Three months to prepare a restructuring plan – under court protection.

Protective shield proceedings (§ 270d InsO) are a special form of preliminary self-administration. The insolvency court gives the company up to three months to prepare an insolvency plan. Management remains in office, while a preliminary custodian supervises the proceedings.

Legally reviewed by Thomas Klöckner, specialist lawyer for insolvency law · Last updated: October 2026

What are the requirements?

The company files for insolvency on the grounds of impending illiquidity or over-indebtedness and at the same time applies for self-administration and for a deadline to submit an insolvency plan. The following must be enclosed:

• the self-administration plan under § 270a(1) InsO – six-month financial plan, concept, status of negotiations, arrangements for meeting the obligations under insolvency law and cost statement,
• the declarations under § 270a(2) InsO, for example on payment arrears and on the disclosure of annual financial statements,
• the certificate under § 270d(1) InsO: it confirms that impending illiquidity or over-indebtedness, but no illiquidity, exists and that the intended restructuring is not obviously futile.

The issuer of the certificate may not be appointed as preliminary custodian (§ 270d(2) InsO).

How do protective shield proceedings work?

• Preparation: Liquidity planning, restructuring concept, self-administration plan and certificate; talks with key creditors and preparation of insolvency benefit pre-financing.
• Order: The court sets the deadline of no more than three months, appoints the preliminary custodian and, on application, orders protection against enforcement.
• Preparing the plan: Management continues to run the business and prepares the insolvency plan.
• Opening and plan: After the deadline expires, the court decides on the opening of proceedings (§ 270d(4) InsO). In the opened proceedings, creditors vote on the insolvency plan; once it has been confirmed, the proceedings are terminated.

When do protective shield proceedings end early?

The court terminates preliminary self-administration, and thus the protective shield proceedings, among other things if the restructuring becomes futile, the company breaches its obligations under insolvency law or the preliminary creditors' committee applies for this (§ 270e InsO).

If illiquidity occurs during the proceedings, the company or the preliminary custodian must notify the court without delay (§ 270d(4) InsO). This does not terminate the protective shield proceedings; they continue until the end of the deadline set by the court.

Protective shield proceedings, self-administration or StaRUG?

Protective shield proceedings are insolvency proceedings with all the restructuring tools of the Insolvency Code. If illiquidity has already occurred, preliminary self-administration may be an option. If the restructuring is to succeed without insolvency proceedings and illiquidity is only impending, the Restructuring plan under StaRUG is an alternative.

How LECON supports you

We prepare the proceedings – from liquidity planning and the self-administration plan to the insolvency plan – and support them until the plan is confirmed. An experienced LECON partner regularly joins the board as an additional managing director or member of the executive board and is responsible for the tasks under insolvency law; the existing management continues to run the operating business.

Frequently asked questions