Todd Christenson filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy in November 2010. In February 2011, a federal bankruptcy court in Minnesota discharged Christenson’s debts and, later the same year, closed the case. But almost 15 years...more
It is generally well understood that an order of a U.S. bankruptcy court recognizing a debtor's foreign bankruptcy case as a "main" proceeding under chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code triggers the automatic stay preventing...more
On December 31, a unanimous three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (the Court or the Fifth Circuit) held that the controversial $200 million Serta Simmons Bedding (SSB) uptier financing...more
At a hearing in mid-March, the Delaware bankruptcy court held Camshaft Capital Fund, LP, Camshaft Capital Advisors, LLC, Camshaft Capital Management (collectively, “Camshaft”) and William Cameron Morton, principal of...more
In Matter of Imperial Petroleum Recovery Corp., 84 F.4th 264 (5th Cir. 2023), the Fifth Circuit was asked to address whether 28 U.S.C. § 1961(a) – the federal statute providing for post-judgment interest – applies in...more
Bankruptcy Judge James J. Tancredi appeared to give a chapter 7 debtor one last chance to avoid being incarcerated. In adversary proceedings arising out of the bankruptcy of a thrice-convicted former stockbroker, In re...more
Declaratory judgments under the Uniform Declaratory Judgment Act (UDJA) can be a powerful tool, resolving current (or future) disputes while opening an avenue to claim attorneys’ fees. Once a UDJA claim is filed and the...more
On July 13, 2023, the CFPB and various state attorneys general, along with California’s Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, filed an adversary proceeding against a sales training company for deceptive...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently approved injunctive relief as part of a strategy for settling mass tort claims through the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case of Bestwall LLC, an entity created by...more
This entry is part of Nelson Mullins’s ongoing “Bankruptcy Basics” blog series that is intended to address foundational aspects of bankruptcy for new and non-bankruptcy practitioners and professionals. This entry will discuss...more
In a recent decision in Dillworth v. Mahecha Diaz, Adv. No. 20-1079-SMG, 2022 WL 1123004 (Bankr. S.D. Fla. April 15, 2022), the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida found that a post-confirmation creditors’...more
Subsection (15) of Section 523(a) was added to the Bankruptcy Code in the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1994 to expand the Section 523(a)(5) exception to discharge for marital debts. Section 523(a)(15) provides that an individual...more
A discharge in bankruptcy usually discharges a debtor from the debtor’s liabilities. Section 523 of the Bankruptcy Code, however, sets forth certain exceptions to this policy, including for “any debt . . . for money,...more
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan recently reminded us why Delaware choice-of-law provisions are so popular in limited partnership and other agreements. In an adversary proceeding, Judge David S. Jones held that...more
The recent bankruptcy case of Lee v. Weatherford (In re Weatherford), Adv. Proc. 21-03059 (Bankr. N.D. Tex., January 19, 2022) interprets 11 U.S.C. § 523(a)(6)....more
The foundation of chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code and similar legislation enacted by other countries to govern cross-border bankruptcy cases is "comity" and cooperation among U.S. and foreign courts. The importance of these...more
Bankruptcy is a forum for the insolvent. However, financially healthy businesses and individuals are dragged into bankruptcy court against their will every day. The primary culprit is the adversary complaint filed by a...more
In Highland Capital Mgmt. v. Dondero (In re Highland Capital Mgmt.), Case No. 21-03007-sgj (Bankr. N.D. Tex. 2021), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas held that a debtor could not be compelled to...more
This adversary proceeding in Rennaker v. Davis, Case No. 20-04065 (Bankr. N.D. Tex., Nov. 9, 2021), involves a litany of non-dischargeability allegations – both under 11 U.S.C. §523 and §727. Judge Mark Mullin’s opinion...more
In Hilal K. Homaidan v. Sallie Mae, Inc., Navient Solutions, LLC, Navient Credit Finance Corporation, Case No. 20-1981 (2d Cir. 2021), the Second Circuit affirmed the opinion of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern...more
For creditors dealing with debtors in the shadow of bankruptcy, a common scenario repeats itself. The creditor repossesses collateral, attaches an account, or sets off a bank account, and then the debtor files a...more
In a recent case from the Bankruptcy Court for the District of South Carolina, Defeo v. Winyah Surgical Specialists, P.A., AP No. 21-80011 (In re Defeo, C/N 20-03738) (September 27, 2021), Bankruptcy Judge John E. Waites...more
In this podcast, JAMS neutrals Judge Joan Feeney and Judge Phillip Shefferly share their thoughts on why mediation is a good tool to resolve bankruptcy disputes, provide listeners with a look into their own approaches to...more
In re Shayne Allan Steen and Tracie Melissa Cole, Case No. 20-50042 (Bankr. N.D. Tex, July 7, 2021) deals with a debtor’s attorneys’ fees incurred in defending the debtor in a non-dischargeability adversary proceeding filed...more
In 2018, the liquidating trustee for Venoco, LLC and its affiliated debtors (collectively, the “Debtors”) commenced an action in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware seeking monetary damages from...more