When a German supplier that has been cooperating for many years suddenly "goes missing", the paid goods sink into the sea, and there is no news of the goods - how can companies protect their rights in the face of such cross-border difficulties?
Liaoning Shengheng Law Firm, through the collaboration of its two branches in China and Germany, staged an efficient cross-border legal action for Merit Gain International, ultimately helping it successfully recover its losses in bankruptcy proceedings.
In September 2019, the relevant person in charge of Merit Gain International contacted the Global Legal Development Department of Liaoning Shengheng Law Firm: the company has a long-term cooperation with FIMA Maschinenbau GmbH i. I. from Germany, mainly purchasing equipment such as fans and dryer circulating fans. However, in recent transactions, there has been no news of the goods after payment, and multiple communications have been unsuccessful.
It is reported that Merit Gain International learned through the Sino German Bar Association that the China headquarters of Shengheng Law Firm and its Frankfurt branch in Germany have joint case handling capabilities, and based on this, hopes to provide cross-border legal services through the law firm to solve the dilemma. After receiving the commission, Shengheng General Office immediately launched a cross-border cooperation mechanism and contacted lawyers from the Frankfurt branch to conduct an investigation.
Soon, key information came: FIMA, a German company, has entered bankruptcy proceedings and the deadline for debt declaration is approaching.
This brings the case to a critical juncture: whether it can seize the last window of debt declaration and become the core key to recovering losses.
The Sino German legal team quickly collaborated and analyzed the pros and cons of the two paths for clients: timely completion of debt declaration can provide opportunities for proportionate repayment in bankruptcy liquidation; If attempting to negotiate with the bankruptcy administrator to continue fulfilling the contract, not only is the process complex and costly, but the success rate is also extremely low, and it is more likely to miss the opportunity to file and result in full losses.
Based on the professional analysis of the Shengheng legal team, Merit Gain International decisively chose to declare its debt. In this collaborative case, German lawyers took the lead in preparing application materials that met local legal requirements, while a team of Chinese lawyers assisted in sorting out core evidence such as contracts and payment vouchers. Both parties cooperated efficiently and ultimately completed all application procedures before the deadline.
After nearly three years of continuous follow-up, in August 2022, Merit Gain International successfully received a proportionate repayment of its debt amount as the bankruptcy proceedings of FIMA, a German company, came to an end.  
This cross China Germany rights protection action, with the seamless cooperation of the general branch of Shengheng Law Firm, not only accurately grasped the key nodes of bankruptcy proceedings, but also recovered losses for enterprises at the lowest cost, becoming an efficient and pragmatic solution in the field of cross-border legal services.