Govt. Claims/Sovereign Immunity

Delaware District Court Upholds Discharge of Environmental Fines in Chapter 11

Environmental fines are discharged in chapter 11 because they do not result from pecuniary loss.

Supreme Court Explains Sovereign Immunity in Bankruptcy Cases

The Supreme Court uses a copyright case to explain why the bankruptcy exception to states’ sovereign immunity is unique under the Constitution.

June 2020

Fifth Circuit Rules that the Penalty under the ACA Isn’t a Priority Tax Claim

The exaction for failure to purchase health insurance isn’t an excise tax ‘on a transaction’ under Section 507(a)(8)(E)(i).

To Avoid U.S. Trustee Fees, Court Liberally Allows Closing a Case After Confirmation

Pending adversary proceedings don’t preclude a finding that the chapter 11 case has been ‘fully administered,’ thus allowing entry of a final decree and cutting off further fees owing to the U.S. Trustee Program.

Fifth Circuit Opinion Shows How Not to Represent a Creditor at Confirmation

Sovereign immunity won’t prevent the bankruptcy court from extinguishing a state’s easement over a debtor’s property.

Supreme Court Uses a Bankruptcy Case to Limit the Use of Federal Common Law

High court rules that federal courts may make federal common law only to protect ‘uniquely’ federal interests.