Case Study: How Did a Law Firm Recover 800,000 PLN in Debt?

The MGBI Bankruptcy List is a service that significantly streamlines the work of law firms specializing in debt collection. Attorney Dariusz Smereka explains how he used this service to recover debts of 500,000 and 300,000 PLN for two clients.

CUSTOMER:

• ADS Law Firm – Attorney Dariusz Smereka
• Wrocław
• http://www.smereka.pl

CHALLENGE:

• Prompt provision of information regarding the legal status of debtors
• Preventing costs arising from unfounded enforcement proceedings initiated against a company in bankruptcy or restructuring.

RESULT:

• Recovering a significant amount (approximately 800,000 PLN) from debtors,
• Avoiding the costs of the aforementioned proceedings.

How did the law firm search for information about debtors before using the MGBI Bankruptcy List?

Before the law firm began using the MGBI Bankruptcy List, its employees had to search for information on debtors on their own.

Dariusz Smereka described the process as follows:

In the past, the courts used to provide this information, so we would call either the courts or the debtors themselves.

We did everything on our own, simply by searching online for information about the company’s situation. We also looked through PDFs of past issues of the Court and Economic Monitor.

What has changed since the MGBI Bankruptcy List was launched?

Dariusz Smereka admits that these tasks took a lot of time.

Thanks to the MGBI Bankruptcy List, the time spent preparing for a given case has been significantly reduced:

Now that we have everything in one place, we save a significant amount of time when we need to check on multiple debtors.

When we have up-to-date information about a company, the entire process requires less work and can be completed more quickly.

How much money was recovered through the MGBI Bankruptcy List?

Dariusz Smereka told us about two cases in which timely information about the initiation of restructuring proceedings made it possible to recover significant sums from debtors.

Being aware of pending bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings can not only facilitate negotiations with the debtor and, as a result, make debt recovery easier, but also protect clients from unnecessary costs.

Dariusz Smereka explains:

In several other instances, knowing that bankruptcy or restructuring proceedings had been initiated saved us from incurring costs.

If we were to file a lawsuit against an entity that is currently involved in one of the aforementioned proceedings, we might, in some cases, have to bear the costs of those proceedings without being able to recover them from the debtor.

This information also protects us from the consequences of initiating enforcement proceedings unnecessarily, which would result in additional expenses.

What other benefits does using the MGBI Bankruptcy List offer?

The benefits of the MGBI Bankruptcy List go beyond simply providing information about pending bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings.

The service also provides information that is useful in the context of other proceedings. As Dariusz Smereka explains:

Information that is important to us includes details about changes in the composition of company boards, such as whether someone has stepped down from a board.

This is relevant from the perspective of enforcement proceedings or the referral of cases pursuant to Article 299 of the Commercial Companies Code.

It concerns the liability of board members for the company’s obligations in the event that enforcement proceedings against the company are unsuccessful.

We also asked the aforementioned attorney for his opinion on MGBI’s bankruptcy list and whether he would recommend the service to others. Here is his response:

We highly recommend it, and we know that other companies we’ve recommended have also started using this service.