Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online

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Bankruptcy
(826 words)

1. Concept

Bankruptcy is a special form of compulsory execution (Legal enforcement) which takes place when several creditors have financial claims against a debtor. A feature of bankruptcy is that the creditors form an association and are given satisfaction by receiving a share in the debtor’s assets. When the assets are over-committed, each creditor receives only a partial amount of his or her original claim. This type of procedure devel…

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Hofer, Sibylle, “Bankruptcy”, in: Encyclopedia of Early Modern History Online, Editors of the English edition: Graeme Dunphy, Andrew Gow. Original German Edition: Enzyklopädie der Neuzeit. Im Auftrag des Kulturwissenschaftlichen Instituts (Essen) und in Verbindung mit den Fachherausgebern herausgegeben von Friedrich Jaeger. Copyright © J.B. Metzlersche Verlagsbuchhandlung und Carl Ernst Poeschel Verlag GmbH 2005–2012. Consulted online on 19 March 2024 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2352-0272_emho_COM_022522>
First published online: 2015
First print edition: 20160321



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