Insolvency administrator
Court-appointed representative of the insolvency estate. Takes disposal rights, monetises assets in creditors' interest.
The insolvency administrator (§§ 56 et seq. InsO) is appointed by the insolvency court and legally represents the insolvency estate. He takes disposal rights over the debtor's assets, verifies the estate and claims, monetises and distributes to creditors.
Administrators are almost always specialised lawyers, often from large insolvency firms (White & Case, Görg, hww, Wellensiek, PLUTA and others). A court usually has a list of 20–50 administrators appointed by case size and specialisation.
For buyers, the administrator is the only negotiating counterpart in regular insolvencies. His personality, firm size and deal experience significantly shape the negotiation style — from formal auction to flexible one-on-one deal.
Related terms
- → Sachwalter (supervisor)— Supervisor appointed in Eigenverwaltung. Oversees management without replacing it.…
- → Regelinsolvenz (regular insolvency)— Standard German insolvency proceeding with appointed administrator who takes over disposal…
- → Asset deal— Acquisition of individual assets (brand, inventory, contracts, staff) instead of company s…
- → § 103 InsO (administrator's election right)— The insolvency administrator's right to choose, for contracts not yet fully performed by e…
- → Preliminary insolvency administration— A court-ordered security measure (§§ 21 f. InsO) between the insolvency petition and the o…
- → Right of separate satisfaction (§§ 49–51 InsO)— A secured creditor's preferential right to be satisfied from the proceeds of a specific es…
- → Bidding process (Bieterverfahren)— Structured, usually two-round investor process the administrator runs to compare several p…