Civil Enforcement Act

If no purchase offer has been made even though the court clerk has had a sale implemented three times through bidding or an auction, and if the enforcement court, taking into consideration the shape of the immovable property, its intended use, regulations on its use under laws and regulations, and any other circumstances, finds that the property is unlikely to be sold even if the court clerk has a sale implemented again, the enforcement court may stay the proceedings for the compulsory auction. In this case, the enforcement court must notify the attaching obligee to that effect.

If, within three months from the day of receipt of notice under the preceding paragraph, an attaching obligee has made an offer to the enforcement court seeking to have a sale implemented on the basis that there is a person seeking to make a purchase offer, a court clerk must have a sale implemented pursuant to the provisions of Article 64.

If an attaching obligee does not make an offer seeking to have a sale implemented under the preceding paragraph within the period referred to in that paragraph, the enforcement court may cancel the proceedings for the compulsory auction. The same applies if no purchase offer is made when a court clerk has a sale implemented pursuant to the provisions of that paragraph.

An enforcement court must commission the prefectural police having jurisdiction of the location of the enforcement court to conduct necessary investigation concerning whether or not the highest bidder (or officers if the person is a corporation; the same applies in this paragraph) falls under a current or former member of an organized crime group; provided, however, that this does not apply to cases, which the Rules of the Supreme Court provide, that there are circumstances which cause the enforcement court to find that the highest bidder does not fall under a current or former member of an organized crime group

If an enforcement court finds that there is a person who makes the highest bidder make the purchase offer on the person's account, the enforcement court must commission the prefectural police having jurisdiction of the location of the enforcement court to conduct necessary investigation concerning whether or not the person who makes the offeror make the purchase offer (or officers if the person is a corporation; the same applies in this paragraph) falls under a current or former member of an organized crime group;.provided, however, that this does not apply to cases, which the Rules of the Supreme Court provide, that there are circumstances which cause the enforcement court to find that the person who makes the offeror make the purchase offer does not fall under a current or former member of an organized crime group

The enforcement court must hold the date for the ruling on the sale and announce whether to permit or not to permit the sale.

A person who has an interest in whether a sale of immovable property is permitted or not permitted may state their opinion, at the date for the ruling on the sale, regarding any of the grounds stated in the items of the following Article that affect their rights.

If an enforcement court finds there to be any of the following grounds, it must rule not to permit the sale:

the proceedings for the compulsory auction should not be commenced or continued;

the highest bidder lacks the qualification or capacity to purchase the immovable property or their agent lacks the authority to act as agent;

the highest bidder is a person who has made a purchase offer on the account of a person who is not eligible to purchase the immovable property;

the highest bidder, their agent or the person who, on their own account, had the highest bidder make a purchase offer falls under any of the following categories:

a person who has engaged in the act prescribed in Article 65, item (i) in the proceedings for the compulsory auction;

a person who has failed to pay the price or a person who has, on their own account, had the relevant person make a purchase offer in the proceedings for the compulsory auction;

the person stated in Article 65, item (ii) or (iii);

the highest bidder or a person who makes the highest bidder make the purchase offer on their own account falls under any of the following items:

a current or former member of an organized crime group (including a person who is a current or former member of an organized crime group when the purchase offer is made);

a corporation which has a person who falls under a current or former member of an organized crime group as its officer (including a corporation which had a person who falls under a current or former member of an organized crime group as its officer when the purchase offer is made);

there is a petition not to permit the sale under Article 75, paragraph (1);

there is a serious error in the determination of the standard sales price or of a package sale, in the preparation of the description of property, or in the procedures for those;

there is a serious error in the procedure of sale.

If a document stated in Article 39, paragraph (1), item (vii) has been submitted during the period from when the implementation of a sale has ended until the date for the ruling on the sale ends, the enforcement court may not hold the date for the ruling on the sale, unless it will issue an order not permitting the sale based on different grounds. In this case, the highest bidder or the next highest bidder may make a filing with the enforcement court rescinding their purchase offer.

If a document prescribed in the preceding paragraph has been submitted after the date for the ruling on the sale has ended, the provisions of Article 39 apply only if the order permitting the sale made on that date has been set aside or has ceased to be effective, or the order not permitting the sale made on that date has become final and binding.

If a document stated in Article 39, paragraph (1), item (viii) is submitted after the implementation of the sale has ended, the provisions of that Article apply only if the order permitting the sale in relation to that sale has been set aside or has ceased to be effective, or the order not permitting the sale in relation to that sale has become final and binding.

If multiple pieces of immovable property are being sold and it is expected to be possible to fully pay the claims and enforcement costs of the obligees with the purchase offer price of some of the pieces of property, the enforcement court must withhold the ruling to permit the sale of the remaining pieces of property.

In the cases of the preceding paragraph, if it is expected to be possible to fully perform the claims and enforcement costs of the respective obligees with the purchase offer price of any of several pieces of property, the enforcement court must hear the opinion of the obligor in advance regarding the pieces of immovable property for which a sale should be permitted.

The highest bidder or the next highest bidder for whom a ruling to permit a sale has been withheld pursuant to the provisions of paragraph (1) may rescind their purchase offer to the enforcement court.

When the price has been paid for immovable property for which a ruling to permit a sale has been issued, the enforcement court must cancel the proceedings for the compulsory auction involving the immovable property referred to in the preceding paragraph.

An appeal may be filed against a ruling to permit or not permit a sale, but only if the appellant asserts that the appellant's rights will be prejudiced by the ruling.

The grounds for an appeal against a ruling to permit a sale must be that any of the grounds stated in the items of Article 71 exist or that there is a serious error in the proceedings for the ruling to permit the sale.

Notwithstanding the provisions of the preceding two paragraphs, the grounds stated in the items of Article 338, paragraph (1) of the Code of Civil Procedure may serve as the basis for an appeal against a ruling to permit or not permit a sale.

A court of appeal may, if it finds it to be necessary, specify the opposite party of the appellant.

A ruling to permit or not permit a sale does not take effect until it becomes final and binding.

If, after the highest bidder or purchaser has made a purchase offer, the immovable property is damaged due to a natural disaster or other grounds not attributable to them, the highest bidder or purchaser may petition the enforcement court not to permit the sale, if it is before the issuance of a ruling to permit the sale, or may petition the enforcement court to set aside the ruling to permit the sale, if it is after that ruling has been issued but before the time the price is paid; provided, however, that this does not apply if the damage to the immovable property is slight.

An appeal may be filed against a ruling on the petition to void the ruling permitting the sale under the preceding paragraph.

A ruling to void a ruling permitting a sale based on a petition prescribed in the preceding paragraph does not take effect until it becomes final and binding.

To withdraw a petition for a compulsory auction after a purchase offer has been made, the consent of the highest bidder or the purchaser and the next highest bidder must be obtained; provided, however, that this does not apply when there is any other attaching obligee (excluding an attaching obligee who filed a petition for a compulsory auction or an auction after the deadline for a distribution demand) and the withdrawal does not cause any change to the matter stated in Article 62, paragraph (1), item (ii).

The provisions of the preceding paragraph apply mutatis mutandis to the case of submitting a document stated in Article 39, paragraph (1), items (iv) through (v) after a purchase offer has been made.

If the obligor or the possessor of immovable property has value reduction, etc. (meaning engaging in an act that reduces the value of immovable property or makes it difficult to deliver; the same applies in this paragraph) or is likely to do so, the enforcement court, upon petition by the highest bidder or the purchaser, may establish the provisional order stated in any of the following items or the provisional order to post a public notice stated in any of those items, until the delivery order is carried out, while requiring payment of money equivalent to the purchase offer price (or the purchase offer price less the amount of the guarantee referred to in Article 66, if the person has provided that guarantee in the form of money) or payment of the price:

a provisional order prohibiting the obligor or the possessor of the immovable property from value reduction, etc. or ordering that person to engaged a specific act (this includes a provisional order to post a public notice, if the enforcement court finds it to be necessary);

a provisional order with the following content (this includes a provisional order to post a public notice, if the enforcement court finds it to be necessary):

that the court orders the person who has reduced the value of the property or is likely to do so to give up possession of the immovable property and deliver it to the court enforcement officer;

that the court will have the court enforcement officer take custody of the immovable property.

a provisional order with the following content, and a provisional order to post a public notice:

the matters stated in (a) and (b) of the preceding item;

that the court prohibits the person prescribed in (a) of the preceding item from transferring the possession of immovable property, and that it permits that person to use the immovable property.

The provisions of Article 55, paragraph (2) (limited to the portion related to item (i)) apply mutatis mutandis to the provisional order stated in item (ii) or item (iii) of the preceding paragraph, the provisions of paragraph (2) of that Article (limited to the portion related to item (ii)) apply mutatis mutandis to the provisional order stated in the preceding paragraph, the provisions of paragraph (3), the main clause of paragraph (4) and paragraph (5) of that Article applies mutatis mutandis to an order under the preceding paragraph, the provisions of paragraph (6) of the Article apply mutatis mutandis pursuant to a judicial decision on the petition referred to in the preceding paragraph or the petition referred to in paragraph (5) of the Article as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to this paragraph, the provisions of paragraph (7) of the Article apply mutatis mutandis to an order under paragraph (5) of the Article as applied mutatis mutandis pursuant to this paragraph, and the provisions of paragraph (8) and paragraph (9) of the Article and Article 55-2 apply mutatis mutandis to an order granting the provisional order stated in item (ii) or item (iii) of the preceding paragraph.