Washington State Bankruptcy Laws Article

The Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Law

When a company is left with no choice but to declare itself bankrupt, it can do so under Chapter 7 of the bankruptcy law and get the federal government’s protection. In this process, the assets will be liquidized and the creditors will be paid off. A lot of companies prefer to do this, but there are certain companies that prefer filing under the Chapter 11 bankruptcy law.

In short, Chapter 11 bankruptcy is when the company asks the government for protection and does not choose to be dissolved and liquidized. The company will be protected partly or wholly from its creditors but will not be dissolved. The court will make a decision according to the debts a company has incurred. Under Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the creditors take over the entire company and run it.

The underlying principle that is behind Chapter 11 bankruptcy is that when the assets belonging to the company are not sufficient to clear debts, the creditors fail to get their entire debt amount. Then the creditors take over the whole company because its value is more than its individual assets. In such cases, a company is said to be bankrupt under the Chapter 11 bankruptcy law. Here the owners that are the shareholders of the company lose their control over the company and then the court decides who should take over the functioning of the company.

Here the best thing is that the creditors receive more benefits and money under Chapter 11 bankruptcy than what they would generally have received under Chapter 7 bankruptcy. People working for the company that is filing bankruptcy do not lose their jobs. The assets are kept intact to produce profits.

Creditors registering in court get an opportunity to be heard during Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The creditors come up with a restructuring plan if the debtors do not have any proposal. This plan gives them a chance to take over the company. The shares of such companies are generally considered to be of no value, the owners suddenly are empty handed and have nothing.

The court has to confirm the creditors’ plan of restructuring. This means the court has to accept and approve it. Submitting a variety of restructuring plans is quite common under Chapter 11 bankruptcies. If no restructuring plan gets an approval from the court then the case is likely to be converted to Chapter 7 bankruptcy instead.

The creditors under Chapter 11 bankruptcy are given the same preference as those under Chapter 7. People who have secured debts are given preference. People who have collateral securities will be given first preference to receive payments.

The other thing is that until the first creditor receives his full payment and is satisfied, the next creditor in line will have to wait. Similarly as in the case of Chapter 7 bankruptcy, if a creditor has not registered within the limited time then he loses his chance. A second chance is given to a company under Chapter 11 bankruptcy.