Business Law Insolvency Law Committee

In Fancher, the bankruptcy court held unpaid music royalties nondischargeable under Bankruptcy Code § 523(a)(2) based on fraudulent accounting omissions but held that no fiduciary duty existed under § 523(a)(4) due to lack of entrustment to the manager, as a nonowner. Read more

The following is a profile of the Honorable Magdalena Reyes Bordeaux, the latest in a series of profiles of Ninth Circuit bankruptcy judges.  Judge Reyes Bordeaux and members of the Insolvency Law Committee and Business Law Section Executive Committee met at the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and United States Courthouse and discussed her personal and professional background, observations from the bench, and other issues of interest. Read more

We are please to share the announcement that the Hon. Judge Scott C. Clarkson has been appointed as Guest Editor of the 2026 Bankruptcy Law Edition of the Ninth Judicial Circuit Historical Society’s Western Legal History.   Read more

Does the receivership of a debtor extinguish an in pari delicto defense to the debtor’s claims if the debtor subsequently files bankruptcy? How can judgment-preservation insurance (JPI) help my client? Read more

The following is a case update written by Hale Andrew Antico, Chief Counsel of Antico Law Firm, analyzing In re Barrett, 2025 WL 1783558, 2025 Bankr LEXIS 1534 (BAP 9th Cir. Jun 27, 2025), a recent case of interest. Read more

The Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel held that neither sovereign immunity nor the Younger abstention doctrine constrain bankruptcy courts from enjoining state governmental disciplinary proceedings where the debtor asserts discrimination under 11 U.S.C. section 525(a).  Read more

The following is a case update written by Hale Andrew Antico, Chief Counsel of Antico Law Firm, analyzing Spikes v. Quality Loan Service Corp. (In re Spikes), 662 B.R. 704 (Bankr. E.D. Cal. 2024). Read more

In Lujan Claimants v. Liberty Mutual Ins. Co. (In re Boy Scouts of American), ___ F.3d ___ (3rd Cir. May 13, 2025) (“BSA”), the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (the “Third Circuit”) affirmed the United States District Court’s affirmation of the Bankruptcy Court’s confirmation of the reorganization plan of the debtors that provided for, among other things, unconsented releases of third parties by certain creditors notwithstanding the Supreme Court’s recent intervening prohibition of such releases in Purdue Pharma L.P., 603 U.S. 204 (2024) (“Purdue”).  Read more

The Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina (the Court) recently ruled that a chapter 7 trustee could use Bankruptcy Code §§ 548 and 550 to recover from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) taxes which had been paid on behalf of the Debtor’s principal with property of the estate.  Read more

Affirming the bankruptcy court and the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (the BAP), the Ninth Circuit (the Circuit Court) recently decided two significant issues: (1) that the long-standing holding of In re Scovis, 249 F. 3d 975, 983 (9th Cir. 2001) - that normally the eligibility of a chapter 13 debtor is determined by the original schedules if filed in good faith - remains the prevailing standard; and (2) that under 11 U.S.C.§ 1322(c)(2), if the last payment on debt secured solely by the principal residence is due before the end of the plan term, the plan may modify the secured portion based on the property value and pay that portion through the plan. In other words, that undersecured debt may be crammed down in the chapter 13 plan. Read more