From publication of the notice of commencement of insolvency proceedings in the insolvency register, a claim capable of being lodged can no longer be pursued by an action, and enforcement against the debtor’s assets may be ordered but not carried out. A decision on insolvency stays pending Czech court and arbitral proceedings concerning such claims and no new ones may be brought; the effects on a dispute pending before a Slovak court are assessed under Slovak law. Satisfaction therefore comes only through a lodgement, including for a claim already awarded to you by a judgment or being pursued by an enforcement officer.
A Slovak company is in dispute with its Czech customer over unpaid invoices, or already has a judgment and an enforcement officer has blocked the customer’s account. Then a notice of the commencement of insolvency proceedings appears in the Czech insolvency register. From that moment individual enforcement comes to an end and the creditor must take its place among the others. The Czech Insolvency Act (Act No. 182/2006 Coll.) distinguishes two moments: the commencement of the proceedings and the decision on insolvency.
From commencement of the proceedings: no action, enforcement only on paper
The effects of commencement arise on publication of the notice in the insolvency register (insolvenční rejstřík), not on service of anything on the creditor (Section 109(4)). From that moment:
- claims concerning the insolvency estate cannot be pursued by an action where they may be pursued by a lodgement (Section 109(1)(a)),
- enforcement that would affect the debtor’s assets may be ordered or commenced, but cannot be carried out (Section 109(1)(c)),
- a right to satisfaction from security may be exercised and acquired only on the conditions of the Insolvency Act, which also applies to an enforcement officer’s lien over immovable property applied for after the commencement of the proceedings (Section 109(1)(b)).
Decisions and measures of an enforcement officer that breach this prohibition are disregarded in the insolvency proceedings (Section 109(6)). Time limits for exercising rights that may be exercised only by a lodgement do not begin to run, or cease to run, after the commencement of the proceedings (Section 109(3)). Claims may be lodged from the commencement of the proceedings onwards, even where the court has not yet called on creditors to do so (Section 110(1)).
After a decision on insolvency: Czech proceedings are stayed
A decision on insolvency, again from its publication in the insolvency register, stays court and arbitral proceedings concerning claims that are to be pursued by a lodgement, and they cannot be continued for as long as the effects of the decision last (Section 140a). A decision already served but not yet final does not become final to the extent stayed (Section 140a(4)). New proceedings concerning such claims cannot be brought, save for incidental disputes (Section 140c), and such claims cannot be ruled on in other proceedings (Section 140b). A dispute you have conducted for years thus turns into supporting material for a lodgement, and the claim is determined on its review in the insolvency proceedings.
A dispute before a Slovak court
If you are suing the Czech debtor in Slovakia, a special rule of the European insolvency regulation applies to the pending dispute:
The effects of insolvency proceedings on a pending lawsuit or pending arbitral proceedings concerning an asset or a right which forms part of a debtor’s insolvency estate shall be governed solely by the law of the Member State in which that lawsuit is pending or in which the arbitral tribunal has its seat.
What happens to the Slovak dispute is therefore assessed under Slovak procedural law. The position differs for enforcement and for proceedings a creditor brings only after the commencement of the insolvency: the effects of insolvency proceedings on proceedings brought by individual creditors, with the exception of pending lawsuits, are governed by the law of the State in which the insolvency proceedings were opened (Article 7(2)(f) of the Regulation), that is, for a Czech debtor, by the Czech Insolvency Act.
Neither a judgment nor enforcement replaces a lodgement
Claims already pursued before a court are lodged too, as are enforceable claims, including those being pursued by enforcement (Section 173(2)). A lodgement of an enforceable claim must state what the enforceability rests on, and security, for example a lien, must be expressly asserted in the lodgement with the type and time of its creation identified; otherwise it is deemed not to have been asserted (Section 174(3) and (4)). A judgment does, however, have a practical advantage in insolvency. If the insolvency administrator denies an enforceable claim, it is the administrator who must bring the action and the creditor merely defends (Section 199(1)); for a claim awarded by a final decision, the denial may rest only on facts the debtor did not raise in the earlier proceedings, and not on a different legal assessment of the matter (Section 199(2)). The lodgement period and the amount, which are stricter in Czechia than in Slovakia, are compared in the article on a customer in bankruptcy in Slovakia or in insolvency in Czechia, and the implications of a denial in the question on the administrator has denied our lodged claim.
What to do straight away
Verify in the insolvency register the date on which the notice was published and the state of the proceedings, notify it to the enforcement officer and to the court before which the dispute is pending, and prepare the lodgement together with the judgment, the enforcement title and the documents evidencing security. We prepare and file the lodgement on the prescribed form under our lodgement of a claim in Czech insolvency proceedings service; we communicate with you in Slovak and make filings in Czech. If the debtor is not yet in insolvency and has merely stopped paying, it is better to start with prompt debt recovery in Czechia while it still has something to pay from.
This answer provides general information on the law as at 12 September 2026. It does not constitute legal services or replace an assessment of an individual case. The details of your situation may differ. Book a consultation to discuss them.
