§ 3-2. Public notice and claims that lapse if not reported

The Debt Settlement Act (Gjeldsordningsloven)·LOV-1992-07-17-99

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In brief

The text of the law (unofficial translation)

§ 3-2. Invitation to report claims, etc.

Immediately after debt negotiation (gjeldsforhandling) has been opened, this shall be announced by public notice in the electronic announcement publication of the Brønnøysund Register Centre (Brønnøysundregistrene), with an invitation to anyone who has a claim (fordring) against the debtor to report their claim to the enforcement officer (namsfogden) within six weeks after the public notice.
Known creditors (fordringshavere) and any jointly and severally liable co-debtors (solidarisk medforpliktede) are notified of the opening of the debt negotiation by the enforcement officer sending them a copy of the public notice. At the same time, they shall be informed of which claim the debtor has stated that the creditor has. If it is the enforcement officer who has decided to open debt negotiation, the creditors shall at the same time be notified of the right to appeal (klage) against the decision, cf. § 3-1 fourth paragraph. Secured creditors (panthavere) may at the same time be given notification as mentioned in § 4-6 third paragraph.
Claims from financial institutions and claims collected by debt collection agencies that are not already known, cf. the second paragraph, lapse when debt settlement has been established if the claim has not been reported within the deadline under the first paragraph. The lapse has no bearing on the creditors' right to enforce a security right, a right of set-off (motregning) or a right of retention (tilbakeholdsrett). Security in the form of retention of title (eiendomsforbehold) or retention of title security (salgspant) nevertheless lapses unless the right has been registered as required by law in the land register or in a special register of rights.
Claims secured by security in a home that is to be kept during the debt settlement do not lapse to the extent they are secured within the market value (omsetningsverdi) of the home plus ten percent, cf. § 4-8 first paragraph letter a. Claims secured by security in other items that are to be kept during the debt settlement do not lapse to the extent they are secured within the market value of the item, cf. § 4-8 first paragraph letter b.
A lapse in relation to one of several debtors has no effect in relation to the other debtors.
Claims as mentioned in the third paragraph nevertheless do not lapse if the debtor intentionally or with gross negligence failed to disclose the claim.
A claim that has lapsed under the third paragraph may be enforced in full if the debt settlement is later cancelled.
Source: Lovdata — Gjeldsordningsloven (the Debt Settlement Act) § 3-2

What does this mean?

This section applies right after the negotiation has been opened. The opening must immediately be announced by public notice in the electronic announcement publication of the Brønnøysund Register Centre. Everyone who has a claim against the debtor is invited to report the claim to the enforcement officer within six weeks.

Known creditors and any co-debtors (jointly and severally liable co-debtors) receive a copy of the public notice from the enforcement officer. At the same time, they are told which claim the debtor has stated that they have. If the enforcement officer opened the negotiation, the creditors are also told that they can appeal, cf. § 3-1 fourth paragraph. Secured creditors may receive a separate notification under § 4-6 third paragraph, where the enforcement officer can notify the secured creditors of a voluntary sale.

The third paragraph has the most important consequence: claims from financial institutions and debt collection agencies that were not previously known and are not reported within the deadline lapse when debt settlement has been established. The right to take security, to set off or to retain nevertheless remains. Retention of title and retention of title security lapse unless they have been registered in the land register or another register.

The fourth paragraph protects security in a home that is to be kept. Such claims do not lapse to the extent they are covered by the market value of the home plus ten percent. For other items, only the value of the item counts. The reference is to § 4-8, which sets out how such claims are handled in the debt settlement itself.

Three exceptions set limits. A lapse in relation to one debtor does not apply in relation to the others. Nor does the claim lapse if the debtor deliberately or with gross negligence failed to disclose it. And if the debt settlement is later cancelled (opphevet), a lapsed claim can be collected in full. A constructed example: a creditor that is a financial institution does not come forward, but the debtor knew about the claim and kept quiet about it. The claim then remains in place anyway.

Related sections
All sections of the Debt Settlement Act →