#62025CC0041EU Insolvency Jurisdiction and State Immunity in Cross-Border Tax Recovery Actions
AI-generated summary for informational purposes only. Not legal advice. See the original source for the authoritative text.
This Advocate General opinion addresses whether courts handling an insolvency case in one EU country can hear a recovery claim against the tax authority of another EU country. The dispute matters for insolvency administrators trying to claw back payments made before insolvency, including payments made to public authorities abroad. The opinion focuses on the boundary between EU insolvency rules and the international rule that one state is usually not subject to another state’s courts. If followed by the Court of Justice, the case could clarify when cross-border insolvency claims may proceed against foreign state bodies and when state immunity blocks them.
AI-generated summary. May contain errors. Refer to official sources for legal decisions.
Key Changes
- Examines whether EU insolvency courts can hear avoidance actions against another Member State’s tax authority
- Clarifies the interaction between EU insolvency jurisdiction rules and state immunity from foreign courts
- May affect recovery strategies where insolvent companies made pre-insolvency payments to public authorities in other EU countries
Obligations
What this law requires
Advocate General Norkus concludes that Regulation (EU) 2015/848 Article 6(1) concerns the international jurisdiction of courts in the Member State where insolvency proceedings are opened for insolvency-related avoidance actions.
The opinion addresses whether an insolvency administrator may bring an avoidance action before the courts of the Member State of the insolvency opening against the tax authority of another Member State for payments made before insolvency.
The opinion treats state immunity from jurisdiction as a customary international law principle that may be invoked by a Member State authority when sued before another Member State’s courts.
The opinion examines whether EU insolvency jurisdiction rules under Regulation (EU) 2015/848 can override or adjust a foreign state authority’s immunity from jurisdiction in an avoidance action.