US courts are issuing guidelines to ensure litigators disclose any use of generative AI in legal proceedings. By now, most of us have heard a story about the misuse of generative AI in the practice of law: the attorney...more
Established in 2015 as a trusted neutral forum to meet increasing demand for effective transnational dispute resolution, the Singapore International Commercial Court (the “SICC”) is a division of the General Division of the...more
Even after a bankruptcy court has confirmed a chapter 11 plan, changed circumstances prior to the plan's implementation and "substantial consummation" might make alterations to the plan necessary. If a proposed change is...more
Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9006(b) provides that, generally, “when an act is required to be done at or within a specified period by these rules or by a notice given thereunder or by order of court, the court for...more
Since the first Johnson & Johnson talc bankruptcy was filed in 2021, Judge Michael Kaplan has faced countless disagreements in the US Bankruptcy Court. These range from discovery fights, disputes over administration of tens...more
The legal wrangling over Purdue Pharma, L.P.’s bankruptcy plan has been splashed over the news. The plan would see Purdue Pharma become a non-profit organization, and the Sackler family that had owned the company would...more
Section 303(i) of the Bankruptcy Code authorizes the court to award the debtor sanctions on account of an improper filing of an involuntary petition against it. But can a non-debtor third-party obtain such a relief? Yes, says...more
In a recent opinion from the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of California, Judge Christopher Klein sanctioned a decedent’s estate’s representative and its lawyer for frivolously and repeatedly...more
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina recently rejected a debtor’s argument that the 2017 Amendments to Rules 3012 and 3015 of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure permitted her to avoid a...more
Most bankruptcy practitioners are familiar with the intentionally broad scope of discovery under Bankruptcy Rule 2004. However, there are limits to this discovery and the “pending proceeding” rule can be a useful tool to...more
A few changes to the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure became effective on December 1, 2021. The most noteworthy change relates to Bankruptcy Rule 9036, which addresses notice and service by electronic transmission....more
The First Circuit was required to decide whether the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure (the “Bankruptcy Rules”) or the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (the “Civil Rules”) govern a case that comes within the federal...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit recently handed down an important opinion addressing the doctrine of equitable mootness in bankruptcy appeals. FishDish, LLP v. VeroBlue Farms USA, Inc., Nos. 19-3413, -3487...more
There is more than one way that a creditor of a bankrupt entity (or debtor) can directly prosecute its claims in bankruptcy. If the creditor is involved in prepetition litigation with the debtor, it could request relief from...more
At stake in a recent decision by the First Circuit was this: when a bankruptcy matter is before a federal district court based on non-core, “related to” jurisdiction, should the court apply the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy...more
Chapter 11 petitions usually are accompanied by a panoply of first day motions. A newly-minted chapter 11 debtor needs to be able to - among other things - pay its employees and continue employee benefits in the ordinary...more
Recently, in In re Dura Automotive Systems, No. 19-12378 (Bankr. D. Del. June 9, 2020), the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware held that granting the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors (the Committee)...more
Creditors risk losing important rights in bankruptcy cases if deadlines are not met. Unfortunately, sometimes the existence or relevance of a deadline is not obvious to a creditor. Indeed, bankruptcy notices can be...more
Generally, a notice of appeal of a bankruptcy-court order must be filed “within 14 days after entry of the judgment, order, or decree being appealed.” Fed. R. Bankr. P. 8002(a)(1). But what if a litigant’s motion for...more
The Bottom Line - The United States Supreme Court recently issued a unanimous decision in Ritzen Group, Inc. v. Jackson Masonry, LLC, No. 19-938 589 U.S. __ (2020), which held that a bankruptcy court’s unreserved denial...more
On January 14, 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States issued a decision resolving the question of whether a motion for relief from the automatic stay constitutes a discrete dispute within the bankruptcy that creates a...more
An appeal from a bankruptcy court’s final judgment must be filed within 14 days of when an appealable order is entered on the docket. Parties should not delay past the 14 days even if, for instance, the bankruptcy court must...more
The consequences of an order or judgement being final or interlocutory are enormous. An order from an interlocutory order requires leave since these orders are not appealable as of right. In addition, a failure to obtain...more
When a debtor files for bankruptcy, the Bankruptcy Code provides for an automatic stay of almost all proceedings to recover property from the debtor. See 11 U.S.C. § 362(a). A party in interest can seek an order exempting...more
In a unanimous opinion released last week, the Supreme Court provided guidance as to how to determine the finality of an order in a bankruptcy case for purposes of an appeal under 28 U.S.C. § 158(a). The Court held that the...more