The supervising judge shall rule on the opposition, after having heard or duly summoned the trustee and the interested parties. The decision shall be notified by the registrar by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt. The appeal against this decision shall be brought before the court of appeal within fifteen days of…
Commercial Code
Unofficial translation. The English interface is for information only — only the Arabic text published in the Bulletin Officiel is authentic. Read this page in العربية · Français
The provisions of this Title shall apply to the directors of the sole proprietorship or of the enterprise in corporate form which has been subject to proceedings, whether de jure or de facto, whether remunerated or not. Chapter I: Patrimonial sanctions
The court competent to pronounce the patrimonial sanctions provided for in this Chapter is the one which opened the proceedings.
Where the proceedings concerning a commercial company reveal an insufficiency of assets, the court may, in the event of a management fault having contributed to that insufficiency of assets, decide that the latter shall be borne, in whole or in part, jointly and severally or not, by all of its directors or only some of them. The…
The court must open proceedings in respect of the directors on whom all or part of the liabilities of a company has been imposed and who do not discharge that debt.
In the event of recovery or judicial liquidation of a company, the court must open recovery or judicial liquidation proceedings in respect of any director against whom one of the following facts may be established: 1) having disposed of the company's property as if it were his own; 2) under the cover of the company concealing hi…
In the event of proceedings opened in application of the preceding article, the liabilities comprise, in addition to the personal liabilities, those of the company. The date of cessation of payments is the one fixed by the judgment opening the proceedings of the company. The action is time-barred by three years from the judgment…
In the cases provided for in Articles 704 to 706, the court acts of its own motion or is seised by the trustee.
For the application of this Chapter, the director or directors called in question shall be duly summoned at least eight days before their hearing by the registry of the court. The trustee shall be summoned by the registrar. The court shall rule in public hearing, the supervising judge having been heard in his report.
The decisions given in application of this Chapter shall be notified to the parties by the registrar. They shall be mentioned in the commercial register, published by extract in a journal of legal announcements and in the Bulletin Officiel, and posted on the panel reserved for that purpose at the court. Chapter II: Commercial disqualification
Commercial disqualification entails a prohibition on directing, managing, administering or controlling, directly or indirectly, any commercial or artisanal enterprise, and any commercial company carrying on an economic activity.
At any stage of the proceedings, the court must take up the matter with a view to pronouncing, where appropriate, the commercial disqualification of any natural person merchant, or of any artisan against whom one of the following facts has been found: 1) having abusively continued a loss-making operation that could only lead to…
At any stage of the proceedings, the court must take up the matter with a view to pronouncing, where appropriate, the commercial disqualification of any manager of a commercial company who has committed one of the acts referred to in Article 706.
At any stage of the proceedings, the court must take up the matter with a view to pronouncing, where appropriate, the commercial disqualification of any business manager against whom one of the following facts has been found: 1) having carried on a commercial or artisanal activity or a management or administrative function in a…
The court must pronounce the commercial disqualification of the manager of the company who has not paid the asset deficiency of the company imposed on him.
In the cases provided for in Articles 712 to 715, the court must act either on its own motion or at the request of the trustee or the King's Prosecutor. The provisions of Article 710 apply to decisions made under this chapter.
The voting right of managers subject to commercial disqualification is exercised, in the meetings of commercial companies subject to treatment proceedings, by a representative appointed by the court for that purpose, at the request of the trustee. The court may order these managers, or some of them, to transfer their shares or i…
The judgment pronouncing commercial disqualification entails incapacity to hold an elective public office. The incapacity also applies to any natural person in respect of whom judicial liquidation has been pronounced. It takes effect by operation of law from the notification made to the interested party by the competent authority. The judgment pronouncing commercial disqualification is published in the Bulletin Officiel.
When the court pronounces commercial disqualification, it sets the duration of the measure, which may not be less than five years. It may order provisional enforcement of its decision. Commercial disqualification and the resulting elective incapacity cease by operation of law at the end of the fixed term, without any need to pro…
In all cases, the interested party may ask the court to relieve him, in whole or in part, from commercial disqualification and from the incapacity to hold an elective public office if he has made a sufficient contribution to the payment of the asset deficiency. Where there is total relief from commercial disqualification and fro…
In the event of the opening of treatment proceedings, the persons mentioned in Article 702 against whom one of the following facts has been found are guilty of bankruptcy: 1) having, with the intention of avoiding or delaying the opening of the treatment proceedings, either made purchases for resale below the market price or use…
Bankruptcy is punishable by from one to five years' imprisonment and a fine of 10.000 to 100.000 dirhams, or by one of these two penalties only. The same penalties are incurred by accomplices in bankruptcy, even if they do not have the status of business managers. The penalty provided for in the first paragraph is doubled where the bankrupt is a de jure or de facto manager of a company whose shares are listed on the stock exchange.
Persons guilty of the offences provided for in this section also incur, as an ancillary penalty, the commercial disqualification provided for in Chapter II of this Title. Section II: Other Offences
Are liable to the penalties for bankruptcy: 1) those who, in the interest of the persons referred to in article 702, have removed, concealed or hidden all or part of the movable or immovable property of such persons; 2) those who have fraudulently declared in the proceedings, either in their own name or through an intermediary,…
For the application of the provisions of sections 1 and 2 of this chapter, the limitation period for public action shall run only from the day of the judgment pronouncing the opening of the treatment proceedings where the incriminated facts appeared before that date.
The criminal court is seised either on the prosecution of the public prosecutor's office or on the civil party application of the trustee. The provisions provided for in article 710 shall apply.
The public prosecutor's office may require the trustee to hand over all acts and documents held by the latter. Title VI: Remedies
Judgments and orders rendered in matters of proceedings for the treatment of difficulties and judicial liquidation shall be enforceable by operation of law, except those mentioned in Chapters II and III of Title V.
Opposition and third-party opposition shall be brought against decisions rendered in matters of judicial recovery, judicial liquidation and commercial disqualification by declaration to the court registry within a period of ten days from the pronouncement of the decision or from its publication in the Bulletin Officiel if such publication is prescribed.
An appeal against the decisions mentioned in the preceding article shall be brought by declaration to the court registry within a period of ten days from notification of the decision, unless otherwise provided in this law. In respect of the trustee, the period shall run from the date of the decision.
An appeal to the Court of Cassation shall be brought within a period of ten days from notification of the judgment.
Remedies against decisions rendered in matters of bankruptcy and other offences shall be subject to the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Final Provisions
The provisions of this law repeal and replace those relating to the same matters as amended or supplemented, subject to the provisions of article 735, in particular the provisions of the following texts: - the dahir of 9 Ramadan 1331 (12 August 1913) forming the Commercial Code, with the exception of articles 29 to 54 inclusive;…
References to the provisions of the texts repealed by the preceding article contained in other legislative or regulatory texts in force shall apply to the corresponding provisions enacted by this law.
This law shall enter into force on the date of its publication in the Bulletin Officiel, subject to the following provisions: - Book IV shall apply only to contracts concluded after the entry into force of the said law. - Books III and V shall enter into force one year after the date of publication of this law in the Bulletin Officiel.
Pending the establishment of courts competent to settle disputes between traders or to apply this law, such disputes shall be adjudicated in accordance with the legislation in force.
