On October 22, 2025 the International Multimedia Press Center of Russia Today Mediagroup hosted the Annual Construction Legal Forum.
Dmitry Yakushev, Attorney and Counsel of Andrey Gorodissky & Partners Law Firm’s Bankruptcy Practice team spoke in the session “Bankruptcy in Construction: Legal Consequences for Developers, Contractors and Beneficiaries”. The title of his presentation was: “The Mechanism for Releasing from Secondary Liability Pursuant to the June’s Review of the RF Supreme Court: Expectations”.
Dmitry told about the evolving case law related to releasing of managers and owners of companies from debts incurred in connection with imposition on them of secondary liability. In June, 2025 the RF Supreme Court for the first time in Russian judicial practice admitted the possibility of writing such debts off in personal bankruptcy, which previously had been life debts.
Dmitry noted that writing of such debts off will be possible subject to the existence of the following two circumstances: imposition of secondary liability for negligence (e.g. loss of important documents) and bona fide conduct of debtors in course of their personal bankruptcy proceedings.
Dmitry made a special reference to the latter circumstance and emphasized that new regulation will facilitate a more productive dialogue between creditors and debtors who due to the “perpetual” nature of the secondary liability had no incentives to cooperate with adverse parties.
Dmitry appreciates this courts’ step toward accommodation of debtors’ interests but expects that a number of complicated issues are still to be resolved in judicial practice, in particular concerning the borderline between ordinary and gross negligence in case of imposition of secondary liability and criteria of bona fide conduct in personal bankruptcy.
The Construction Legal Forum is the largest annual event for lawyers practicing in the construction sector. This forum is attended by leading experts, including representatives of major industrial and building companies as well as government agencies.
This year the following important matters were discussed at this forum: Bankruptcy in Construction, Design Related Legal Risks, Resolution of Disputes and Case Law, Projects’ Taxation Patterns, Public Private Partnership and Infrastructure Projects, Pricing and Contracts Architecture, Contract Management, Project Administration, Construction Contracts, Integrated Territorial Development.
A detailed video is available at the following link in the “Insights” section.
