For decades, bankruptcy courts have extended the automatic stay through preliminary injunctions halting litigation against a debtor’s nondebtor codefendants. Such relief was relatively routine when the codefendants were the...more
The US Supreme Court has recently issued a pivotal decision that has significant implications across various sectors, including legal, corporate, and public health. The decision settles a significant legal dispute that has...more
The Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P. – holding that the Bankruptcy Code does not authorize the release of third-party claims against non-debtors in a reorganization plan without the...more
Le 27 juin 2024, la Cour suprême des États-Unis a publié une décision très attendue qu’elle a rendue dans l’affaire William K. Harrington, United States Trustee, Region 2, Petitioner v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al. (l’« affaire...more
On June 27, 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States released its highly anticipated decision in William K. Harrington, United States Trustee, Region 2, Petitioner v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al. (Purdue). At issue was...more
In Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P. et al., the U.S. Supreme Court held that nonconsensual releases of third-party claims against nondebtors are not authorized under the Bankruptcy Code, resolving a longstanding circuit...more
On June 27, 2024, in one of its most high-profile bankruptcy decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court decided Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P., et al., No. 23-124, holding that the U.S. Bankruptcy Code does not authorize releases...more
In a landmark decision that will significantly impact future reorganization plans, the Supreme Court categorically held in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P., that bankruptcy courts lack the authority to approve nonconsensual...more
On June 27, the U.S. Supreme Court announced a 5-4 decision rejecting the nonconsensual releases of the Sackler family in the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy case. The split is an interesting alignment of Justices: Gorsuch writing...more
In a landmark 5-4 decision in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma that will significantly reshape corporate bankruptcy practice, the U.S. Supreme Court resolved a circuit split regarding the authority of a bankruptcy court to approve...more
On June 27, 2024, the United States Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P., holding that the Bankruptcy Code does not permit nonconsensual releases of nondebtors. As a...more
As the calendar turns to autumn, the United States Supreme Court (“SCOTUS”) is commencing its new term and preparing to address a monumental issue that will impact chapter 11 law and the mass tort system: the permissibility...more
Taking and sharing pictures and videos is easier than ever. With a cell phone, tablet, or computer, we can connect with others near and far in an instant and highly personal moments can be preserved and shared from the...more
In March 2022, we discussed the decision by the Southern District of New York (the “District Court”) overturning the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York’s (the “Bankruptcy Court”) confirmation of...more
Nonconsensual nondebtor releases have been a key reason businesses facing mass tort claims have filed for bankruptcy. They hope chapter 11 will result in a faster, less expensive resolution of mass tort claims than class...more
On May 30, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (the “Second Circuit” or the “Court”) rendered a much anticipated opinion (the “Opinion”), reversing the order of the United States District Court for...more
As a result of Purdue Pharma’s proposed plan of reorganization, and the ongoing opioid epidemic that continues to grip the nation, the debate over non-consensual third-party releases has gone mainstream despite being a...more
On February 3, 2022, as part of a series of recent decisions addressing third-party releases, Bankruptcy Judge John T. Dorsey of the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (the “Bankruptcy Court”) confirmed the chapter...more
The Ninth Circuit, in Blixseth v. Credit Suisse, 961 F.3d 1074, 1078 (9th Cir. 2020), issued a significant decision on the issue of whether nonconsensual third-party releases are ever permitted in Chapter 11 plans....more
The Ninth Circuit has generally prohibited nonconsensual third-party releases in bankruptcy reorganization plans since at least 1949. See In re Lowenschuss, 67 F.3d 1394, (9th Cir. 1995) (citing Commercial Wholesalers, Inc....more
Except for disastrous fires that sparked the largest bankruptcy filing of the year, liabilities arising from the opioid crisis, the fallout from price-fixing, and corporate restructuring shenanigans, economic, market, and...more
A series of decisions over the past year — on issues such as make-whole premiums, intercreditor agreements, backstops for rights offerings and nonconsensual third-party releases — will likely have a significant impact in 2020...more
Yes, says the Third Circuit. The Third Circuit recently held that the Bankruptcy Court has the authority to confirm a chapter 11 plan which contains nonconsensual, third-party releases when such releases are integral to the...more
Introduction Nonconsensual third-party releases in the Chapter 15 context may be gaining traction following a recent decision by Judge Martin Glenn of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. ...more
In In re Millennium Lab Holdings II, LLC, 2017 BL 354864 (Bankr. D. Del. Oct. 3, 2017), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware ruled that it had the constitutional authority to grant nonconsensual third-party...more