On August 12, the U.S. Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the 8th Circuit upheld a lower court’s ruling that discharged a debtor’s student loan debt owed to a state bank, finding that repayment would impose an undue hardship....more
The Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (“BAP”) has held for the first time that neither sovereign immunity nor the Younger abstention doctrine constrain bankruptcy courts from enjoining State governmental disciplinary...more
In a recent pair of decisions, the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel held that even fully secured creditors with nonrecourse claims and unsecured creditors who are paid off after the involuntary petition may qualify as...more
The Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel holds that a discharge injunction does not bar an alter ego claim against a non-debtor where, under applicable law, the result of an alter ego finding is not to deem the entities...more
The discharge provided in bankruptcy is fundamental, allowing the “honest but unfortunate” debtor a fresh start. There are various exceptions to the discharge found in Sections 523 and 727 of the Bankruptcy Code—designed to...more
The ability of a bankruptcy trustee or chapter 11 debtor-in-possession ("DIP") to obtain credit or financing during the course of a bankruptcy case is often crucial to the debtor's prospects for either maintaining operations...more
In Hafen v. Adams (In re Hafen), 616 B.R. 570 (B.A.P. 10th Cir. 2020), a bankruptcy appellate panel from the Tenth Circuit ("BAP") held that the bankruptcy court is the only court with subject-matter jurisdiction to decide...more
It is generally well understood that an "oversecured" creditor is entitled to interest and, to the extent provided for under a loan agreement, related fees and charges as part of its secured claim in a bankruptcy case....more
“Can an unsecured creditor be better off when the debtor defaults rather than paying off the debt? Yes: Law can be stranger than fiction in the Preference Zone.”—Ninth Circuit Untimely payment by tenants and other obligors...more
So you (allegedly) violated a bankruptcy court order. Whether the debtor alleges you violated the terms of a confirmed plan, failed to provide certain notices required by the bankruptcy rules, violated the discharge...more
• Considered without reference to a corresponding definition, Section 365(n) of the Bankruptcy Code seems clear. If the trustee or debtor-in-possession, as licensor, rejects an executory intellectual property license, the...more
The Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (“BAP”) for the First Circuit recently upheld a licensee’s rights to use a debtor’s trademarks and logo after a rejection by the debtor of the underlying licensing and distribution agreement....more