Trustees Don’t Need a Pecuniary Interest to Have Standing to Appeal, Fifth Circuit Says
Fee allowances aren’t made with the benefit of hindsight, the Fifth Circuit says.
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Montana Consumer Bankruptcy Law Firm Agrees to Pay More than $300,000 in Relief to Consumers and to a Six-Year Practice Ban in Settlement with U.S. Trustee Program
The Department of Justice’s U.S. Trustee Program (USTP) has entered into a settlement with national consumer bankruptcy law firm Deighan Law LLC, previously known as Law Solutions Chicago and doing business as UpRight Law (UpRight), according to a press release. The settlement is set forth in a consent order entered by the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Montana on March 9 and resolves enforcement actions filed by the USTP over allegations of misconduct relating to UpRight’s representation of Montana consumers as debtors or prospective debtors in bankruptcy cases. As stipulated in the settlement, UpRight has paid or will pay more than $300,000 in monetary relief and will be barred from representing bankruptcy clients in Montana for six years. As a result of dozens of USTP actions filed since 2016, UpRight has paid or been ordered to pay almost $900,000 in monetary relief, including returning fees to over 500 impacted consumers and paying court-ordered sanctions, attorney’s fees, and costs. Additionally, bankruptcy courts have imposed practice bans against UpRight in at least four jurisdictions.
Equitable Mootness Doesn’t Violate Due Process, First Circuit Says
Constitutional arguments don’t entitle the creditor to stay relief.
Split Grows on Whether a Subchapter V Debtor Must Be ‘Currently’ Engaged in Business
The owner of defunct businesses was held ineligible to be a small business debtor because he was no longer the owner of an operating business. Being a non-owner executive of an operating business didn’t qualify him.
Second Circuit Ducks a Critical Vendor Appeal
An appeal from a critical vendor order was dismissed as equitably moot.
Circuits Split on Applying Derivative Jurisdiction to a Lack of Personal Jurisdiction
In a removed action, nationwide service under Bankruptcy Rule 7004 can give a district court personal jurisdiction, even though the state court would lack personal jurisdiction.
To Invoke Equitable or Statutory Mootness, the Record Must Be Clear that a Sale Closed
Unsubstantiated statements that a sale closed didn’t persuade a district judge in Dallas to invoke equitable or statutory mootness.
H.R. 1023
To amend title 9 of the United States Code to prohibit predispute arbitration agreements that force arbitration of disputes arising from private education loans, and for other purposes.