On Bankruptcy and Mediation
City of Chicago (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson The U.S. Supreme Court, in its Fulton v. City of Chicago opinion, let Chicago off the automatic stay hook for holding onto impounded vehicles owned by Chapter 13 debtors. But Fulton is not the last word on that subject. The new opinion is Cordova, et al. v. City of Chicago,... Continue Reading →
A lovely place to stay — oops, wrong “stay” (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson An “Order Staying the Later-Filed Bankruptcy Cases” is from In re The Aliera Companies Inc., Case No. 21-11548, Delaware Bankruptcy Court (issued January 18, 2022, Doc. 56), followed by an "Order Transferring Venue of the Later-Filed Voluntary Bankruptcy Cases"... Continue Reading →
What’s the reasonably equivalent value? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson Can the foreclosure of a property tax lien on real estate be avoided as a fraudulent transfer under § 584 of the Bankruptcy Code? That’s the issue before the District Court, on a bankruptcy appeal, in Duvall v. County of Ontario, New York,... Continue Reading →
Ignoring? (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson “I have an opening statement that I give at the beginning of every mediation, and it goes like this”: “I don’t have a lot of rules but I have one firm rule and that is nobody uses the ‘F’ word—“final offer.” “And it’s very true. If I... Continue Reading →
A disconnect? (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By Donald L. Swanson Every now and then, (i) something is blatantly obvious, but (ii) those in charge insist that what seems obvious is actually false. Such a disconnect breeds distrust. That’s precisely what exists in our bankruptcy system. The U.S. Constitution requires that bankruptcy laws be “uniform .... Continue Reading →
Adjustments to unique circumstances? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By Donald L. Swanson The opinion is from In re The Diocese of Buffalo, N.Y., Case No. 20-10322, Western New York Bankruptcy Court (entered December 27, 2021, Doc. 1487). The Diocese of Buffalo asks the Bankruptcy Court to refer its Chapter 11 case and related adversary proceedings to... Continue Reading →
A farming operation? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson “Engaged in” eligibility for Chapter 12 (farming operations) and Subchapter V (commercial or business activities) are similar-but-separate things. An opinion by the Kansas Bankruptcy Court shows the difficulty in addressing the “engaged in” eligibility standards in Chapter 12—even when Subchapter V opinions are consulted as... Continue Reading →
Behind the scenes (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By Donald L. Swanson “We can’t see what the Subchapter V trustees are doing, so we don’t have an opinion on their effectiveness.” --This is the response of a couple bankruptcy judges, when asked about the effectiveness of Subchapter V trustees in performing the statutory “facilitate a consensual plan”... Continue Reading →
Managing tension (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson On January 3, 2022, Reuters reports, under the heading “Judge orders mediation for Purdue, Sacklers over opioid settlement,” as follows: A U.S. bankruptcy judge orders mediation in the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy [fn. 1], calling for the company, the Sackler family members that own it and nine... Continue Reading →
Pursuing a strategy? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson “There is no federal mediation privilege”;“the mediator's testimony about the mediation is not privileged”; and“there is no legal bar to Defendants seeking the [mediator’s testimony] with regard to the mediation and settlement negotiations.” --Roberts v. City of Fairbanks, Case No. 17-cv-00034, U.S. District Court of... Continue Reading →
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