This article was originally published in the schoenherr roadmap`10 - if you would like to receive a complimentary copy of this publication, please visit: http://www.schoenherr.eu/roadmap.
In the last few years, the Slovenian courts have made real progress in digitalising public registries.
Court Register
The AJPES portal hosts the Slovenian Court Register, which is part of a wider information database, the Business Register, which is also maintained by AJPES. The electronic Court Register contains data on companies and other legal entities which have to be registered in the Court Register (e.g. identification data, data on owners, representatives, share capital, statutory changes), as well as some of the most important corporate deeds of the company (e.g. statues, Articles of Association, minutes of meetings of corporate bodies, etc.). It is possible to obtain not only current and historic court registry excerpts, but also to search through databases by using specific criteria. Only deeds which contain personal data and are thus not freely accessible are exempted from publication.
The data on the respective portal is updated daily. In most cases, such publication creates an irrefutable presumption that the data is known to everyone. Thus, it is not only beneficial for companies, lawyers and other persons involved in business transactions with Slovenian legal entities to use the AJPES portal, but even necessary, as failure to do so may result in a loss of rights, damages or have other inconvenient consequences.
Entries into the Court Register are now published exclusively on the AJPES website and no longer in the Official Gazette.
Insolvency proceedings
As of 1 January 2008 the AJPES website has been publishing information pertaining to insolvency proceedings (liquidation, bankruptcy, compulsory settlement) which are conducted by insolvency courts. These publications include:
- information on the initiation of such proceedings;
- publication of the basic list of tested claims;
- most decisions issued by the court during the proceedings;
- notice of the fixing of a hearing and other notices or calls for a vote;
- minutes of court hearings;
- minutes of sessions of the creditors' committee;
- reports of administrators;
- certain written submissions of the parties of proceedings and public auctions; and
- invitations to tender for a public auction on a bankrupt estate (only in bankruptcy proceedings).
It is therefore imperative for creditors to regularly check the AJPES website in order to determine whether there have been any insolvency proceeding initiated against their debtors, as the deadlines for the pursuit of claims, and most other actions, start upon publication of such fact (see above).
Annual reports and credit ratings
Business entities are obligated to submit the information from their annual reports for official statistics or submit their annual reports to AJPES. Thus they can submit their annual reports not only for statistical and publicity purposes, but also for tax purposes. The AJPES website further provides credit ratings of various business subjects; the credit ratings of Slovenian companies are prepared in line with the Basel II standards.
The eS.Bon application offers a rating which shows the likelihood of a selected company settling its obligations within 12 months following the day on which the financial statements are made. The FI-PO application allows a user to review annual reports and other company information for a period from 1994 onwards.
Register of non-possessory liens and seized movable property
This register keeps track of information pertaining to pledged or confiscated motor vehicles, stocks of goods or equipment as well as to certain animals. It is particularly useful to potential buyers and lien holders, who can, provided they have an identification number of the item, check whether the item has already been pledged. And debtors can use it to determine their chances of being repaid in potential execution proceedings.
Conclusion
This register keeps track of information pertaining to pledged or confiscated motor vehicles, stocks of goods or equipment as well as to certain animals. It is particularly useful to potential buyers and lien holders, who can, provided they have an identification number of the item, check whether the item has already been pledged. And debtors can use it to determine their chances of being repaid in potential execution proceedings.
However, greater availability of information also requires greater attention as the failure to follow publications may in certain cases lead to the loss of procedural and material rights. It is expected that the Slovenian courts and the administrative system will further digitalise their databases. The final result is not only beneficial to the end user but reduces administrative costs.
The data on the respective portal is updated daily; in most cases such publication creates an irrefutable presumption that the data is known to everyone.
This article was originally published in the schoenherr roadmap`10 - if you would like to receive a complimentary copy of this publication, please visit: http://www.schoenherr.eu/roadmap.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
