At the time this guest editorial was written, the world has faced an unprecedented course of events with the outbreak of the COVID-19 (corona) virus. In a short time, this virus has reached pandemic status with cases of corona infections reported on all continents. Justified by the medical urgency, governments have prompted extraordinary measures to stop its spreading. Under the phrase “stay home, stay safe”, physical contact must be prevented, people should work from home, but also, businesses are closing down and cities and sometimes countries are in lockdown. These measures aim to protect the lives of many. However, the economic consequences of both the spread of the virus and public health measures cannot be overlooked. In a matter of weeks, large parts of the global economy have experienced a major slow down or effectively a shut down. This viral crisis extends beyond human lives, impacting also the livelihood of many businesses, their entrepreneurs and employees. Economic uncertainties remain high these days. It is unclear to what extent the spread of the virus must be under control before market activities are allowed to resume. It is uncertain as to how long it will take before a vaccine will be available. The duration of current measures is unknown and impossible to calculate ex ante. Additional measures imposed for public health reasons are not yet precluded. The situation directly impacts businesses of all sizes and throughout various sectors. It hits both already troubled and healthy companies. A greater number of businesses, especially those of micro-size, are closed for weeks with no or little revenue. The lockdown also hits larger companies, in particular in sectors connected to leisure and travel or depending on constant supply of goods from or to abroad. At a macro level, a global recession has already been forecast, impacting the economy in the months, year or even years coming. The current shock has the peculiar effect that many companies with a viable and sound business model at the beginning of 2020 are suddenly confronted with imminent insolvency and may be obliged or at least prompted to file for insolvency proceedings. Here, insolvency practitioners and courts face new challenges. Going-concern assessments are burdened with the uncertainty of a global crisis and cause debtors to suffer a piecemeal liquidation. Under current distressed market conditions, there is a significant risk of sales at an under value, restricting the ability of procedures to maximise value for creditors. The filter function of insolvency frameworks, functional in normal market situations, cannot work as designed and produces an unnecessary amount of liquidations as a consequence of the exceptional economic situation caused by the COVID-19 crisis. Temporary adjustments are indicated. Received: 30 March 2020 Accepted: 18 May 2020

中文翻译：

---

客座社论：构建 COVID ‐19 弹性破产框架

在撰写本客座社论时，随着 COVID-19（冠状病毒）病毒的爆发，世界正面临前所未有的事件进程。在短时间内，这种病毒已达到大流行状态，各大洲都报告了冠状病毒感染病例。出于医疗紧迫性，各国政府已采取非常措施来阻止其传播。在“待在家里，保持安全”这句话下，必须防止身体接触，人们应该在家工作，而且企业正在关闭，城市甚至国家有时都处于封锁状态。这些措施旨在保护许多人的生命。然而，病毒传播和公共卫生措施的经济后果不容忽视。在短短几周内，全球经济的大部分地区都经历了重大放缓或实际上关闭。这场病毒式危机超越了人类的生活，也影响了许多企业、企业家和员工的生计。这些天来，经济不确定性仍然很高。目前尚不清楚在允许市场活动恢复之前，病毒的传播必须得到控制到什么程度。目前尚不确定需要多长时间才能获得疫苗。当前措施的持续时间未知，无法事前计算。尚未排除出于公共卫生原因而采取的其他措施。这种情况直接影响各种规模和各个部门的企业。它既打击了已经陷入困境的公司，也打击了健康的公司。更多的企业，尤其是微型企业，关闭了数周，没有收入或收入很少。封锁也打击了大公司，尤其是在与休闲和旅行相关或依赖于来自国外或向国外不断供应商品的部门。在宏观层面，已经预测到全球经济衰退，这将影响未来数月、一年甚至数年的经济。当前的冲击具有特殊的影响，许多在 2020 年初拥有可行和健全的商业模式的公司突然面临迫在眉睫的破产，可能被迫或至少被促使申请破产程序。在这里，破产从业人员和法院面临着新的挑战。持续经营评估承受着全球危机的不确定性，并导致债务人遭受零碎清算。在当前低迷的市场条件下，存在以低于价值的价格出售的重大风险，限制程序为债权人最大化价值的能力。由于 COVID-19 危机造成的特殊经济状况，破产框架的过滤功能在正常市场情况下无法正常工作，并会产生不必要的清算量。指示了临时调整。收稿日期：2020 年 3 月 30 日接受日期：2020 年 5 月 18 日