Protecting management interests in bankruptcy cases

The parties to the dispute

Beneficiaries and top management of the oilfield services company & INFRALEX against creditors and the bankruptcy trustee.

Amount in dispute: 1.2 billion rubles.

Industry: fuel and energy sector.

INFRALEX lawyers secured a refusal to hold the director, accountant, liquidator, and beneficiaries liable, proving the following:

• In 2016-2020, KDL implemented an anti‑crisis plan to help the company overcome its difficult financial situation: they restructured credit debt, cooperated with the State Corporation “Rosatom” to create a joint venture, and sought installment payments from creditors;
• The bankruptcy occurred for objective reasons: COVID‑19, supply restrictions, economic downturn, and currency volatility;
• Some of the defendants did not have the authority and were not obliged to initiate bankruptcy proceedings or convene the relevant corporate decisions.

Case results

The court took into account:

• When determining the date of objective bankruptcy, it is necessary to examine not only the company’s financial indicators but also its activities during the disputed period: management took all the necessary measures to repay the debt and continue the company’s operations;
• The implementation of the crisis recovery plan was interrupted due to external factors beyond the management’s control.