Einde inhoudsopgave
Social enterprises in the EU (IVOR nr. 111) 2018/2.7.1.2
2.7.1.2 Asset-lock on winding up
mr. A. Argyrou, datum 01-02-2018
- Datum
01-02-2018
- Auteur
mr. A. Argyrou
- JCDI
JCDI:ADS586902:1
- Vakgebied(en)
Ondernemingsrecht / Rechtspersonenrecht
Voetnoten
Voetnoten
Belgian Companies Code of 1999, art. 190(1) and (2). Art. 661(9) states: ‘bepalen dat na de aanzuivering van het hele passief en de terugbetaling aan de vennoten van hun inbreng, hetgeen na de vereffening overblijft, een bestemming krijgt die zo nauw mogelijk aansluit bij het sociaal oogmerk van de vennootschap [Unofficial translation: ‘after settlement of any liabilities and the reimbursement of their presentation to the members, the surplus from liquidation shall receive an allocation that most nearly approximates the social purpose of the company] provided in D’Hulstère and Pollénus (n 47). In particular, art. 661(9) refers to the obligation of VSOs to include a provision in their AoA. Such provisions should indicate that following the discharge of liabilities, i.e. the satisfaction of creditors (see ibid art. 190(1)), and the repayment, i.e. ‘terugbetaling’, of shareholders (‘inbreng’ translated as contributions/shares; see ibid art. 190(2)), the remaining amount following liquidation (‘vereffening’) should be directed to a purpose which approximates to the social purpose of the company.
Wet tot wijziging van het Wetboek van vennootschappen wat de vereffeningsprocedure betreft, Belgisch Staatsblad van 7 mei 2012 publiceerde de wet van 19 maart 2012 [Unofficial translation: Act amending the Belgian Companies Code with regard to the liquidation procedure, Belgian State Gazette on 7 May 2012 publishing the law of 19 March 2012].
Belgian Companies Code of 1999, art. 190(1) and (2); H. Bocken and W. de Bondt, Introduction to Belgian Law (Kluwer Law International 2001) 283. Van Bael and Bellis, Business Law Guide to Belgium (2nd edn, Kluwer Law International 2003) 69-70.
Consequently, when art. 661(9) refers to the term liquidation, i.e. ‘vereffening’, which is used consistently in the Belgian Companies Code of 1999 to refer to the liquidation process of companies with limited liability, it is deduced from the wording of art. 661(9) that it requires primarily the settlement of liabilities and the division of the remaining assets to the shareholders, and subsequently, the allocation of the remaining amount of assets to other entities with objectives which approximate to the social purpose of the company. Bocken and de Bondt (n 184) 283. Van Bael and Bellis (n 187) 69, para. 3.27. See also European Commission, ‘A Map of Social Enterprises and their Eco-systems in Europe: Country Report: Belgium’ (31 October 2014) 41.
Where a VSO is liquidated, a legislatively prescribed asset-lock scheme entails the distribution of its remaining assets after liquidation to a purpose that approximates to its prescribed social purpose.1 Whilst a new act was introduced to the Belgian legal system in 2012 simplifying the liquidation process of limited liability companies in Belgium,2 the basic legal concepts regarding liquidation included in the Belgian Companies Code of 1999 remain the same. The Belgian Companies Code of 1999 stipulates that the liquidation of limited liability companies takes place in three steps by: (i) the determination of the outstanding claims and the realisation of the company’s assets (the manner in which the assets will be realised will be determined in the AoA); (ii) the proportionate payment of debts; and (iii) the division of the remaining assets to the shareholders.3 However, in the VSO – after the settlement of any liabilities and the reimbursement to the members of their capital contributions – following Article 661(9), any remaining assets are allocated to a purpose which is stipulated in the VSO’s AoA and which resembles the social purpose of the dissolved VSO social enterprise.4