Using detailed data on the conduct of proceedings from the Ministry of Justice, this paper presents new evidence on the functioning of bankruptcy and joint composition with creditors in Italy. Regarding bankruptcies, we study the outcome and the duration of the proceedings and their phases, as well as the use of specific rules. For joint compositions with creditors, in addition to duration, outcomes and goals, we analyse the effects of the 2012, 2013, 2015 reforms.
About 44 per cent of bankruptcies (35 per cent in the North of Italy, 55 in the South) are closed without any distributions. Proceedings last more than seven years. The longest phase is the liquidation of assets. Only 20 per cent of composition plans are approved: of these, nearly two thirds are for liquidation purposes and one fifth ends in bankruptcy. Following the 2012 reform, the number of approved plans increased; the use of the procedure declined after the 2013 and 2015 reforms.
