Business Law Insolvency Law Committee

In Medley, the United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit (“BAP”) affirmed the bankruptcy court’s decision that a factoring agreement created a loan in favor of Precision secured by the debtor’s real estate sales commissions, and that Precision was not a “factor” that owned the debtor’s right to receive the commission. Read more

The Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (“BAP”) affirmed a non-dischargeable judgment where the creditor did not receive notice of the bankruptcy in time to file a proof of claim in a chapter 7 asset case. Read more

In a split decision, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) ruled that the bankruptcy court had related to jurisdiction to issue a preliminary injunction which prohibited asbestos claimants from pursuing non-bankruptcy court litigation against a non-debtor affiliate of the debtor.  Read more

In Coinbase, Inc. v. Bielski, 143 S. Ct. 1915 (2023) (“Coinbase”), the United States Supreme Court (the “Supreme Court”) reversed the rulings of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (the “Ninth Circuit”) and District Court, holding that an interlocutory appeal of a ruling denying a motion for arbitration under § 16 of the Federal Arbitration Act (the “FAA”) stays the entire underlying litigation rather than being subject to the traditional federal discretionary stay analysis for appeals.  Read more

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals (the Court) reversed a district court decision which dismissed for lack of standing a purported class action lawsuit based on a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Read more

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (Ninth Circuit) recently held that post-petition, pre-conversion appreciation in value of an asset belongs to the chapter 7 bankruptcy estate, not the debtors, following conversion from chapter 13 in good fait Read more

In Tahican, the Nevada Supreme Court held that a fraudulent transfer claim seeking avoidance of a transfer of real property affects title or possession of real property under NRS 14.010(1) and supports a lis pendens, regardless of whether the plaintiff claims title or possession of the property. Read more

The Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the Ninth Circuit (the BAP) published a recent opinion to confirm that the discharge injunction does not protect a debtor’s alter egos.   Read more

The United States Supreme Court recently ruled that a Minnesota county’s retention of excess proceeds from a tax sale of a taxpayer’s home was a taking without just compensation, in violation of the Takings Clause in the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution.  Read more

In In re Purdue Pharma L.P., 633 B.R. 53 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. 2021) (Purdue 1), United States Bankruptcy Judge Robert D. Drain approved the nonconsensual third-party releases in the joint chapter 11 plan (the “Plan”) of debtors Purdue Pharma L.P. (“Purdue”), Purdue Pharma Inc. Read more