Daniil Petrukh became lawyer of Fall 2018 according to the Delovoi Peterburg publisher in the Bankruptcy nomination after defending a client’s interests in a unique case concerning Transaero’s unpaid debt.

International Air Transport Association (IATA) requested that the bankrupt airline pay its current debt, with the amounts being derived from different international mutual settlement systems, in particular, the IATA Clearing House (ICH). The ICH allows participants of air travel services to work within a system of international settlements. ICH members declare for clearing their operations with other ICH members. As a result, after clearing as such is performed, there it only one obligation – either to ICH or to one of its participants.

A debt of this type became the subject of dispute between IATA and Transaero. If was unclear how this debt should be regarded – as a separate obligation or as a group of operations which were initially submitted for clearing. There was absolutely no relevant court practice or explanations on this issue.

Daniil Petrukh’s work based on foreign substantive law allowed to determine a clearing obligation as an independent debt, and to collect the current debt, having thus protected IATA’s interests