(1) Where a legal entity becomes illiquid or overindebted, the members of the representative body or the liquidators are required without delay to file a request for the opening of proceedings. The request is to be filed at the latest three weeks after the commencement of insolvency and six weeks after the commencement of overindebtedness. The same applies to the representative bodies of the partners authorised to represent the company or the liquidators in the case of a company without legal personality where none of the general partners is a natural person; this does not apply if one of the general partners is another company in which a general partner is a natural person.
(2) In the case of a company within the meaning of subsection (1) sentence 3, subsection (1) applies analogously if the representative bodies of the partners authorised to represent the company are, in turn, companies in which none of the general partners is a natural person, or the grouping of companies continues in this way.
(3) Where a private limited company lacks a management, each partner, in the case of lack of management of a public limited company or a cooperative each member of the supervisory board, is also obliged to file a request, unless that person is not aware of the insolvency or overindebtedness or the lack of management.
(4) Whoever, contrary to subsection (1) sentence 1 and 2, also in conjunction with sentence 3 or subsection (2) or subsection (3),
1. does not file a request for the opening of proceedings or does not do so in good time or
2. does not correctly file a request
is punished with imprisonment for no more than three years or a fine.
(5) If the offender in the cases referred to in subsection (4) acts negligently, the punishment is imprisonment for no more than one year or a fine.
(6) In the case referred to in subsection (4) no. 2, also in conjunction with subsection (5), the act is punishable only if the request to open proceedings has been finally rejected as inadmissible.
(7) Subsections (1) to (6) do not apply to associations and foundations to which section 42 (2) of the Civil Code (Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch) applies.