Recent insolvency cases highlight the growing importance of cross-border insolvency matters in international transactions. To this end, many instruments have been introduced and implemented in recent years across the world. At this page we present a selection of relevant instruments in the field of cross-border insolvency law.

Instruments on Cooperation and Communication in Cross-Border Insolvency Cases

• American Law Institute: Transnational Insolvency: Cooperation among the NAFTA Countries: Principles of Cooperation among the NAFTA Countries, 2000
• American Law Institute: Guidelines Applicable to Court-to-Court Communications in Cross-Border Cases, 2001
• European Communication and Cooperation Guidelines for Cross-Border Insolvency, 2007
• UNCITRAL: UNCITRAL Practice Guide on Cross-Border Insolvency Cooperation, 2009
• American Law Institute and International Insolvency Institute: Global Principles for Cooperation in International Insolvency Cases, 2012
• EU Cross-Border Insolvency Court-to-Court Cooperation Principles, 2014

Instruments on Role Players in (Cross-Border) Insolvency Cases

• EBRD: Insolvency Office Holders Principles, 2007
• UNCITRAL: UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency: The Judicial Perspective, 2013
• INSOL Europe: Draft Statement of Principles and Guidelines for Insolvency Office Holders in Europe, 2014
• EU Cross-Border Insolvency Court-to-Court Cooperation Principles, 2014
• INSOL Europe: Turnaround Wing Guidelines for Restructuring and Turnaround Professionals, 2015

European Union Instruments on (Cross-Border) Insolvency

Some of the core instruments from EU institutions are:

• Council of the European Union: Council Directive 90/314/EEC of 13 June 1990 on Package Travel, Package Holidays and Package Tours, 1990
• Council of the European Union: Convention on Insolvency Proceedings, 1995
• Council of the European Union: Council Regulation (EC) No. 1346/2000 of 29 May 2000 on Insolvency Proceedings, 2000
• European Commission: Commission Recommendation of 12 March 2014 on a New Approach to Business Failure and Insolvency Law, C(2014) 1500 Final, 2014
• European Parliament and Council of the European Union: Regulation (EU) 2015/848 of the European Parliament and the Council of 20 May 2015 on Insolvency Proceedings (Recast), 2015

See also this page at the website of the European Commission on Insolvency Law.

International Instruments

For a more extensive overview of all important international and regional legal instruments relating to insolvency of companies and consumers, as well as to corporate rescue law, see: Bob Wessels and Gert-Jan Boon, Cross-Border Insolvency Law: International Instruments and Commentary, Alphen aan den Rijn: Kluwer Law International, 2015.

The book includes international and regional conventions, model laws, EU regulations and directives, uniform rules and guiding principles produced by various international bodies (such as the World Bank, the United Nations Committee on International Trade Law, the American Law Institute, and INSOL International), and international and European restatements of insolvency law by scholars.