Civil Enforcement Act

An enforcement court must, if it finds that any of the following items apply, notify the attaching obligee (meaning the attaching obligee associated with the first order commencing compulsory-auction proceedings, or, if a judicial decision to continue the procedure provided in Article 47, paragraph (6) has been issued, the attaching obligee who received that judicial decision; the same applies in this Article) to that effect:

If there is no claim that takes preference over the claim of the attaching obligee (referred to as a "preferential claim" in this Article), if the minimum purchase price of the immovable property does not exceed the estimated amount of the part of the enforcement costs that constitutes administrative expenses (referred to as "procedural expenses" below); or

If there is a preferential claim, and the minimum purchase price of the immovable property is below the total of the estimated amount of the procedural expenses and that of the preferential claim.

When the attaching obligee fails to make an offer or to provide a guarantee, as provided in each of the following items for the cases stated respectively in those, within one week from the day of receipt of a notice under the preceding paragraph, by deciding, if there is no preferential claim, a price that exceeds the estimated amount of procedural expenses, or if there is a preferential claim, a price that is not less than the total of the estimated amount of procedural expenses and that of the preferential claim (this price is referred to as the "obligee's offered price" in this paragraph), the enforcement court must cancel the proceedings for a compulsory auction under the petition filed by the attaching obligee; provided, however, that this does not apply when the attaching obligee has proved, within that period, that none of the items of the preceding paragraph apply, or if, in a case that falls under item (ii) of that paragraph, the minimum purchase price of the immovable property exceeds the estimated amount of procedural expenses and consent has been obtained from the persons who have the preferential claim (excluding a person who is expected to be able to receive full performance of the person's preferential claim at the minimum purchase price) for the sale of the immovable property:

cases where the attaching obligee is able to purchase the immovable property:making of an offer that the attaching obligee will purchase the immovable property at the obligee's offered price if there is no purchase offer that reaches the obligee's offered price, and provisions of a guarantee equivalent to the obligee's offered price; or

cases where the attaching obligee is unable to purchase the immovable property:making of an offer that the attaching obligee will pay any difference between the obligee's offered price and the purchase offer price if the purchase offer price fails to reach the obligee's offered price, and provisions of a guarantee equivalent to the difference between the obligee's offered price and the minimum purchase price.

If an offer has been made and a guarantee has been provided under item (ii) of the preceding paragraph, if there is no purchase offer at or beyond the minimum purchase price, the enforcement court must cancel the proceedings for a compulsory auction under the petition filed by the attaching obligee.

The provision of a guarantee referred to in paragraph (2) must be made to the enforcement court by the method specified by the Rules of the Supreme Court.

Immovable property is sold by the sales method specified by the court clerk.

The sales method of immovable property is bidding, an auction or any other method specified by the Rules of the Supreme Court.

The court clerk must, when carrying out a sale by bidding or an auction, decide on the date and place of the sale and have a court enforcement officer implement the sale.

In the case of the preceding paragraph, the court clerk must, simultaneously with a disposition to have a sale implemented, designate the period for the expression of opinions pursuant to the provisions of Article 70, paragraph (1) and the day on which the ruling specified in Article 69, paragraph (1) is rendered.

In the cases referred to in paragraph (3), a court clerk must give public notice of the indication of the immovable property to be sold, the standard sales price and the date and place of the sale.

A person may file an objection with the enforcement court to a court clerk's disposition under paragraph (1), paragraph (3), or paragraph (4).

The provisions of the first sentence of Article 10, paragraph (6) and Article 10, paragraph (9) apply mutatis mutandis to cases where an objection under the preceding paragraph has been filed.

An enforcement court must, upon petition by the attaching obligee (excluding an attaching obligee who filed a petition for a compulsory auction or an auction after the deadline for a distribution demand), order a court enforcement officer to implement a preliminary inspection (meaning an occasion of having persons wishing to purchase the immovable property enter and inspect the immovable property; the same applies in this Article); provided, however, that this does not apply when the title to possession held by the possessor of that immovable property may be duly asserted against the attaching obligee, the obligee effecting a provisional seizure or the person whose right will be extinguished pursuant to the provisions of Article 59, paragraph (1), and the possessor does not give their consent.

The petition referred to in the preceding paragraph must be filed, pursuant to the provisions of the Rules of the Supreme Court, by the time the court clerk makes a disposition to have a sale implemented.

The court enforcement officer who has received the order referred to in paragraph (1) must, by the time of implementation of the sale, implement a preliminary inspection for persons who have requested to participate in the preliminary inspection pursuant to the provisions of the Rules of the Supreme Court (excluding those who lack the qualification or capacity to purchase the immovable property or those for whom any of the grounds specified by the Rules of the Supreme Court exist; referred to as "preliminary inspection participants" in paragraph (5) and paragraph (6)).

An enforcement court may, when it is clear that smooth implementation of a preliminary inspection is difficult, set aside the order referred to in paragraph (1).

A court enforcement officer may, when implementing a preliminary inspection, enter the immovable property themselves and have preliminary inspection participants enter the immovable property.

When any preliminary inspection participant commits an act that obstructs smooth implementation of the preliminary inspection, a court enforcement officer may restrict their entry into the immovable property or have them leave the immovable property.

A court enforcement officer may restrict entry of any of the following into the place of sale, have them leave that place or disallow them to make a purchase offer:

a person who has committed or caused another person to commit an act to obstruct others from making purchase offers or obstruct fair implementation of a sale, such as uniting for unjustly lowering the price;

a person who has been recognized as falling under the preceding item in a ruling not to permit a sale that has been issued in another civil enforcement procedure, if it has not been two years since the day on which the ruling not to permit the sale became final and binding; and

a person who, in relation to a sale in a civil enforcement procedure, has been sentenced to a punishment pursuant to the provisions of Articles 95 through 96-5, Article 197 through 197-4 or Article 198 of the Penal Code (Act No. 45 of 1907), Article 3, paragraph (1), items (i) through (iv) or paragraph (2) (limited to the parts concerning paragraph (1), items (i) through (iv) of the same Article) of the Act on Punishment of Organized Crime and Control of Proceeds of Crime (Act No. 136 of 1999), or Article 1, paragraph (1), Article 2, paragraph (1) or Article 4 of the Act on Punishment of Persons Holding Public Office Who Acquire Benefits by Exerting Influence (Act No. 130 of 2000), if two years have yet to passed from the day on which its judicial decision became final and binding.

A person seeking to submit an offer to purchase immovable property (or their legal representative, if they have one; or the representative, if the person is a corporation) may not submit that offer without giving a statement, pursuant to the provisions of the Rules of the Supreme Court, indicating that none of the following items applies:

the person seeking to submit the purchase offer (or its officers, if that person is a corporation) is a member of an organized crime group provided for in Article 2, item (vi) of the Act on Preventing Unjust Acts by Members of Organized Crime Groups (Act No. 77 of 1991) (referred to as a "member of an organized crime group" in this item) or is someone who ceased to be a member of an organized crime group on a date that is less than five years in the past (referred to as a "current or former member of an organized crime group" in this division); or

one person seeking to have a second person submit the purchase offer on the first person's own account (or its officers, if that person is a corporation) and is a current or former member of an organized crime group.

A person seeking to submit an offer to purchase immovable property must provide a guarantee in the amount and by the method specified by the enforcement court pursuant to the provisions of the Rules of the Supreme Court.

A person who has made the next highest purchase offer to the highest bidder may, provided that that person's purchase offer price is not less than the minimum purchase price and not less than the price obtained by deducting the amount of the purchase offer guarantee from the price offered by the highest bidder, make an offer seeking permission of sale for the offeror's purchase offer if the order permitting the sale to the highest bidder ceases to be effective pursuant to the provisions of Article 80, paragraph (1) (the offer is referred to as the "next highest offer" below) to a court enforcement officer, by the time of the termination of implementation of the sale.

An obligor may not make a purchase offer.

If no purchase offer is made when the court clerk had a sale implemented by the method of bidding or an auction, if the obligor or the possessor of the immovable property has committed or is likely to commit an act that makes the sale of the immovable property difficult, the enforcement court may, upon petition by an attaching obligee (excluding an attaching obligee who filed a petition for a compulsory auction or an auction after the deadline for a distribution demand; the same applies in the following paragraph), issue a provisional order containing the following matters (including a provisional order to post a public notice, if the enforcement court finds it to be necessary), while requiring provision of security, until a purchaser pays the price:

ordering the obligor or the possessor of the immovable property to give up possession of the immovable property and deliver it to the court enforcement officer or the petitioner; and

having the court enforcement officer or the petitioner retain the immovable property.

An attaching obligee must, to file the petition referred to in the preceding paragraph, decide on a price not less than the minimum purchase price (referred to as the "obligee's offered price" in this paragraph), make an offer that the obligee must purchase the immovable property at the obligee's offered price if there is no purchase offer that reaches that price upon the next implementation of a sale by bidding or an auction, and provide a guarantee equivalent to the obligee's offered price.

When there has been a change in circumstances, an enforcement court may, upon petition or by its own authority, void or change an order under paragraph (1).

The provisions of Article 55, paragraph (2) apply mutatis mutandis to a provisional order under paragraph (1), the provisions of paragraph (3) of the Article apply mutatis mutandis to an order under paragraph (1), the provisions of paragraph (6) of the Article apply mutatis mutandis to a judicial decision on the petition referred to in paragraph (1), a judicial decision under the preceding paragraph or a judicial decision to deny the petition referred to in that paragraph, the provisions of paragraph (7) of that Article apply mutatis mutandis to an order under the preceding paragraph, the provisions of paragraph (8) and paragraph (9) of that Article and Article 55-2 apply mutatis mutandis to an order granting the provisional order prescribed in paragraph (1), the provisions of Article 55 , paragraph (10) apply mutatis mutandis to expenses required for the petition referred to in paragraph (1) or carrying out of an order under the paragraph, and the provisions of Article 63, paragraph (4) apply mutatis mutandis to the provisions of a guarantee referred to in paragraph (2).

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.