Business Law Insolvency Law Committee

In a recently published opinion, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) reversed a district court’s summary judgment in favor of CitiMortgage, Inc. Read more

Debtors Ascena Retail Group, Inc. (“Ascena”) and its 63 affiliates (collectively, “Debtors”) proposed a chapter 11 plan (“Plan”) that contained third-party releases and an exculpation clause. Read more

A bankruptcy court in the Eastern District of Michigan (the Court) ruled that a state court judgment for foreclosure of tax claims and the subsequent sale of the debtor’s residence were not fraudulent transfers under Bankruptcy Code § 548. Read more

In a recent nonprecedential disposition, the Ninth Circuit (the Court) denied a prevailing debtor’s right to attorney’s fees arising from a nondischargeability adversary because the proceeding was not an action “on a contract” under California Civil Code § 1717. Read more

In a ruling that affirmed the confirmation of subchapter V Chapter 11 plan, the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit (the BAP) made two significant rulings: (1) that a profit motive is not required to satisfy the requirement of Bankruptcy Code § 1182(1)(A) that a debtor must be “engaged in commercial or business activities” on the petition date to be eligible for subchapter V; and (2) that the burden is on the debtor to prove subchapter V eligibility. Read more

In a recent published opinion, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) ruled that the defense of in pari delicto is applicable against a bankruptcy trustee pursuing litigation on behalf of the estate, whether the trustee is standing in the shoes of the debtor or in the shoes of a hypothetical lien creditor. Read more

The Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of New York (the “Court”) recently denied confirmation of a Subchapter V plan and dismissed three consolidated Subchapter V cases for cause on motions by the Office for the U.S. Trustee (“UST”), exercising discretion not to convert to Chapter 7. In re MCM Natural Stone, 2022 WL 1074065, 2022 Bankr. LEXIS 987 (Bankr. W.D.N.Y. April 8, 2022) Read more

In Haynie v. Krystal (In re Haynie), 624 B.R. 872 (Bankr. 9th Cir. 2021) (“Haynie”), the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the Ninth Circuit (the “BAP”) held that the Bankruptcy Court correctly ruled that the later of two competing inconsistent “judgments” in the same case between the same parties in state court on the same dispute was entitled to preclusive effect in a nondischargeabilty adversary proceeding. Read more

The California Court of Appeal tackled the perplexing subject of sales and use tax by beginning its opinion acknowledging the complexity of the subject matter: “Albert Einstein reportedly said, ‘The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax.’ Read more

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) recently ruled that a chapter 13 plan may be modified only if a statute, rule or the litigants’ consent provides authority for the modification. Read more