Glossary — Liquidator
What is a liquidator?
Person appointed to conduct the liquidation of a company. In an amicable liquidation, they are designated by the shareholders (often the former director). In a court-ordered liquidation, they are a judicial administrator appointed by the court. In both cases, their mission is to realise the assets, pay creditors, and close the entity.
What it is
The term liquidator covers two distinct realities in French law.
The amicable liquidator is appointed by the shareholders in general meeting during a conventional liquidation. They are often the former director, sometimes a third party (lawyer, accountant, partial buyer). Their mandate is freely set by the liquidation agreement, within the limits of the Commercial Code.
The court-appointed liquidator is designated by the court when a court-ordered liquidation is opened. They must be a judicial administrator listed on the national roster. They hold extensive powers, exercised under the supervising judge's oversight, and engage their professional liability.
Why it matters
For the digital estate, the distinction is operational. The amicable liquidator acts with intimate knowledge of the structure (they often ran it) but without specialised legal training — hence omissions on GDPR or preservation obligations. The court-appointed liquidator has the training, but discovers the structure and must prioritise. Both cases call for an archive trustee able to step in without prior knowledge of the file.
How Archivum approaches it
Archivum interacts equally with amicable and court-appointed liquidators. The template contract adapts: parties, perimeter, duration, access conditions during liquidation, fate of archives at registry removal. For court-appointed liquidators handling multiple cases, a partnership framework makes it possible to systematise the archiving of companies in proceedings.
In practice
Appointment and remuneration differ by framework. The amicable liquidator is named by a collective decision of the shareholders and their fee is set freely in the liquidation agreement — it may be nil when the former director takes the role. The court-appointed liquidator is designated by the court from the roster of administrators; their remuneration is set by decree and drawn from the realised assets, under the supervising judge's control.
Facing the digital estate, in both cases the liquidator must: identify the live accounts and subscriptions (hosting, domain, SaaS, mailboxes), avoid their abrupt suspension for non-payment, preserve the records needed for the accounts rendering, and organise the fate of the data at closure. This is exactly where an archive trustee steps in: it preserves what must be kept beyond removal from the register, without the liquidator having to keep accounts open indefinitely in the name of a company that no longer exists.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the difference between an amicable and a court-appointed liquidator?
- The amicable liquidator is appointed by the shareholders, often the former director, for a solvent company choosing to close. The court-appointed liquidator is an administrator named by the court when the company is insolvent; their powers are broader and overseen by the supervising judge.
- Can the liquidator access the digital archives?
- Yes, within their mission. Archivum provides supervised, logged access during proceedings: the liquidator consults the records needed to realise assets and close the case, without being able to alter or delete the deposited archives.
- Do you need a liquidator to entrust archives to Archivum?
- No. A company can contract directly, with no collective proceedings. A liquidator only changes the signatories and the contractual frame; the preservation and end-of-period arbitration service itself is unchanged.
- How is a liquidator appointed and paid?
- The amicable liquidator is named by the shareholders and paid as set in the liquidation agreement, sometimes for free when the former director takes the role. The court-appointed liquidator is designated by the court from the roster of administrators; their fee is set by decree and drawn from the realised assets, under the supervising judge's control.