Research projects

Creditors can have security over all of debtors' property. What is the aim of Insolvency proceedings which save the general creditors equally, if it is popular? I studied the UK insolvency law from the point of view of corporate rescue and priority of claim. As a result, UK law introduced the ring fence for general creditors and reformed the administrative receivership from for secured creditors to both of secured creditors and general creditors. I found that the objective of the law reform was corporate rescue.

I show that the general interests of creditors means not only best interest but also the others. I study the best interest test. The test is that debtors can go corporate reorganization proceedings when they can pay more money than that in bankruptcy liquidation. But I discuss that we have to consider the features of the rehabilitation act if we use the best interest test and that the court may confirm the plan which is under the liquidation value when most of creditors support it. I study Asset Based Lending in England. I show the following features. The first is that floating charge is less priority than fixed charge. The second is that there is the subscribed part for unsecured creditors. The last is that a secured creditor manage to protect their interests under that circumstance.

This research aimed to investigate the background of recent reforms of security interests law, execution law and bankruptcy law, and establish (clarify) cross-sectional pricples underlying these legal fields and made some proposals for legislation and legal practice. The research results are to be summarized in three points which turn (hinge) on the recent movement of diversification and speeding up of the process of execution and bankruptcy procedures. 1.The first concerns the importance of the extra-judiciary procedures for diversification and streamlinig of the process of the execution and bankruptcy. Besides M & A in U.S., in France, the notaires and commissaire-priseurs developed the procedures such as la vente aimable, la conversion de la saisie en vente volontaire, l'ordre amiable, l'ordre consensuel etc. 2.The third concerns the importance of those who manage the execution and bankruptcy. Besides the court officials, investment bankers, accountants, tax accountants and lawyers play very imprtant roles for diversification and streamlinig of the process inm U.S.and recent Japan. Noteworthy is also the introduction of the Insolvency Practitioners in England in 1986. 3.The second is the weakening or restructuring of some secured interests in diversified and speeded up procedures of execution and bankruptcy. The question is double. The first question is how far weaken the secured interests against the creditors, the second is how far weaken the transactional creditors among whom wages employees and contractors are practically important, against the financial creditors.

ON this study, we conducted a fact-finding survey of records of Civil Rehabilitation Cases and tried to analyze the data obtained by the survey. We have carried out the survey at 4 District Courts (Tokyo District Court, Osaka District Court, Sendai District Court, and Naha District Court). In analyzing the data, we have compared the data from the viewpoints of regions, periods, and compared with the practical operations of the Composition Act. On that basis, we have analyzed the data on 13 aspects we picked up.

We have tried to think about Insolvency Practitioner(IP) from historical point and comparative point, particularly,insolvency court, insolvency lawyer, debtor and creditor. As time went by, the role of Insolvency Practitioner has changed. We can understand that the role of Insolvency Practitioner is influenced by the purpose of insolvemcy proceedings.