Retention of Title in and out of Insolvency

This handbook provides an overview of the most relevant legal issues concerning retention of title over 30 of the most important business nations globally. It provides guidance to manufacturers and suppliers of goods, insolvency practitioners and their attorneys to promote a better understanding of retention of title and the effects of insolvency

Suppliers of goods tend to think that they have strong rights if they retain ownership of delivered goods until the purchase price has been fully paid, because disputes involving non-payment can supposedly be solved fairly easily by claiming payment in court or repossessing the goods. However, things may get difficult for the supplier if a purchaser is in possession of the goods but then becomes insolvent.Over the past decade the number of insolvencies has increased dramatically, and their complexity has also increased. Particularly when foreign jurisdictions come into play, it may turn out that a supplier’s rights are weaker than it thought. For instance, has the supplier really retained title to the goods, or can the liquidator dispose of them and take the money? Or if the supplier believes it has sound retention of title in its home country, does that still apply when goods are delivered to a purchaser abroad? And when the retention of title is valid, how can the supplier actually repossess goods if the purchaser defaults and is uncooperative?Such questions need answers, and this publication provides a practical overview of the most relevant legal issues concerning retention of title in more than 30 of the most important business nations globally. It provides guidance to manufacturers and suppliers of goods, insolvency practitioners and their attorneys for promoting a better understanding of retention of title and the effects of insolvency. So whether you are a lawyer, insolvency practitioner or general counsel in an international business, this commercially focused guide will provide practical insight into the relevant legal issues.

Australia 5Ian WalkerMinter EllisonAustria 23Arno BrauneisMaria VertesichBrauneis Klauser PrändlBelgium 37Yves LendersTom ReingraberLydianCanada 47Kelby CarterJennifer StamGowling Lafleur Henderson LLPChina 65Kelly BaiRogier van BijnenR&P China LawyersCzech Republic 87Ernst GieseVeronika StrizovaGiese & PartnerDenmark 99Carsten CeutzBech-BruunFinland 115Pekka JaatinenElina PesonenChrister SvartströmCastrén & SnellmanFrance 125Amélie DorstAnja Droege GagnierBMH AvocatsGermany 137Thomas NichtKirsten Schümann-KleberGÖRG Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten mbBGreece 151Constantinos N KlissourasChristina K PapachristopoulouKP Law FirmHungary 165Attila JákóiSándor NémethSzecskay Attorneys at LawIreland 173Frank FlanaganMason Hayes & CurranIsrael 193Yuval HornAssaf UngerHorn & Co, Law OfficesItaly 205Elisabetta CaccavellaLegance Avvocati AssociatiJapan 213Tomohiro MurakamiNishimura & AsahiLuxembourg 225Paulo Lopes Da SilvaChan ParkMOLITORNetherlands 237Marcel WillemsKennedy Van der Laan NVPoland 261Jan Kieszczyn´skiMichał KocurKocur & PartnersPortugal 269Miguel de Avillez PereiraTiago Castanheira MarquesFilipe Portela do ValleAbreu AdvogadosRussia 279Evgenia EvdokimovaSergey StrembelevEgorov Puginsky Afanasiev & PartnersSouth Africa 285Hans KlopperIndependent Advisory (Pty) LimitedSouth Korea 301Sang Jin AhnHai Jin ParkSteve Sunghwa SongKim & ChangSpain 311Agustín BouJausas LegalSwitzerland 319Benedict F ChristDavid JennyVischer AGTurkey 327N Can ArtüzE Sevi FıratFırat-Izgi Attorney PartnershipUnited Kingdom 335Ken TitchenGateley PlcUnited States of America 353Steven L HarrisChicago-Kent College of Law, Illinois Institute of TechnologyAbout the authors 371