Countries with a Bankruptcy law and some big brother shenanigans - 60 countries to date!

In a nod to George Orwell (pictured) I have been using Google Analytics to monitor blog visitor activity. I have been doing this to enable a focusing of content towards the core readership. I hope this does not put readers off! Do not worry I have not been selling your URL details to anyone! Interestingly the blog has attracted visits from sixty countries to date. Hello everyone thanks for visiting the blog! The countries are:

  • Andorra
  • Argentina
  • Australia
  • Austria
  • Belgium
  • Bermuda
  • Brazil
  • Canada
  • China
  • Colombia
  • Cyprus
  • Ecuador
  • Egypt
  • Estonia
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • Guernsey
  • Hong Kong
  • Hungary
  • India
  • Indonesia
  • Ireland
  • Israel
  • Italy
  • Jamaica
  • Japan
  • Jersey
  • Jordan
  • Latvia
  • Lithuania
  • Luxembourg
  • Malaysia
  • Mexico
  • Netherlands
  • New Zealand
  • Nigeria
  • Norway
  • Oman
  • Pakistan
  • Philippines
  • Poland
  • Portugal
  • Romania
  • Russia
  • Saudi Arabia
  • Singapore
  • South Africa
  • Spain
  • Sri Lanka
  • Sweden
  • Switzerland
  • Taiwan
  • Tanzania
  • Thailand
  • Trinidad and Tobago
  • Uganda
  • United Arab Emirates
  • United Kingdom

This has got me thinking - which of those countries have a bankruptcy law? As a legal historian I thought I would start at the beginning with my analysis. My oldest reference point to date (save for Hebrew, Greek, Roman and medieval sources) is Loveland (Loveland, FO. A Treatise on the Law and Proceedings in Bankruptcy. WH Anderson & Co, Cincinnati, 1899) who notes that the following countries had a bankruptcy law according to a Congressional Committee report of "notable value" (December 16th 1897 - The House Committee on the Judiciary of the Fifty-fourth Congress):

  • Argentina
  • Austria-Hungary
  • Belgium
  • Bolivia
  • Brazil
  • Costa-Rica
  • Denmark
  • England
  • France
  • Germany
  • Guatemala
  • Haiti
  • Honduras
  • Ireland
  • Italy
  • Liberia
  • Mexico
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Paraguay
  • Portugal
  • Roumania
  • Russia
  • Scotland
  • Spain
  • Sweden
  • Turkey
  • Uruguay
  • Wales

The Committee did not ascertain whether there was a bankruptcy law in:

  • Chile
  • Columbia
  • Dominican Republic
  • Hawaii
  • Japan
  • Korea
  • Peru
  • Syria
  • Switzerland
  • Venezuela

Loveland notes, “It will be observed that, aside from China and possibly Japan, there are no countries of any considerable importance [how is this defined??] but what have bankruptcy laws in the modern sense of the word…In Guadeloupe there is no relief whatsoever for a bankrupt. In Siam there are no bankruptcy laws as we understand them.”

If any blog readers from the above countries would like to submit (by email: j.tribe@kingston.ac.uk) a 300 summary of the bankruptcy laws (or lack off) in their respective jurisdictions as they now stand I will happily publish the same on the blog. For a recent summary of Turkish insolvency law see: Baister, S & Altinsoy, E. The bankruptcy law of the Republic of Turkey (2009) C.R. & I,2(2), 67-70.

Thanks for reading and if any readers from particularly warm and exotic locations need a visiting lecturer for a month or so do please feel free to send over an invite! 

Picture Credit:  http://blog.syracuse.com/shelflife/orwell.jpg

 

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