Section 1 of Insolvency Act CAP 53: Short title and commencement
(1) This Act may be cited as the Insolvency Act.
(2) The provisions of this Act shall come into operation on such date as the Cabinet Secretary may, by notice in the Gazette, appoint and different dates may be appointed for different provisions.
(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2), any provision that has not been brought into force within nine months after the publication of this Act shall come into force on the expiry of that period.
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- Section 2 - Interpretation
(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—
"affairs" in relation to a natural person or company, includes a business carried on by the person or company and any dealings conducted in the...
- Section 3 - Objects and application of this Act
(1) The objects of this Act are—
(a) to establish and provide for the operation of a framework for the efficient and equitable administration of the estates of insolvent natural persons and...
- Section 4 - Circumstances in which person acts as insolvency practitioner
(1) A person acts as an insolvency practitioner in relation to a natural person if the person acts—
(a) as the bankruptcy trustee or interim trustee in respect of the person's property or as...
- Section 5 - Consequences of acting without authorisation
(1) A person who, not being the holder of an authorisation, purports to act as an insolvency practitioner in relation to a company or a natural person commits an offence and is on conviction liable to...
- Section 6 - Qualifications for person to act as insolvency practitioners
(1) Subject to subsection (2) and (3), a person is qualified to act as an insolvency practitioner only if the person—
(a) satisfies the requirements of the insolvency regulations with respect to...
- Section 7 - Duty of Cabinet Secretary to declare certain bodies to be recognised as professional bodies for the purposes of this Act
(1) The Cabinet Secretary shall, by notice published in the Gazette, declare one or more professional bodies to be recognised professional bodies for the purposes of this Act.
(2) The Cabinet...
- Section 8 - Application to act as insolvency practitioner
(1) A person who wishes to act as an insolvency practitioner may apply to the Official Receiver for an authorisation to act as an insolvency practitioner for the purposes of this Act.
(2) The...
- Section 9 - Grant or refusal of authorisation
(1) As soon as practicable after receiving an application made under section 8, the Official shall either grant or refuse the application.
(2) The Official Receiver shall grant an application made...
- Section 10 - Power of Official Receiver to revoke authorisation
(1) The Official Receiver may revoke an authorisation granted under subsection (1) if satisfied that the holder of the authorisation—
(a) is no longer qualified to act as an insolvency...
- Section 11 - Right to appeal against decisions of Official Receiver
(1) A person whose application for an authorisation to act as an insolvency practitioner is refused may appeal to the Court against the refusal.
(2) A person whose authorisation to act as insolvency...
- Section 12 - Interpretation: Part III
In this Part—
"bankruptcy application" means an application for a debtor to be adjudged bankrupt;
"bankruptcy order", in relation to a debtor, means an order of the Court adjudging the debtor...
- Section 13 - Nature of bankruptcy
(1) Bankruptcy occurs when the Court makes an order in respect of a debtor adjudging the debtor bankrupt—
(a) on the application of one or more creditors of the debtor made in accordance with section...
- Section 14 - Alternatives to bankruptcy
A debtor who is insolvent may as an alternative to bankruptcy—
(a) enter into a voluntary arrangement in accordance with Division I of Part IV;
(b) make a proposal to creditors in accordance with...
- Section 15 - Who is entitled to make a bankruptcy application
(1) A bankruptcy application may be made to the Court in accordance with the provisions of this Part—
(a) by one of the person's creditors or jointly by two or more one of them;
(b) by the debtor;...
- Section 16 - Proceedings on a bankruptcy application
(1) A bankruptcy application may not be withdrawn without the approval of the Court.
(2) The Court has a general power to dismiss a bankruptcy application or to stay proceedings on such an...
- Section 17 - Creditor may apply for bankruptcy order in respect of debtor
(1) One or more creditors of a debtor may make an application to the Court for a bankruptcy order to be made in respect of the debtor in relation to a debt or debts owed by the debtor to the creditor...
- Section 18 - When court can make bankruptcy order on application by secured creditor
(1) A debt that is the debt, or one of the debts, in respect of which a creditor's application is made need not be unsecured if either—
(a) the application contains a statement by the person having...
- Section 19 - Expedited creditor's application
If a creditor's application is made wholly or partly in respect of a debt that is the subject of a statutory demand, the application may be made before the end of the twenty-one day period referred to...
- Section 20 - Proceedings on creditor's application
(1) The Court may not make a bankruptcy order on a creditor's application unless it is satisfied that the debt, or one of the debts, in respect of which the application was made is either—
(a) a debt...
- Section 21 - Creditor's execution process not to be issued or continued
(1) A creditor who makes an application for a bankruptcy order in respect of a debtor may not issue an execution process against the debtor in respect of the property of the debtor to recover a debt...
- Section 22 - Power of relevant court to stay execution processes by other creditors or allow them on terms
(1) After a creditor's application has been made, the debtor or any creditor may apply to the relevant court for an order stopping the issue or continuance by any other creditor of an execution...
- Section 23 - Execution process issued by other court
(1) This section applies if an execution process has been issued by a court other than the High Court.
(2) If it is proved to the issuing court that an application for a bankruptcy order in respect...
- Section 24 - No restriction on execution process if bankruptcy application withdrawn or dismissed
The restrictions in sections 21 to 23 on issuing or continuing an execution process do not apply if an application is withdrawn or dismissed.
- Section 25 - When court may adjudge debtor bankrupt
(1) The Court may make a bankruptcy order in respect of the debtor if the creditor has complied with section 7.
(2) The Court may refuse to adjudge a debtor bankrupt if—
(a) the applicant creditor...
- Section 26 - When the Court may stay application
The Court may, at any time, stay an application by a creditor for bankruptcy on such terms, and for such period, as the Court considers appropriate.
- Section 27 - Orders if more than one application
(1) If there is more than one bankruptcy application in respect of a debtor, and one application has been stayed by an order of the Court, the Court may, if it believes there is a good reason to do...
- Section 28 - Orders if there is more than one order
If an application made by a creditor for a bankruptcy order relates to more than one debtor, the Court may refuse to make such an order in respect of one or some of the debtors without affecting the...
- Section 29 - Power of the Court to make order staying bankruptcy application, etc.
(1) This section applies if a debtor—
(a) has made a disposition of all, or substantially all, of the property of the debtor to a trustee for the benefit of the creditors of the debtor;
(b) has...
- Section 30 - Court may stay application while underlying debt is determined
(1) This section applies if a debtor appears in opposition to a creditor's application and the debtor claims that the debtor—
(a) does not owe a specified debt to the creditor; or
(b) owes a...
- Section 31 - Court may allow one creditor to be substituted for another
In the case of a creditor's application, the Court may substitute another creditor for the creditor making the application if—
(a) the applicant creditor has not proceeded with due diligence, or at...
- Section 32 - When debtor may make application for bankruptcy order
(1) A debtor may make an application to the Court for an order adjudging the debtor bankrupt only on the grounds that the debtor is unable to pay the debtor's debts.
(2) The Court may decline to deal...
- Section 33 - Appointment of insolvency practitioner by the Court
(1) Subject to section 34, on the hearing of a debtor's application, the Court may not make a bankruptcy order if it appears to the Court—
(a) that if a bankruptcy order were made the total amount of...
- Section 34 - Action on report of insolvency practitioner
(1) The insolvency practitioner appointed under section 33 shall—
(a) inquire into the debtor's financial affairs; and
(b) within such period as the Court may specify, submit a report to the Court...
- Section 35 - Joint application can be made by two or more debtors
Two or more debtors, who are partners in a business partnership, may make a joint application under section 32.
- Section 36 - Appointment of interim trustee of debtor's property on application of creditor
(1) After a creditor's application has been made, the creditor or any other creditor of the debtor may apply to the Court for an order for the appointment of an authorised insolvency practitioner as...
- Section 37 - Additional orders after appointment of interim trustee
(1) After the appointment of an interim trustee under section 36, the Court may, on an application made under subsection (2), make additional orders under that section.
(2) An application for the...
- Section 38 - Notice of appointment of interim trustee to be published
(1) As soon as practicable after the appointment of an interim trustee, the trustee shall publish a notice of the appointment—
(a) in one or more newspapers circulating in Kenya; and
(b) in such...
- Section 39 - Execution process not to be issued after notice of appointment of trustee is published
(1) A creditor of the debtor may not issue an execution process under section 23 after notice of the appointment of the interim trustee has been published.
(2) A creditor may not continue an...
- Section 40 - Effect of staying execution
If execution is stayed under section 39, sections 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114 and 116 apply as if the order staying execution were a bankruptcy order.
- Section 41 - Bankruptcy commences on making of bankruptcy order
A bankruptcy under this Act commences on the date and at the time when a bankruptcy order is made in respect of the debtor.
- Section 42 - Date and time of bankruptcy order to be recorded
(1) On making a bankruptcy order, the Court shall record the date and time when the order was made.
(2) If the debtor is adjudged bankrupt on the application of the debtor, the Official Receiver...
- Section 43 - Registrar of the Court to notify trustee of bankruptcy order
As soon as practicable after the Court has made a bankruptcy order in respect of a debtor, the Registrar of the Court shall forward a copy of the order to the Official Receiver.
- Section 44 - Official Receiver to nominate bankruptcy trustee
(1) As soon as practicable after receiving a copy of a bankruptcy order, the Official Receiver shall nominate a qualified person to be bankruptcy trustee in respect of the debtor's property.
(2) In...
- Section 45 - Presumption that act was done, or transaction was entered into or made, after bankruptcy
If a doubt arises as to whether an act was done, or a transaction entered into or made, before or after the time when a bankruptcy commenced, it is to be presumed, until the contrary is proved, that...
- Section 46 - Bankruptcy order to be binding on all persons
A bankruptcy order becomes binding on the bankrupt and all other persons—
(a) on the expiry of the time within which an appeal may be lodged against the order; or
(b) if an appeal is lodged in...
- Section 47 - Official Receiver to maintain public register of undischarged and discharged bankrupts
(1) The Official Receiver shall establish and maintain a public register of undischarged and discharged bankrupts.
(2) The Official Receiver shall maintain the register in accordance with Division 2...
- Section 48 - What happens or is to happen on and after bankruptcy commences
(1) When a bankruptcy order commences—
(a) all proceedings to recover the bankrupt's debts are stayed; and
(b) the property of the bankrupt (whether in or outside Kenya), and the powers that the...
- Section 49 - Official Receiver to serve notice on bankrupt requiring the bankrupt to lodge statement of the bankrupt's financial position
(1) Within thirty days after receiving notice of a bankruptcy order, the Official Receiver shall serve on the bankrupt a notice—
(a) stating that a bankruptcy order has been made in respect of the...
- Section 50 - Bankrupt to lodge statement of financial position with bankruptcy trustee
(1) Within fourteen days after being served with the notice in accordance with section 49 (or within such extended period not exceeding sixty days as the Official Receiver may allow), the bankrupt...
- Section 51 - Creditors entitled to inspect and take copies of statement of bankrupt's financial position
(1) A person who in writing claims to be a creditor of the bankrupt is entitled, at all reasonable times
(either personally or through an agent—
(a) to inspect the statement of the bankrupt's...