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U.S. Supreme Court Ends Chevron Deference

June 28 2024 On June 28, 2024, the Supreme Court of the United States jettisoned the Chevron doctrine, overruling a 40-year-old case that had long served as the foundation for American administrative law. In the consolidated opinion in Loper Bright Enterprises, Inc. v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc. v. Department of Commerce, the Supreme Court declared […]

Supreme Court’s Purdue Decision Requires Nationwide Adoption of 5th Circuit Bankruptcy Practice on Third-Party Releases

June 28 2024 On June 27, 2024, the Supreme Court issued its opinion in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P., 603 U.S. ____ (2024) holding that the Bankruptcy Code does not allow for the inclusion of non-consensual third-party releases in chapter 11 plans. This decision settles a long-standing circuit split on the propriety of such releases […]

Fifth Circuit: Recent U.S. Supreme Court Ruling Did Not Alter Mootness Requirements for Unstayed Bankruptcy Sale Orders

May 30 2024 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. Specifically, it provides that the reversal or modification of an order approving the sale of assets in bankruptcy does not […]

Should I Care That the Debtor Has Filed a Motion to Sell Its Assets?

May 30 2024 Sales pursuant to 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 provides a new go-forward business partner for the debtor’s vendors and customers, and likely provides continuity […]

Successor Liability and Bankruptcy Sales: Can I Look to the Purchaser of My Customer’s Business for Payment of My Claim?

November 9 2023 Troutman Pepper – David M. Fournier, Evelyn J. Meltzer, Kenneth A. Listwak and Tori Lynn Remington Successor liability is a catchall term for a group of legal theories that, in certain circumstances, allow a creditor to recover amounts owed by its obligor from a person or entity who succeeds to the assets or business of that obligor. Typically, […]

Bankruptcy Trustees and Receivers Beware: The California Second District Court of Appeal Tests The Barton Doctrine’s Limits on Claims Against a Court-Appointed Officer Over a Distressed Commercial Real Estate Entity

October 26 2023 In Breanne Martin v. Leslie Gladstone, the Second District Court of Appeal recently decided a case that could reverberate throughout the receivership and bankruptcy industries. This case comes at a propitious moment as bankruptcy proceedings and receiverships – particularly for distressed commercial real estate entities – trend upward in California. Receivers and […]

In re Purdue Pharma L.P.: Second Circuit Reverses S.D.N.Y and Holds Bankruptcy Court Has Subject Matter Jurisdiction and Statutory Authority to Approve Sackler Family Releases

USA June 6 2023 On May 30, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (the “Second Circuit” or the “Court”) rendered a much anticipated opinion (the “Opinion”),1 reversing the order of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (the “District Court”) that the Bankruptcy Code does […]

Grammar Dooms Innocent Spouse in Non-Dischargeability Case

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2023 While we often recite that bankruptcy is for the honest but unfortunate debtor, a new case from the Supreme Court shows that getting into bed or business with the wrong person can lead to a non-dischargeable debt for an innocent spouse. The case is No. 21-908, Bartenwerfer v. Buckley, which you […]