A debtor may appeal an award order

Article 435 of the Bulgarian Code of Civil Procedure does not give a general right of appeal against an enforcement officer’s acts. Each person may challenge only the specific acts for which the provision gives them a right of appeal. Under Article 435(3), the debtor may appeal an award order if bidding at the public sale was not properly conducted or if the property was not awarded at the highest price offered. A mortgagor has the same rights, but only in relation to the order awarding the property they mortgaged.

Point 8 of Interpretative Judgment No. 2/2013 of 26.06.2015 of the Supreme Court of Cassation explains which acts of the court and the parties form part of bidding. Service of the invitation to pay voluntarily, valuation of the property and publication of the sale notice are preparatory steps and do not form part of bidding. They therefore fall outside the scope of review on appeal against the award order. In its operative ruling, the Court expressly included acts of the court and bidders relating to sealed bids submitted throughout the period allowed, acts of parties entitled to exercise a right of purchase, and acts of the enforcement officer and bidders during open bidding in fixed increments. Where a debtor appeals an award order on the ground that bidding was not properly conducted, the court examines whether those steps were duly performed.

This article is not a legal opinion or advice on a particular situation or person. The author makes no claim to cover appeals against enforcement officers’ acts exhaustively. For legal assistance in a similar case, consult a civil lawyer specialising in enforcement proceedings.