Central & Eastern Europe

The lawyers who worked on this high profile case involving allegations of auction-rigging explain what others need to know

A long-standing burden on the courts in the Slovak Republic is the large number of old enforcement proceedings. Old enforcement proceedings are referred proceedings that commenced before April 1 2017, when a large amendment of the Code of Enforcement Procedure entered into force. While the new rules from this date give bailiffs strict limits for the new enforcement proceedings – two-and-a-half years for debtors who are legal entities and five years for debtors who are natural persons – no such limits existed for the old enforcement proceedings. This fact, plus the fact that old enforcement procedures could not be terminated for insolvency of a debtor without the creditor's consent, explains why there are still 2.6 million old enforcement procedures in the courts. These old enforcement procedures formally continue even though the debtor is, in most cases, insolvent and no assets are being recovered from them. If these cases continue to be completed at their present rate without state intervention, the old enforcement procedures would remain in the legal system for another 12+ years. To end this unsustainable situation, the government proposed an act on the termination of the certain enforcement procedures (Act) aimed specifically at the old enforcement proceedings, which will enter force on January 1 2020.

The special act requiring entities that do business with the government to register in a special register of public sector partners (the register) – and to disclose their beneficial owners – has been in force in Slovakia for almost two and a half years. It is known informally as the anti-shell company act. This act was so innovative that it was only a matter of time before the sponsor of the act – the government of the Slovak Republic – would prepare a substantial amendment. Such an amendment was passed on June 27 2019.