Business Law Insolvency Law Committee

The United States Supreme Court has held that the sovereign immunity waiver in Section 106(a) of the Bankruptcy Code does not extend to state law claims “nested” within a Section 544(b) claim for relief, depriving bankruptcy trustees of the right to sue the United States under state law to avoid prepetition fraudulent transfers of debtor funds.  Read more

Section 544(b) of the Bankruptcy Code provides that a trustee may avoid a transfer of a debtor’s property interest that is voidable under applicable law by a creditor holding an allowed unsecured claim against the estate.  Read more

In Kirkland v. Rund (In re EPD Inv. Co., LLC), 114 F.4th 1148 (9th Cir. 2024), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the lower district court’s finding that when a jury determines that a debtor operates an entity meeting an objective criteria of a Ponzi scheme, then the presumption of “actual intent” exists.  Read more

The following is a case update written by Hale Andrew Antico, Chief Counsel of Antico Law Firm, analyzing In re Uriostegui (__B.R. __, 2025 WL 1367215 (9th Cir. BAP May 12, 2025), a recent case of interest. Read more

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) in a published opinion held that the enforceability of a registered judgment relied on the viability of the underlying judgment.  If the underlying judgment was vacated, the registered judgment could not be enforced.  SDVF, LLC v. Cozzia USA LLC, ___ F. 4th ___, 2025 WL 911200 (9th Cir. March 26, 2025).  Read more

The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois (the Court) recently granted in part and denied in part a motion to compel arbitration of litigation arising out of a construction dispute brought in a subchapter V chapter 11 case. Read more

In a recent decision, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (the Court) confirmed a chapter 11 plan which included consensual third-party releases which were procured by using opt-out rather than opt-in requirements.  Read more

In a published opinion, The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) held that the logical relationship test which applies to the equitable doctrine of recoupment demands consideration of the equities, including the purpose of the Bankruptcy Code, in each individual case.  Read more

The following is a case summary written by Chase A. Stone regarding the recent Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal’s recent opinion in In re Serta Simmons Bedding, L.L.C., 125 F.4th 555 (5th Cir. 2024), (as revised Jan. 21, 2025 and Feb. 14, 2025), including the discussion of the bankruptcy court’s earlier decision (which was directly appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals). Read more

The following is a case summary written by Kathleen A. Cashman-Kramer regarding the recent decision of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in Munding vs. Masingale, 108 F.4th 1195 (9th Cir. 2024). Read more