"Courts should be prevented from becoming instruments in the hands of dishonest individuals, and from serving to swing the economy," Ivanov said addressing a conference of chairmen of Russia's courts of arbitration.
He stressed that because of the defects in legislation the bankruptcy procedure has become a tool for redistributing property. As a result, many sectors in the country ceased to exist", the Kremlin official said. According to him, "sea-craft were sold for 10 dollars" in the Far East in the mid-1990s. "All these processes went through courts, and a court became a tool in the hands of dishonest individuals," Ivanov stated.
He explained that "judges cannot oppose fictitious or intentional bankruptcy because the property is sold out before the trial".
Ivanov deems it necessary to improve the legislation on bankruptcy and criminal legislation. He believes that it is necessary to toughen criminal prosecution of individuals who have committed intentional bankruptcy.
He called upon the judges to be particularly attentive while carrying out the bankruptcy procedure of large and defence enterprises. Ivanov noted with regret that solvency was restored at only 30 out of 10,000 enterprises undergoing the bankruptcy procedure. "If it goes on at such a rate our defence will remain without arms in several years," the Kremlin representative said. To illustrate this, he cited the radio engineering scientific research institute which has been undergoing the bankruptcy procedure already for more than four years. Ivanov added that over this time the institute has lost 80 per cent of its property.
