Review hearing in the Czech Republic: fees and costs
A German holding company holds a receivable against a Czech debtor now in insolvency. The claim was registered on time, yet nobody explained what happens at the review hearing itself: whether the administrator disputes the amount, and who then carries the cost of proving it. For a CFO the review hearing czech fees and costs insolvency question comes down to two things – the deadline that starts running the moment an objection is raised, and the document set that must already exist before the hearing opens.
A review hearing in Czech insolvency proceedings is where the insolvency administrator and the debtor examine each registered claim. Costs shift onto the creditor only if the claim is disputed, and the creditor must then file an incidental action to prove it, within the time limit fixed at the hearing itself.
This page sets out who files what and where, the deadline that begins to run once a claim is disputed, the document set the administrator and the court expect to see, and the point at which a foreign creditor should treat the matter as closed, contested, or in need of representation.
Review hearing, Czech fees and costs, and what the insolvency file must show
A review hearing is the stage where each claim entered in the insolvency register is checked against the debtor's own records. "Fees and costs" here does not mean a filing tariff; registering a claim carries no separate charge. It means the cost exposure that appears only once a claim is disputed and has to be proven in a separate action.
Filing the claim is a registration act: the creditor enters the claim in the insolvency register within the statutory window, stating the amount, the legal basis, and any security. Nothing is charged for that step. The cost question arises only at, or shortly after, the review hearing, once the administrator or the debtor raises an objection to what has been registered. From that moment the creditor bears the cost of the incidental action – expert opinions, translations for a foreign creditor's underlying contracts, and legal costs if the action fails. Once a claim is registered, the register keeps the entry regardless of what happens next; only a successful incidental action, or a withdrawal, changes its status. Firms that treat the initial registration as the end of the exercise are the ones who lose the window described in our overview of the insolvency and restructuring practice.
When does a review hearing apply to your claim?
A review hearing applies to every claim entered in the insolvency register before the registration deadline, whether the case runs as liquidation or as reorganisation; the practical conditions differ mainly in who is entitled to object and what the objection then triggers.
Secured and unsecured claims are examined together, but a security interest changes what the administrator checks: the existence and rank of the security, not only the underlying debt. In reorganisation, the debtor itself can dispute a claim, and a claim disputed only by the debtor is treated differently from one disputed by the administrator. A claim filed after the registration deadline has already closed the route to this particular review hearing; at that point it can only be pursued, if at all, through a separate and considerably narrower application. Foreign creditors add a further condition in practice: underlying contracts, invoices and correspondence should already exist in a form the administrator can read, which usually means a certified Czech translation of the core documents, prepared before the objection stage rather than after it.
The registration deadline and the objection deadline are not the same clock, and treating them as one is the single most common mistake we see in foreign files.
A claim disputed at the review hearing and left unanswered past the deadline closes the route to recovery in this proceeding entirely. LISTINA prepares a factual report on a claim's registration history and the administrator's stated grounds for dispute, delivered within five to eight working days; write to info@listinafirm.com. Where the matter requires filing the incidental action itself, that step is carried out by a collaborating advocate.
What is the route from claim filing to the hearing, and what are the deadlines?
The route runs from registration, through the administrator's preliminary list of claims, to the review hearing set by the insolvency court, and – if an objection is raised there – to an incidental action with its own separate deadline.
The administrator compiles a list of registered claims before the hearing and marks each one as recognised, disputed, or conditional. At the hearing itself the court records which claims remain disputed and by whom. The deadline for the incidental action is then fixed by reference to that hearing, not to the original registration date, and once it lapses it cannot be restored by a later filing.
- Claim undisputed at the hearing → registration stands as filed → administrator and court record it → no further step required from the creditor
- Claim disputed by the administrator → creditor must file an incidental action → creditor (the claimant) → within the time limit fixed at the hearing
- Claim disputed by the debtor only, in reorganisation → claim is treated as registered unless a creditor also contests it → any objecting creditor → per the deadline set in the court's resolution
- Incidental action deadline missed → claim is treated as unenforced in this proceeding → court → the deadline lapses and cannot be restored
An Austrian equipment lessor lost the right to contest a disputed claim within the statutory window, having treated the review hearing itself as a formality rather than a deadline (winter 2025). For creditors reconstructing a debtor's asset position across borders, the practical steps are close to those set out in our note on insolvency asset tracing for UK creditors after Brexit.
What must the claim file contain before the hearing?
The file the administrator and, later, the court expect to see is narrower than most creditors assume: proof of the claim's legal basis, its amount, and – where relevant – the security attached to it, all dated before the registration itself.
Missing or inconsistent dates are the most common reason an otherwise valid claim is marked disputed rather than recognised outright. A Dutch trade creditor cut its incidental dispute to under three months by assembling the asset and correspondence file before the hearing rather than after it (spring 2026), while creditors who wait until an objection is raised routinely lose that time back.
- The original claim registration with its filing date in the insolvency register
- The underlying contract or invoice set establishing the claim's legal basis
- Correspondence showing the claim amount was not amended after filing
- A record of any security interest attached to the claim, with its rank
- Evidence of delivery or performance, where the claim rests on that
- A power of attorney for whoever appears at the hearing on the creditor's behalf
A claim can be entirely sound on the merits and still be marked disputed for want of a dated document; the review hearing checks the file, not the underlying fairness of the debt.
Where the debtor's estate includes assets moved before insolvency was declared, the review hearing is often the last point at which a creditor can flag a transaction for the administrator's own clawback claim before that window closes. LISTINA delivers an asset and transaction report drawn from the insolvency register and the relevant public records, within seven to ten working days; write to info@listinafirm.com. Representation in any clawback action itself is a matter for a collaborating advocate.
Act, wait, or contest: what should a CFO decide after the hearing?
Once the hearing has taken place, the decision is narrower than it looks: act within the incidental deadline if the claim is disputed, wait if it is recognised outright, or contest a different creditor's claim only where its own file is demonstrably weak.
Waiting is the right answer more often than creditors assume, since a recognised claim needs no further step until distribution. Acting is required only where an objection was actually raised, and the window for it is short and does not restart. Contesting another creditor's claim is rarely worth the cost unless the file shows a clear defect – an undated document, an unexplained amendment, or a security interest that does not match the register. Firms weighing whether to bring in outside help before making that call can read more about our method on the about us page.
Before the hearing takes place, no document or register search tells a creditor how the administrator will actually classify a specific claim, or whether the debtor will raise a substantive objection; that determination is made at the hearing itself, not before it.
Frequently asked questions
Where is review hearing filed?
The claim itself is registered with the insolvency court handling the debtor's proceeding, through entry in the insolvency register; the review hearing is then scheduled by that same court and does not require a separate filing to take place.
How long does the court take?
The court sets the hearing date once the administrator's preliminary list of claims is ready; from registration to hearing typically runs to several weeks, and the incidental action deadline, once fixed at the hearing, runs on a separate and considerably shorter clock.
Can the other side object?
Yes. The administrator, the debtor in reorganisation, or another creditor may dispute a registered claim at the hearing. A common misconception is that only the administrator can object; in reorganisation the debtor's own objection carries separate consequences for the creditor.
What follows the decision?
A recognised claim proceeds to distribution without further action. A disputed claim requires an incidental action within the deadline set at the hearing; missing it treats the claim as unenforced in that proceeding.
LISTINA produces factual reports from documents and public registers. It does not provide legal advice and does not represent parties. Where a matter requires representation before a Czech court or authority, it is handled by a collaborating advocate.
A foreign creditor who treats the review hearing as a formality risks the claim itself being treated as unenforced if the objection deadline lapses unnoticed. LISTINA's factual report on a specific claim's status in the insolvency register is delivered within three to five working days; write to info@listinafirm.com. Any representation before the insolvency court is provided by a collaborating advocate.