Social and Legal Aspects of the Professional Status of Trustees in Bankruptcy in the Context of the Reform of the Institution of Bankruptcy in the Russian Federation

Introduction. The relevance of the research consists in expanding theoretical developments in the field of economic sociology, particularly, in prognosticating changes in the social and legal aspects of the professional status of trustees in bankruptcy in the context of the State Duma's consideration of the draft law No. 1172553-7 “On Amendments to the Federal Law ‘On Insolvency (Bankruptcy)’ and to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation”. Based on the results of the conducted research, the article identifies potential changes in the socio-professional status of a trustee in bankruptcy in the event the new law is adopted and enacted. Materials and Methods. The information base of the study included a secondary analysis of the array of statistical data on the results of insolvency proceedings in 2016-2020 in the Russian Federation (including the regional context), as well as a secondary analysis of the latest domestic legal framework governing the activities of the institution of bankruptcy. Results. The factors in the liquidation orientation of the institution of insolvency in the Russian Federation, as well as the trends in the increase in duration of insolvency proceedings with a minimum number of satisfied creditor claims have been identified; counterarguments have been presented regarding the alleged low efficiency of trustees in bankruptcy; arguments concerning the annual increase in the workload of trustees in bankruptcy have been statistically supported. A critical analysis of the draft law has been performed; the risks of decline in wages of trustees in bankruptcy in the event of adoption of the proposed changes in the structure of fixed and percentage-based remuneration have been identified. Legal gaps in the proposed point-rating system for the approval of trustees in bankruptcy have been identified. Discussion and Conclusion. The performed analysis made it possible to reveal the main trends in the results of insolvency proceedings, as well as to identify a number of critical shortcomings of the draft law No. 1172553-7 under consideration (change in the structure of remuneration for trustees in bankruptcy, as well as introduction of a rating system for evaluating their activities). The results of the study may be useful to scientists specializing in economics and law, as well as to experts in the field of insolvency.