Points of law: 1) whether arbitration court may have jurisdiction over a suit filed by lessor against lessee (debtor) after the start of bankruptcy procedures with regard to the debtor? 2) whether affiliation of the arbitration court with one of the parties to the dispute is permissible?

Ratio decidendi: the Presidium held that 1) from the moment of declaring the debtor bankrupt and upon the start of bankruptcy procedure all creditors’ demands may be presented only in the course of such procedure and only in the State commercial court; and 2) affiliation between an arbitration court and a party to the dispute is incompatible with court’s impartiality, which is one of fundamental principles of Russian law. By saying so, the Presidium reiterated its opinion expressed in the judgment of 22.05.2012 № 16541/11.

Practical consequences: the Judgment says that prior court decisions in analogous cases if inconsistent with this interpretation may be reversed in the procedure and within the limits envisaged by Art 311 of the Commercial Procedure Code.