Professional Compensation/Fees

Creditor Hit with $826,000 in Sanctions for Filing a Meritless Proof of Claim

Refusing to withdraw a meritless claim with prejudice contributed to the decision by Judge Jernigan to impose high-six-figure sanctions.

Reforming Attorneys’ Fees in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy: Lessons from Proposed Chapter 10 Bankruptcy

Supreme Court Won’t Decide Whether ‘13’ Trustees Are Paid When Plans Aren’t Confirmed

Any day now, the Second Circuit could create a split of circuits importuning the Supreme Court to decide whether chapter 13 trustees are paid fees even if no plan is confirmed.

Shareholder Standing Scrutinized in a Case that Presages Truck Insurance

Can Section 327(c) be unconstitutional as applied if it deprives shareholders of standing when the estate might be solvent?

Standing Trustees Should Be Paid in Unconfirmed Cases

May 2024

Bankruptcy Judge Chops a Fully Secured Lender’s Fee Request by 60%

A fully secured lender’s lawyer doesn’t have a ‘blank check’ to overwork a case, Bankruptcy Judge Kimberley Tyson says.

Congress Must Act to Permit Chapter 7 Debtors to Pay Counsel After Filing

Bifurcated fee arrangements are cumbersome, temporary fixes for a problem that the Supreme Court created in Lamie.

Courts May Create Trust Accounts to Pay Sub V Trustees and Other Admin Expenses

The court can’t require a debtor to give a ‘retainer’ to a Subchapter V trustee, Judge Pearson says.

Reference Withdrawal on Houston Ethics Probe Pits UST Against Bankruptcy Judge

Despite consent by the firm to withdraw the reference of motions to disgorge its fees, a bankruptcy judge in Houston recommended against withdrawal to district court and against transfer to another district.