On Bankruptcy and Mediation
By: Donald L. Swanson "For all of those reasons I think that the failure to engage in mediation or any other serious ADR was unreasonable." --Judge Waksman, QC, in the High Court of Justice, Chancery Division, Manchester District Registry, England, Feb. 3, 2014. Perhaps we can learn about mediation from other legal systems. Here’s an... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L. Swanson Mediators and Other Special Masters in District Courts -- Rule 53 “Special Masters” can be appointed by U.S. District Courts to handle special circumstances, under Fed.R.Civ.P. 53. One type of special master under Rule 53 is a “Settlement Master” (aka “Mediator”). Special masters are used by District Courts, typically, in large... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L Swanson The Bankruptcy Court opinion is In re Brizinova and Soshkin, 565 B.R. 488 (Bkrtcy. E.D.N.Y. 2017). The Trustee sues the debtors to recover assets for the bankruptcy estate. The Debtors file a motion to dismiss, in which their attorney, (i) makes statements the Trustee finds objectionable, and (ii) references information from a... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L. Swanson When . . . an appeal is from the district court’s affirmance of a bankruptcy court order, a remand to the bankruptcy court for approval of settlement requires coordination between three courts. --Cox v. Nostaw, Inc. (In re Central Illinois Energy Coop.), Case No. 16-1389 (7th Cir., Feb. 8, 2017). Background... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L Swanson I recently stumbled upon a fascinating report of a study on issues and trends called “Successful Mediation in International Relations.” This study looks at 79 international disputes (of which 44 are mediated) occurring during a 45 year period, between 1945 and 1989. The study makes multiple findings about these mediation efforts.... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L. Swanson Advertised Prices: “Haircuts $10 (we add a 3% surcharge if you pay by credit card)” “Sundaes $10 (with a $0.30 surcharge for credit card users)” State Law Violation The State of New York says these advertised prices violate New York General Business Law § 518, which provides: “No seller in any... Continue Reading →
By Donald L. Swanson On May 21, 2017, the Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto Rico files its “Petition” initiating a proceeding under the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act. This proceeding is described as a pseudo-bankruptcy and is pending in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Puerto Rico (Case... Continue Reading →
NonconformityBy Donald L. Swanson There is "a kind of 'hostility to arbitration' that led Congress to enact" the Federal Arbitration Act. Kindred Nursing Centers v. Clark, U.S. Supreme Court Case No. 16-32 (decided May 15, 2017). Alternative dispute resolution processes ("ADR") include arbitration and mediation. Arbitration Congress passed the Federal Arbitration Act ("Arbitration Act") to... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L. Swanson Etymology of the word “Bankrupt” According to the 1899 treatise linked below, the word “bankrupt” comes from the ancient days of Florence, Italy, when that city “occupied a prominent place among the commercial cities of the world.” The word “bankrupt” arises from the Latin words, “banca rotta,” which mean “broken bench”... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L. Swanson Arch Coal, Inc., files bankruptcy on January 11, 2016. By the month of May 2016, the debtor and its creditors are in contentious negotiations over terms of a Chapter 11 plan. At one point, the parties think they have an agreement in principal, but things fall apart when putting settlement details... Continue Reading →
MEDIATBANKRY 