Abstract

Vietnam’s 2025 Law on Rehabilitation and Bankruptcy does not determine the law applicable to the commencement, conduct, and effects of cross-border insolvency proceedings. A clear distinction among jurisdiction, recognition of insolvency proceedings, and applicable law supports lex fori concursus as the principal choice-of-law rule, while rights established prior to the commencement of insolvency proceedings should be addressed through a two-step analysis. Exceptions concerning security rights, set-off, payment and settlement systems, employment contracts, and pending proceedings should be defined according to their specific functions rather than left to open-ended judicial discretion.

Keywords: Applicable law, cross-border insolvency, lex fori concursus, recognition of insolvency proceedings, security rights.