Govt. Claims/Sovereign Immunity

Government to Seek Supreme Court Review of Purdue’s Third-Party, Nondebtor Releases

In a motion to stay the issuance of the mandate, the government has announced that it will be filing a petition for certiorari asking the Supreme Court to review the Second Circuit’s Purdue decision allowing bankruptcy courts to issue releases to nondebtors.

Recent Developments

SCOTUS: Tribal Sovereign Immunity Abrogated Through the Code

Sept 2023

IRS Has No Sovereign Immunity to Bar a Fraudulent Transfer Suit Under Section 544(b)

The circuits are now split 3/1, with the majority finding a waiver of sovereign immunity under Section 544(b)(1) for lawsuits by a trustee based on claims that an actual creditor could not have brought outside of bankruptcy.

Supreme Court: The Bankruptcy Code Waived Tribes’ Sovereign Immunity

The Supreme Court resolved a split of circuits in an opinion that could give support to the notion that arbitration agreements are not enforceable in bankruptcy.

The Case of Lac du Flambeau Band v. Coughlin at the Supreme Court and the Intersection of Bankruptcy and Sovereign Immunity

Second Circuit Reverses, Reinstates Purdue’s Nondebtor, Third-Party Releases

The concurring opinion, which is really a dissent, urges the Supreme Court to grant certiorari and resolve the split of circuits on nondebtor releases.