Polsinelli Podcasts: Out-of-Court Alternatives to Bankruptcy
Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code allows a Chapter 11 debtor to sell assets "free and clear" of existing claims, liens, encumbrances, and other liabilities. This provision facilitates expedited sales that might otherwise be...more
From a U.S. bankruptcy perspective, distressed debt investing is often based on two fundamental principles in the bankruptcy system: 1) a secured creditor is entitled to the value of its collateral in a given bankruptcy case...more
For a debtor in financial distress, having the right team in place to steward the company through a restructuring can mean the difference between success and failure. To incentivize top talent to stay with the debtor and...more
Distressed entities seeking to sell assets often encounter commercial and legal challenges related to existing claims or resistant constituents. One possible solution to those challenges is to sell assets in bankruptcy...more
Bankruptcy Court Elects to Follow Majority Interpretation of 11 U.S.C. § 363(f)(5) On March 4, 2025, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (the Bankruptcy Court) issued a significant...more
Conducting an asset sale through a bankruptcy auction — a Section 363 sale — is an effective and common M&A tool for a distressed company. In anticipation of a 363 sale, a Chapter 11 debtor typically tries before its...more
On January 13, 2025, the United States District Court for the District of Delaware affirmed the decision by the Delaware Bankruptcy Court, holding that an unofficial committee representing tens of thousands of sexual abuse...more
When a company enters bankruptcy, its assets are often sold to the highest or best bid. Secured lenders — those who have perfected liens on the company's assets — have a unique advantage under Section 363(k) of the Bankruptcy...more
Businesses generally file for bankruptcy because of financial challenges or operational issues. But, while their distressed business dissolves, there could be an opportunity for another business to acquire it through a...more
Section 363(m) of the Bankruptcy Code offers powerful protection for good-faith purchasers in bankruptcy sales because it limits appellate review of an approved sale, irrespective of the legal merits of the appeal....more
Sales under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code have become commonplace in bankruptcy cases as a mechanism to liquidate a debtor's assets and maximize value for creditors. Selling the debtor's assets to a third party offers...more
In an opinion on January 22nd, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, in Matter of S. Coast Supply Co., 91 F.4th 376 (5th Cir. 2024), held that preference claims arising under 11 U.S.C. § 547 may be sold, reversing the dismissal...more
For some folks the three letters ABC are a reminder of elementary school and singing a song to learn the alphabet. For others, it is a throw back to the early 70’s when the Jackson Five and its lead singer Michael, still...more
In Stream TV Networks, Inc. v. SeeCubic, Inc., 2022 WL 2149437 (Del. June 15, 2022), the Delaware Supreme Court vacated and reversed a 2020 ruling by the Delaware Court of Chancery that the assets of Stream TV Networks, Inc....more
The finality of asset sales in bankruptcy is an indispensable feature of U.S. bankruptcy law designed to maximize the value of a bankruptcy estate as expeditiously as possible for the benefit of all stakeholders. To promote...more
As we enter year two of the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of new Chapter 11 cases being commenced has slowed to a trickle. But the cycle will turn again. There are always companies that lose a major customer, fail to adapt to...more
Expedited Chapter 11 bankruptcies are on the rise because they save money and because key constituents such as bank lenders and bondholders recognize that the more time that a debtor spends in Chapter 11, the more likely the...more
The ability of a bankruptcy trustee or chapter 11 debtor-in-possession ("DIP") to sell assets of the bankruptcy estate "free and clear" of "any interest" in the property asserted by a non-debtor is an important tool designed...more
Q: Do opportunities exist for asset buyers in times of distress? A: Yes, valuable assets may be for sale at affordable prices in times of distress for two reasons. First, a primary means of raising liquidity for cash-starved...more
The Federal bank regulators which supervise banks have made a statement encouraging workouts necessitated by the coronavirus. Loans which would otherwise be classified as TDRs (Troubled Loan Restructurings) will not have to...more
When there are large numbers of substantial individual tort claims against a debtor, potentially involving claimants unknowable to the debtor who themselves may not know they have a claim, the bankruptcy process faces special...more
On July 9, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued an important opinion raising the possibility that out-of-the-money junior creditors might be entitled to share in the proceeds of a free-and-clear...more
In In re Millennium Lab Holdings II, LLC, 2017 BL 354864 (Bankr. D. Del. Oct. 3, 2017), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware ruled that it had the constitutional authority to grant nonconsensual third-party...more
The ability of a secured creditor to credit bid its debt in connection with a sale of a debtor’s assets received a strong boost in a decision last month in the Chapter 11 case of Aeropostale from U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Sean...more
Thirty-four affiliates of Variant Holding Company, LLC (“Variant”) have filed chapter 11 petitions before the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The debtors will seek to have their cases jointly...more