June 12, 2019

San Francisco Judge Slaps Down FERC on Rejection of Power Purchase Agreements

Judge Montali accuses FERC of a power grab to take the bankruptcy court’s right to rule on the rejection of executory contracts.

9th Circuit, California, California Northern District

June 11, 2019

Contractor’s Inchoate Lien Defense Defeats a Preference, Most Courts Hold

Fairness and economic realities persuade Judge Jernigan to insulate a contractor from a preference claim.

5th Circuit, Texas, Texas Northern District

June 07, 2019

Earmarking Seems to Be a Dead Letter in the Tenth Circuit

BAP says the Tenth Circuit adopts legal fictions to create preferences.

10th Circuit

June 06, 2019

Electric Utility’s Customers Denied Official Committee Status in Chapter 11

Are utility customers entitled to an official committee because they will fund the reorganization plan? Judge Montali says ‘no.’

9th Circuit, California, California Northern District

June 04, 2019

Fifth Circuit Muses on the Split over Pleading Standards for Fraudulent Schemes

Fifth Circuit generally holds that heightened pleading standards in Rule 9(b) do not apply to claims that don’t rely on fraudulent activity, even though the overall scheme may be fraudulent.

5th Circuit

June 03, 2019

Supreme Court Rejects Strict Liability for Discharge Violations

‘No objectively reasonable basis’ is the high court standard to find civil contempt for violating the discharge injunction.

Supreme Court

May 31, 2019

One Preference Won’t Prevent Another from Being a Preference

A joint check agreement signed in the preference window is a preference, two Virginia judges say.

4th Circuit, Virginia, Virginia Eastern District

May 28, 2019

Survivor in a Merger Can’t Sue for a Preference Made by a Dissolved Entity

Plain language of Section 547 defeated what could have been an easily avoided preference.

4th Circuit, North Carolina, North Carolina Eastern District

May 24, 2019

Sixth Circuit Muses on Whether ‘Prudential Standing’ Applies in Bankruptcy

New judge on the Sixth Circuit raises a host of questions about the requisites of standing in bankruptcy court.

6th Circuit

May 23, 2019

Reconstructed Time Records Are Ok in a POC for Pre-Filing Attorneys’ Fees

Rule 3001 doesn’t require time records in a mortgage lender’s proof of claim, Judge Loyd says.

10th Circuit, Oklahoma, Oklahoma Western District