December 02, 2019
First Circuit Explains How to Avoid Liability for an Underfunded Pension Plan
To avoid liability for an underfunded pension plan, the First Circuit describes a structure for investors to employ when buying a sick company
1st CircuitNovember 27, 2019
Support for Indigent Extended Family Cut Off in Chapter 13, but Life Insurance Wasn’t
Chapter 13 forces judges to micromanage the lives of debtors.
4th Circuit, Virginia, Virginia Eastern DistrictNovember 26, 2019
Rifle Held Exempt as Household Goods in Georgia but Not in Connecticut
Claiming a firearm is owned for defense of the household raises the odds that the gun will be exempt as household goods.
2nd Circuit, ConnecticutNovember 25, 2019
Medical Bills Are Held to Be Consumer Debts, Invoking the Means Test
Someone forced into bankruptcy on account of medical bills will also be forced into chapter 13.
7th Circuit, Illinois, Illinois Central DistrictNovember 22, 2019
Committee Members Must Disclose the True Extent of Their Claims, Judge Says
The claim of a member of a creditors’ committee was subordinated because she evaded disclosure that her claims would consume the entire estate.
9th Circuit, California, California Central DistrictNovember 21, 2019
Receivership Court May (Sometimes) Bar the Filing of an Involuntary Bankruptcy
Court weighs the relative advantages of receivership versus bankruptcy in deciding whether to bar the filing of an involuntary bankruptcy.
7th Circuit, Illinois, Illinois Northern DistrictNovember 20, 2019
A Fugitive’s Civil Bankruptcy Appeal Can Be Dismissed, Sometimes
The ‘fugitive disentitlement doctrine’ does not allow a federal court to dismiss an appeal because of a fugitive’s contempt of a state court order, the First Circuit rules.
1st CircuitNovember 19, 2019
Student Loans Discharged in Part, Even Though Debtor Wasn’t Destitute
A bankruptcy judge can afford little relief from student loans, even for sympathetic debtors who try hard to repay their debts.
9th Circuit, OregonNovember 18, 2019
Supreme Court Grapples with ‘Finality’ in Ritzen v. Jackson Masonry
Justices may narrow Bullard by drawing back from the requirement that finality requires a change in the status quo.
Supreme CourtNovember 15, 2019
First Circuit Starkly Holds that Tuition for an Adult Child Is a Fraudulent Transfer
The case in the appeals court apparently did not involve a student account structured to prevent the college from being the initial recipient of a fraudulent transfer.
1st Circuit