Business Law Insolvency Law Committee

Joining the litany of recent cases which address standing in Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) actions, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) ruled that a consumer who received a dunning letter from a debt collector seeking to collect time-barred debt did not experience sufficient concrete injury to have Article III standing to assert the federal claims. Pierre v Midland Credit Management, Inc., 2022 WL 986441 (7th Cir. April 1, 2022). Read more

It was not an April Fool’s joke when on April 1, 2021, the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (“BAP”) affirmed the decision of the Oregon bankruptcy court denying the discharge of debtor Peter Szanto (“Szanto”) under Bankruptcy Code sections 727(a)(2)(B), (4)(A), (4)(D), and (6)(A). Read more

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) recently ruled that an asset purchaser who knew of but ignored a third party’s right of first refusal was not a good-faith purchaser protected by §§ 363(f) and (m) of the Bankruptcy Code. Archer-Daniels-Midland Company v. Country Visions Cooperative, 2022 WL 998984 (7th Cir. April 4, 2022). Read more

In Thakkar v. Good Gateway, LLC, 2022 WL 552743 (Nos. 20-4792 and 20-4800) (N.D. Ga. January 12, 2022) (“Thakkar”), the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia (the “Court”) rule that because he did not have a direct pecuniary interest in the matter, an LLC member of the debtors lacked standing to appeal the Bankruptcy Court’s ruling denying the debtors’ motions against a creditor for sanctions for allegedly violating the automatic stay and a mediation order in their bankruptcy cases. Read more

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals held that a bankruptcy court’s order denying a motion for relief from the automatic stay “without prejudice” conclusively resolved the requested relief and therefore was an appealable final order under 28 U.S.C. section 158(a). See In re Mayer (9th Cir. 2022) 2022 WL 679085. Read more

On June 21, 2022, President Joseph Biden signed S.3823 into law. The law, which is effective immediately, makes the following material changes to the Bankruptcy Code. Read more

Although it recognized that the doctrine of equitable estoppel could be used to defeat an amendment to a bankruptcy exemption under California law, the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit (the BAP) ruled in a recent case that the trustee had not proved all the necessary elements and reversed a bankruptcy court ruling that had disallowed the amendment. Guevarra v Whatley (In re Guevarra), 2022 WL 884595 (9th Cir. BAP 3/25/22). Read more

In Springfield Hospital, Inc. v. Guzman, ___F.4th ___, 2022 WL 790689 (No. 20-30902) (2d Cir. March 16, 2022) (“Guzman”), in a fifty-three page opinion, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (the “Court”) held that the Small Business Administration can deny a Paycheck Protection Program loan to a debtor simply because the debtor is in bankruptcy, concluding that Bankruptcy Code § 525(a)’s prohibition against governme Read more

The following is a case update written by Robert G. Harris (rob@bindermalter.com), a partner in the Silicon Valley bankruptcy boutique, Binder & Malter, LLP, analyzing a recent decision of interest. Read more

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) allowed former chapter 7 debtors to deduct from their taxes the interest credited as paid to the lender from the proceeds of a short sale, overruling a determination by the Internal Revenue Service that they were not entitled to the interest deduction. Read more