Reducing the rights of creditors in the context of restructuring proceedings for enterprises."

The research starts from the remark that in recent years the focus in Insolvency law has shifted from the liquidation and division of the assets of a debtor to the reorganization of the debtors business. In addition, this tendency to reorganize is not limited to private enterprises butcan also be observed in financial institutions and states. 
A mutual characteristic of reorganization procedures is their deviation from the principles applicable in a liquidation procedure. In order to  maintain the continuity of the business, it is allowed to reduce the rights of creditors and even to treat creditors differently. As a consequence, the right to property and the constitutional principle of equal treatment may be impaired. This causes tensions between the interestsof the debtor and those of the creditors in reorganization procedures.
The aim of the research is to find out whether a balance of interest is obtained in reorganization procedures. The origin of  reorganization procedures will be examined first. Then the manner in which rights of creditors can be reduced in such procedures will be explored in the Belgian and in foreign legal systems, as well as on a European level.