Facts
In the bankruptcy of farmer and merchant Josef Willi in Rossrüti, the second creditors' meeting decided, by a vote of 8 to 4 with 1 abstention, to sell the deceased's real estate, a farm of approximately 10 hectares, to Eugen Häfeli, a former employee and new tenant, for the estimated value of the bankruptcy estate of CHF 137,000.-. Five creditors (Basel banks with substantial claims on bills of exchange) who had voted against or abstained filed an appeal against this decision, requesting its annulment. The cantonal supervisory authority granted this request on 28 November 1960. Häfeli and the bankruptcy estate then appealed this decision to the Federal Tribunal.Considerations
The Federal Tribunal considers that the decisions of the second creditors' meeting concerning the realization of assets are not in principle unappealable, but may be subject to an appeal for illegality, in particular if the meeting has abused its discretionary power by taking a measure manifestly incompatible with the purpose of the bankruptcy proceedings. In this case, the creditors were aware of Häfeli's firm and…