Eleventh Circuit Says Section 363(m) Even Moots Appeals Not Properly Authorized
In a concurrence, Circuit Judge Jordan questions whether rollups are permitted under Eleventh Circuit authority.
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Priest Lacked Standing to Raise a Claim Objection to Clear His Name of Sexual Abuse
Standing has three components: statutory standing, constitutional standing and prudential standing, Judge Thuma explains.
Supreme Court Update: Equitable Mootness Not Ready for Prime Time
An arbitration case to be argued in November may inform bankruptcy courts whether they must enforce arbitration agreements.
A Seemingly Final Order in a Larger Contested Matter Isn’t Final, Ninth Circuit BAP Says
Bankruptcy Judge Christopher Klein explains appellate jurisdiction, finality, cumulative finality and mislabeled motions for reconsideration.
On an ‘Involuntary,’ Denial of Summary Judgment Doesn’t Mean the Claim Is Disputed
The Iqbal and Twombly standards don’t apply to involuntary petitioners who are required to use Official Form 105.
Dallas’ Bankruptcy Court Wants to Be More Hospitable to Bigger, Complex Cases
The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas in Dallas wants to update its policies to attract big, complex, high-dollar bankruptcy cases, the Dallas Morning News reported. The Northern District bankruptcy judges appointed more than 20 restructuring lawyers from Dallas-Fort Worth and elsewhere to a committee that will evaluate and recommend changes to the complex case rules. Large companies can usually file for bankruptcy in any court they choose. Making a court more attractive with updated procedures and rules could attract big cases and may encourage distressed local companies to file in their hometown where judges are familiar with their businesses. Filing closer to home also saves on travel costs. The rule revisions are expected to be presented to the Northern District’s five bankruptcy court judges by the end of the year, said Ian Peck, a committee member and an attorney in the Dallas office of Haynes and Boone. “The goal of the committee is to ensure that the Northern District of Texas remains on the cutting edge of addressing issues in the largest and most complex chapter 11 cases,” he said. While courtrooms are starting to open back up, most courts are allowing certain matters to continue virtually, and that’s just one of the more visible changes the committee is considering. Other rules have to do with financing, such as emergency relief in the early stages of complex cases and implementing new standards for pre-packed or pre-negotiated plans. The Northern District already has an experienced bench, and all five of the judges have handled complex chapter 11 cases as lawyers. The court has received kudos from independent sources for its handling of cases last year. Off-price retailer Tuesday Morning Corp.’s bankruptcy, which was handled by Peck, received multiple awards, including one from the Turnaround Management Association. CiCi’s Pizza went from filing to confirmation in less than 40 days. Gold’s Gym closed its sale 110 days after filing, and Studio Movie Grill took just six months from filing to emerging from chapter 11. In recent years, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District in Houston has strengthened its abilities to handle the bigger cases. A couple of large local retail bankruptcies last year — Dallas-based Neiman Marcus and Plano-based J.C. Penney — filed for chapter 11 in Houston, instead of Dallas. The Houston court’s other recent big bankruptcy cases included Chesapeake Energy and Diamond Offshore Drilling.
Warren, Cornyn Introduce Bill to Block Judge-Shopping in Bankruptcy
Senators Elizabeth Warren, a Democrat from Massachusetts, and John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, on Thursday introduced a bill to combat large, corporate entities filing for bankruptcy before judges they believe will be favorable to their interests, Reuters reported. Under the Bankruptcy Venue Reform Act of 2021, big businesses and wealthy individuals would be required to file for bankruptcy in their home states or where their largest assets are located. A version of the bill was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives in June by Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a Democrat from California, and Rep. Ken Buck, a Republican from Colorado, and has gained some bipartisan support, with four Democrats and three Republicans signing on as co-sponsors. The venue issue has garnered attention in recent months in the chapter 11 case of OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma, which filed for bankruptcy in White Plains, N.Y., even though it is headquartered in Stamford, Conn. “Wealthy corporations should not be able to run across the country to find a favorable court to file bankruptcy. While they manipulate the system to file for bankruptcy wherever they please, affected communities — like workers, creditors, and consumers — lose,” Sen. Warren said in a statement. The bill would “prevent big companies from cherry-picking courts that they think will rule in their favor and to crack down on this corporate abuse of our nation's bankruptcy laws,” she added. The legislation follows another bill introduced by Warren this year that aims to block litigation shields for owners or insiders of bankrupt companies.
Bankruptcy Court Doesn’t Have Exclusive Jurisdiction over Fraudulent Transfer Suits
The Nevada Supreme Court correctly unpacked the confusing notions of bankruptcy jurisdiction and the division of authority between district and bankruptcy courts.