DEBTS THAT MAY SURVIVE
The outcome depends on the type of harm, established fault and court findings. A monetary award is not necessarily a dischargeable debt.
Legal provisions checked on 6 September 2026.
A Criminal Judgment and the Civil Award Serve Different Functions
| Record | What it proves | Extract |
|---|---|---|
| Criminal judgment | Conduct and fault | Mental element |
| Civil award | Recipient and amount | Damage category |
| Enforcement writ and payment records | Recovery and performance | Unpaid balance |
| Bankruptcy register | Claim status | Distributions |
| Final order | Discharge | Court reservations |
Collect both judgments
The criminal judgment may not contain the final civil calculation.
Separate damage categories
Property, injury and non-pecuniary loss follow different rules.
Check fault
It independently matters under Article 213.28(6).
Which claims survive?
Article 213.28(5) of Federal Law No. 127-FZ preserves unpaid claims for harm to life or health and compensation for non-pecuniary harm. For these categories, the rule is not limited to intentional offences.
For property damage, paragraph 6 expressly preserves compensation where the individual acted intentionally or with gross negligence. Read the court’s established facts, not just the Criminal Code article or a short bailiff entry. Ordinary and gross negligence cannot be treated as equivalent without legal assessment.
Paragraph 4 separately provides for denial of discharge where unlawful conduct in creating or performing the obligation is proved, including fraud. The absence of one exception therefore does not itself establish eligibility for discharge.
A criminal fine is not compensation to the victim
A single criminal judgment may impose punishment and determine a damages award. A fine does not become victim compensation, and compensation does not become a fine. Separate amounts by recipient and legal basis and match them to the enforcement documents. Execution of criminal punishment cannot be assessed solely under civil-claim rules.
What to check before completion
Obtain the effective criminal judgment and any separate civil award, enforcement writ, calculation and proof of payments. Filing a civil claim does not itself establish that the entire amount sought has been awarded. Conversely, bankruptcy is not a route to retry an effective recovery judgment.
Disclose the claim, its basis and any pending appeal to the financial manager and court. Reconcile the registered amount with payments inside and outside the procedure. Do not conceal an obligation because other debts may be discharged.
Example: only part of the damage was paid
A court awarded RUB 1 million for intentional property damage. Documented payments total RUB 200,000. With no other changes, the unpaid balance is RUB 800,000; bankruptcy completion alone does not discharge it under Article 213.28(6). Money already received by the victim must be reflected in the calculation rather than recovered twice.
What if the victim did not join the register?
For claims preserved by Article 213.28(5) and (6), failure to file in the register does not automatically extinguish liability. The unpaid claim may be pursued after completion through the applicable procedure. Its basis and amount must still be established: survival is not a substitute for proof.
After completion, review the final order and the decisions relating to the claim. Further recovery, enforcement documents and credit for payments depend on the particular category; do not rely solely on a general statement releasing the debtor from obligations.
Victim Claim Review
Non-pecuniary damages · Bankruptcy of a convicted person
Frequently asked questions
Are damages discharged if the offence was negligent?
Not automatically. Harm to life or health and non-pecuniary harm survive under paragraph 5. For property damage, assess whether negligence was gross and whether another ground for denying discharge applies.
Does admission to the register guarantee discharge?
No. The register governs participation in distributions. Discharge and its exceptions are assessed separately under Article 213.28.
Is bankruptcy pointless if the damages survive?
Not necessarily: other obligations may receive different treatment. First assess the complete debt mix, costs and consequences without promising discharge of the victim’s claim.
Legal basis
Federal Law No. 127-FZ, Article 213.28(3)–(6) (Russian) · Criminal fines in bankruptcy
Need to assess a victim’s claim?
We can review the criminal judgment, civil award and payments, identify survival risks and the issues to raise before the court.
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