Facts
This decision concerns a forced realization procedure of a property. The debt collection office had initially estimated that the real estate for sale was not subject to the Federal Act on Rural Land Law (RLRA). Consequently, the deposited terms of sale did not mention this law. A few days before the auction, the office realized that the property was in fact subject to the RLRA and informed the parties of this fact. During the auction, the office announced to the public that the acquisition of the property required authorization from the competent authorities under Art. 67 RLRA.Considerations
The Federal Tribunal considers that the initial omission of the mention of the RLRA in the terms of sale constitutes a serious gap in the preparation of the auction. In accordance with Art. 134 para. 1 DEBA and Art. 52 FSREO, the terms of sale must be amended and supplemented to include this information, and then redeposited and published. The debt collection office should have postponed the auction to make this correction.
However, the Federal Tribunal considers that this procedural defect does not render the auction null and void. It is a violation of a provision enacted in the interest of the debtor being pursued and of persons having rights over the object put up for sale, but not of a…