters do not have a say in the management of the company. The IRP, if required, can seek the support of the company's management for day-to-day operations. If the CIRP fails in reviving the company, the liquidation process is initiated.

Amendments

High-value cases

CompanyDebtDate of referral to NCLTDate of ResolutionRecovery AmountNotesReference
Essar Steel 490 billion (US$6.1 billion)June 2017Dec 201942,000 crore (equivalent to 520 billionorUS$6.5 billion in 2023)SC delivered its final verdict and cleared way for Arcelor Mittal India and Nippon Steel Japan to form a joint venture to complete the takeover by end of Dec 2019. [11] [12]
Bhushan Steel 440 billion (US$5.5 billion)26 July 2017May 201836,400 crore (equivalent to 490 billionorUS$6.1 billion in 2023)Tata Steel, through its wholly owned subsidiary Bamnipal Steel Ltd (BNPL), has acquired 72.65 per cent controlling stake in Bhushan Steel Ltd (BSL) for around Rs 36,400 crore. The company was selected as the highest bidder in March 2018 to buy a controlling stake in Bhushan Steel, as part of bankruptcy proceedings. [11] [13] [14]
Bhushan Power & Steel 492 billion (US$6.2 billion)June 2017March 202119,350 crore (equivalent to 220 billionorUS$2.7 billion in 2023)After four years of litigation involving ED & previous owners, CoC has voted in favor of JSW Steel. The deal will be completed by end of March 2021. [15]
Alok Industries 290 billion (US$3.6 billion)June 2017March 20195,050 crore (equivalent to 63 billionorUS$790 million in 2023)Joint bid by Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co was approved by NCLT Ahmedabad last year. [11] [16]
Jet Airways 146 billion (equivalent to 180 billionorUS$2.3 billion in 2023)June 2019CoC has accepted a ₹1,000-crore bid by a consortium of UK-based Kalrock Capital and UAE-based entrepreneur Murari Lal Jalan on Oct 17, 2020. [17]
Reliance Communications 33,000 crore (equivalent to 410 billionorUS$5.1 billion in 2023)June 2019Jan 202023,000 crore (equivalent to 270 billionorUS$3.4 billion in 2023) Reliance Jio will get the tower and fiber assets of Reliance Infratel Ltd for Rs 4,700 crore, UV Asset Reconstruction Co Ltd (UVARC) will get assets of RCom and Reliance Telecom (spectrum) for Rs 14,000 crore. [18]
Dewan Housing Finance Ltd 1,000 billion (equivalent to 1.2 trillionorUS$16 billion in 2023)Nov 29, 2019Jan 202138,000 crore (equivalent to 430 billionorUS$5.3 billion in 2023)First financial company to be referred to NCLT under IBC by RBI. It was acquired by Piramal Group, and, according to the resolution plan, Piramal Capital and Housing Finance Ltd. (PCHFL) will merge with DHFL. [19] [20] [21]
Reliance Capital 6 December 2021
  • RBI superseded the board on Nov 29, 2021 with the intention of starting insolvency proceedings. The central bank appointed Nageswara Rao Y., a former executive director of Bank of Maharashtra, as the company's administrator.
  • The Committee of Creditors (COC) has decided to reject all the binding bids. The COC is now considering sending Reliance Capital to liquidation, under the newly introduced regulation 6(A) of the IBC, whereby each individual business can be sold separately.
[22]
Future Retail Pending Admission to NCLTLenders have picked a Resolution Professional and are preparing to get the company admitted NCLT proceedings after the company defaulted on Rs 3,495 crore of loans in January as per the terms of a one-time restructuring deal. [23]

Related Research Articles

Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor.

Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, whether organized as a corporation, partnership or sole proprietorship, and to individuals, although it is most prominently used by corporate entities. In contrast, Chapter 7 governs the process of a liquidation bankruptcy, though liquidation may also occur under Chapter 11; while Chapter 13 provides a reorganization process for the majority of private individuals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liquidation</span> Winding-up of a company

Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a company is brought to an end. The assets and property of the business are redistributed. When a firm has been liquidated, it is sometimes referred to as wound-up or dissolved, although dissolution technically refers to the last stage of liquidation. The process of liquidation also arises when customs, an authority or agency in a country responsible for collecting and safeguarding customs duties, determines the final computation or ascertainment of the duties or drawback accruing on an entry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Insolvency</span> State of being unable to pay ones debts

In accounting, insolvency is the state of being unable to pay the debts, by a person or company (debtor), at maturity; those in a state of insolvency are said to be insolvent. There are two forms: cash-flow insolvency and balance-sheet insolvency.

An unfair preference is a legal term arising in bankruptcy law where a person or company transfers assets or pays a debt to a creditor shortly before going into bankruptcy, that payment or transfer can be set aside on the application of the liquidator or trustee in bankruptcy as an unfair preference or simply a preference.

As a legal concept, administration is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions, similar to bankruptcy in the United States. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent entities and allows them to carry on running their business. The process – in the United Kingdom colloquially called being "under administration" – is an alternative to liquidation or may be a precursor to it. Administration is commenced by an administration order.

Debt relief orders (DROs) are a simplified, quicker and cheaper alternative to bankruptcy as an insolvency measure in the United Kingdom, which came into effect in England and Wales on 6 April 2009, and are also offered in Northern Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United Kingdom insolvency law</span> Law in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

United Kingdom insolvency law regulates companies in the United Kingdom which are unable to repay their debts. While UK bankruptcy law concerns the rules for natural persons, the term insolvency is generally used for companies formed under the Companies Act 2006. Insolvency means being unable to pay debts. Since the Cork Report of 1982, the modern policy of UK insolvency law has been to attempt to rescue a company that is in difficulty, to minimise losses and fairly distribute the burdens between the community, employees, creditors and other stakeholders that result from enterprise failure. If a company cannot be saved it is liquidated, meaning that the assets are sold off to repay creditors according to their priority. The main sources of law include the Insolvency Act 1986, the Insolvency Rules 1986, the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986, the Employment Rights Act 1996 Part XII, the EU Insolvency Regulation, and case law. Numerous other Acts, statutory instruments and cases relating to labour, banking, property and conflicts of laws also shape the subject.

The insolvency law of Switzerland is the law governing insolvency, foreclosure, bankruptcy and debt restructuring proceedings in Switzerland. It is principally codified in the Federal Statute on Debt Enforcement and Bankruptcy of 11 April 1889 as well as in ancillary federal and cantonal laws.

Essar Steel was a common name of the steel manufacturing companies of the Essar Group of Companies. Its main subsidiary was Essar Steel India Limited, a fully integrated flat carbon steel manufacturer based in Mumbai, which owned and operated a steel mill in Hazira, Surat district of Gujarat state. In addition, it had also a beneficiation plant at Bailadilla, Chhattisgarh, and pellet plants at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, and Paradeep, Odisha.

Bankruptcy in Irish Law is a legal process, supervised by the High Court whereby the assets of a personal debtor are realised and distributed amongst his or her creditors in cases where the debtor is unable or unwilling to pay his debts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bhupender Yadav</span> Indian politician

Bhupender Yadav is an Indian politician who serves as the Union Cabinet Minister of Labour and Employment, Environment, Forest and Climate Change in the Government of India. He is the National General Secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He is a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha, representing the state of Rajasthan, a position he has held since 2012. He was reelected in April 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">British Virgin Islands bankruptcy law</span>

British Virgin Islands bankruptcy law is principally codified in the Insolvency Act, 2003, and to a lesser degree in the Insolvency Rules, 2005. Most of the emphasis of bankruptcy law in the British Virgin Islands relates to corporate insolvency rather than personal bankruptcy. As an offshore financial centre, the British Virgin Islands has many times more resident companies than citizens, and accordingly the courts spend more time dealing with corporate insolvency and reorganisation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Company Law Tribunal</span> Quasi-judicial body in India

The National Company Law Tribunal is a quasi-judicial body in India that adjudicates issues relating to Indian companies. The tribunal was established under the Companies Act 2013 and was constituted on 1 June 2016 by the government of India and is based on the recommendation of the V. Balakrishna Eradi committee on law relating to the insolvency and the winding up of companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cayman Islands bankruptcy law</span>

Cayman Islands bankruptcy law is principally codified in five statutes and statutory instruments:

Anguillan bankruptcy law regulates the position of individuals and companies who are unable to meet their financial obligations.

Australian insolvency law regulates the position of companies which are in financial distress and are unable to pay or provide for all of their debts or other obligations, and matters ancillary to and arising from financial distress. The law in this area is principally governed by the Corporations Act 2001. Under Australian law, the term insolvency is usually used with reference to companies, and bankruptcy is used in relation to individuals. Insolvency law in Australia tries to seek an equitable balance between the competing interests of debtors, creditors and the wider community when debtors are unable to meet their financial obligations. The aim of the legislative provisions is to provide:

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) is the regulator for overseeing insolvency proceedings and entities like Insolvency Professional Agencies (IPA), Insolvency Professionals (IP) and Information Utilities (IU) in India. It was established on 1 October 2016 and given statutory powers through the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, which was passed by Lok Sabha on 5 May 2016. It covers Individuals, Companies, Limited Liability Partnerships and Partnership firms. The new code will speed up the resolution process for stressed assets in the country. It attempts to simplify the process of insolvency and bankruptcy proceedings. It handles the cases using two tribunals like NCLT and Debt recovery tribunal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Company Law Appellate Tribunal</span> Indian tribunal

The National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) is a tribunal which was formed by the Central Government of India under Section 410 of the Companies Act, 2013. The NCLAT was formed as a body with an appellate jurisdiction at the same time when NCLT was established as a major reform as per powers granted to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in India,

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Orissa Minerals Development Company</span>

The Orissa Minerals Development Company Limited (OMDC),, is a Public Sector Undertaking company in the Indian states of Odisha under administrative control of Department of Steel and Mines, Government of Odisha. It was founded on August 16, 1918 and is engaged in the mining and production of iron ore and manganese ore. It is a subsidiary of state-owned Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited. It is listed at Calcutta Stock Exchange (CSE), National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

References

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  9. S. 12, IBC
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