Recent Developments Affecting Insolvency and Commercial and Consumer Finance in California and the Ninth Circuit

Judge Meredith Jury

Hon. Meredith Jury (Ret.) served as a Bankruptcy Judge for the Central District of California from 1997 to June 2018. She was simultaneously a member of the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit from 2007-2017, serving as chief from 2015-17. Prior to taking the bench her practice was primarily complex civil litigation, for her entire career at Best Best & Krieger in Riverside, Since retirement she does pro bono bankruptcy mediations and consumer appellate work, represents victims of elder abuse for Inland Counties Legal Services, and leads the ad hoc group of BLS authors who write the Westlaw Commercial Finance Newsletter.

This article briefly summarizes key features of decisions affecting insolvency and commercial and consumer finance rendered by state and federal courts primarily within the Ninth Circuit. It also includes a few decisions by other federal courts and state supreme courts when, in the author’s opinion, these cases may have persuasive value in California or the Ninth Circuit. The article provides the author’s editorial comments related to these decisions.¹

I. TRUSTEE POWERS, AVOIDANCE CASES, AND BANKRUPTCY