Appenzeller, Dorota2013-03-182013-03-181998Ruch Prawniczy, Ekonomiczny i Socjologiczny 60, 1998, z. 3-4, s. 333-3500035-9629http://hdl.handle.net/10593/5487In centrally planned economy the efficiency of economic entities did not play any significant role. For this reason the bankruptcy phenomenon has not been known in Poland till 1990. The economic transformation, started in 1989, has caused a rapid growth of bankruptcies among the state-owned as well as privately owned enterprises. Although the bankruptcy has become an integral and natural part of market mechanisms in Poland, the analysis of economic aspects of this phenomenon in still difficult, because of poor quality and unavailability o f microeconomic data. The paper presents some general features of bankruptcy process in Poland in the years 1990 -1997. Furthermore the micro- and macroeconomic causes of business failure are identified. The main theoretical theses are illustrated with the results of an empirical analysis based on the data for Polish failed companies.plArtykuł