May 22, 2025
Two Courts Hold: Injunctions Are Ok to Protect Nondebtors for the Life of a Plan
Judge Meredith Grabill of New Orleans agreed with New York’s Judge Mastando that a Subchapter V plan can enjoin lawsuits against nondebtors for the life of a three-year plan.
5th Circuit, Louisiana, Louisiana Eastern DistrictMay 21, 2025
Segal v. Rochelle May Remain Good Law Only in Limited Circumstances
The elaborate definition of ‘estate property’ in Section 541(a) may have superseded the 1966 ‘sufficiently rooted’ analysis in Segal.
11th Circuit, Georgia, Georgia Southern DistrictMay 20, 2025
The ‘Dissent’ in Boy Scouts Favored Using Equitable Mootness to Uphold Nondebtor Releases
The circuit courts are diverging on the utility of equitable mootness to avoid reversing confirmation of chapter 11 plans.
3rd CircuitMay 19, 2025
As to Appealing Insurers, the Boy Scouts Plan Was Not Equitably Moot
Holding $1.4 billion in escrow did not preclude invocation of equitable mootness, Third Circuit majority says.
3rd CircuitMay 16, 2025
Third Circuit Upholds Boy Scouts’ Nonconsensual Releases, Purdue Notwithstanding
The Third Circuit majority upheld nondebtor, nonconsensual releases because they were part of a sale, making the appeal statutorily moot under Section 363(m).
3rd CircuitMay 15, 2025
Third Circuit Holds: Magistrate Judges May Issue Final Orders on Bankruptcy Appeals
The Third Circuit splits from Seventh and Tenth Circuit opinions dating from 1987 and 1990.
3rd CircuitMay 14, 2025
No Circuit Split: 4 Circuits Say No ‘13’ Trustee Fees if Dismissal Precedes Confirmation
Although lower courts have disagreed, the Second Circuit joined three other circuits in holding that a standing trustee may not retain the percentage fee when chapter 13 cases are dismissed before confirmation. Consequently, ‘13’ debtors with confirmed plans pay standing trustees’ fees.
2nd CircuitMay 13, 2025
A Chapter 11 Debtor May Sometimes Prosecute an Appeal After Conversion to Chapter 7
After conversion, the debtor was entitled to prosecute an appeal at the debtor’s expense when the appeal involved the debtor’s personal liability.
10th Circuit, New MexicoMay 12, 2025
The ‘Domestic Violence’ Stay Exception Applies to Sexual Violence Decades Earlier
Bankruptcy Judge Robert Mark held that the Section 362(b)(2)(A)(v) exception to the automatic stay covers more than imminent or ongoing sexual abuse.
11th Circuit, Florida, Florida Southern DistrictMay 09, 2025
In ‘13,’ a Creditor Wanted Debtors’ Counsels’ Fees to Come Last, Not First
Chicago’s Bankruptcy Judge Donald Cassling nixed an idea that would have made chapter 13 unpalatable for debtors’ counsel.
7th Circuit, Illinois, Illinois Northern District