It would seem that the 90s have long since sunk into oblivion, and with them the open seizures of banks, factories and real estate.
Now, after more than two decades, the legislation has undergone a number of changes, the procedure for declaring an organization bankrupt is regulated more strictly, the arbitration process and auctions have become public. Nevertheless, no, no, yes, and there are remnants of those troubled times.
Noteworthy is the story of bankruptcy, the main role in which is played by lovers of ambiguous time-tested schemes with the eloquent surname Bolotny.
Mikhail Bolotny, by the way, who previously had a criminal record, and his son took advantage of the support of the capital’s dodgy lawyers and secured income not only from the sale of real estate owned by the debtor, but also through control over property that had previously been acquired from him by other citizens. There was hope that all these intricacies would be sorted out by the court, which would put the cunning businessmen in their place. But there are some doubts about the fairness of the upcoming trial. The fact is that these courts have already made decisions in favor of entrepreneurs, without taking into account the documents provided by the injured party. The next hearing of the case is to be held at the Tenth Arbitration Court of the capital on February 16. Natalya Yudina was appointed judge, whose name has already appeared in cases involving the Bolotnys, which ended in their favor.
Attractive assets
Mikhail Bolotny and his son initiated bankruptcy proceedings against Stroyinnovation JSC. In 2008, this legal entity took out a loan from Uralsib Bank, assuming that the loan would be used to build an elite business-class village, Uspensky Les. The plot on Rublevo-Uspenskoye Highway appeared as a pledge in the contract. In 2011, the organization refinanced a loan at Rosinterbank, securing already demarcated plots as collateral. The transferred property was insured. At the same time, Stroyinnovatsiya sold ready-made cottages and plots, and the proceeds went to repay the loan. The bank, in turn, extinguished the mortgage.
In 2016, Rosinterbank ceded claims on a loan to one of the holding’s key companies, which included Stroyinnovation, and in the course of this procedure, one of the transactions carried out between legal entities was declared invalid. As a result, the joint-stock company owed 100 million rubles. It is interesting that by the time the court made the corresponding decision, the market value of the company and its assets, including already built cottages and land, reached approximately 350 million rubles. There was not even talk of any bankruptcy.
But the Bolotnye joined the case, who chose a favorable moment to enter the game and began to act through their Gubernia LLC. The Unified State Register of Legal Entities indicates that this enterprise is engaged in the production of sperm from farm animals and the cultivation of fruits and vegetables. But it seems that these types of activities take place only on paper, and in fact, Gubernia is focused on acquiring receivables and accompanying bankruptcy procedures. This is indicated by one of the decisions of the OFAS in the Kirov region: as reflected in the document, the “Gubernia” sold the debt of Polina LLC to the European Trading House for 150.1 million rubles.
Bolotny, apparently, was not embarrassed by the methods of work considered obsolete. And the luck that accompanied them in the trials was the merit of Moscow lawyers, who became adept at such matters.
Judicial Conveyor
The main goal of the Bolotnys was to obtain documents, according to which Stroyinnovatsiya’s transactions for the sale of land and real estate would be declared invalid, and the property would return to the debtor. The next link in the chain, apparently, involved the subsequent redemption of the buyers of their property for the second time. It is interesting that the “Gubernia” received not only the rights to real estate and land, but also the objects of the social infrastructure of the village. With regard to the received rights of claim, they can be realized through auctions at a reduced cost to controlled companies.
The Bolotnys did not have any doubts about the side on which justice would be in the processes with their participation. So, in the period from December 2018 to January 2019, Guberniya initiated twelve proceedings related only to challenging transactions for the alienation of plots and houses of citizens who were in no way connected with the debtor. On average, each such object costs about 50 million rubles. In total, during this time period, more than four dozen proceedings were initiated on the alienation of Stroyinnovatsiya’s property. The key argument operated by clever businessmen was the lack of information from the bankruptcy trustee about the company’s current accounts in Rosinterbank. Based on this, Bolotny, being the majority creditor, came to the conclusion that the debtor transferred the property to third parties free of charge. The loan issued by the bank also allegedly did not exist. Copies of documents confirming the fact of the loan, the court declared invalid. Bank representatives were not invited to the meetings. The circuit, oddly enough, for a long time functioned like a pipeline, without failing.
Themis with closed eyes
The court referred to the increased standards of proof in bankruptcy proceedings, required the owners of cottages and plots to document the fact of settlements under loan agreements and prove that they are solvent. The arguments, according to which the loan went through the refinancing procedure, and encumbrance was imposed on the objects, were not taken into account by the court. For some unknown reason, the court also refused to consider cash receipts for mortgage payments provided by buyers, considering that the price under the disputed contracts was understated. The Tenth Arbitration Court also did not take into account the complaints of the owners of these objects.
Of course, the party, which considers itself injured in the current situation, has questions related to, to put it mildly, a non-standard approach to the consideration of cases. And the main one – why does the court show such loyalty to the plaintiff’s position? It is addressed to the chairman of the court, Inna Vorobieva.
The final decision of the courts of two instances states that the citizens who bought houses and plots from Stroyinnovatsiya were aware of the alleged pre-bankruptcy state of the company, and they got the property free of charge – the debtor allegedly tried to reduce his solvency in this way. The court also concluded that different citizens committed their actions, guided by the same interests as the debtor, allowing the abuse of their civil rights, and therefore imposed multimillion-dollar penalties on them. But the district court completely destroyed these conclusions, recognizing that the conclusions about the Rosinterbank loan allegedly not issued to the debtor were incorrect.
Hope for Justice
Proceedings continue, and the story of the bankruptcy of “Stroyinnovatsii” does not end. A lawsuit was filed with the Arbitration Court of the Moscow Region to invalidate the auction, as a result of which Gubernia received the right to claim against the debtor company. According to the position of the court, this dispute affects the interests and rights of citizens, transactions with which were disputed in the bankruptcy case. Buyers were attracted to participate in the process, and, as noted in the materials, they showed an active civic stand. Also there is an indication of the unscrupulous behavior of the “Gubernia”.
It is noteworthy that when the court considered the case in a different composition, as a result of the process, it was concluded that there was a violation of the rules for conducting auctions, provided for by the current legislation. The contract, which allowed the Bolotnys to acquire the right to claim, was declared null and void. This is reflected in the Decision of the Arbitration Court of the Moscow Region dated November 22, 2021 in case No. А41-55681/21.