U.S. Supreme Court: A Tale of Two Certioraris

By Donald L. Swanson These are the best of times, these are the worst of times for 11 U.S.C. § 546(e). § 546(e) provides protection from fraudulent transfer liability in specialized circumstances: e.g., for sales of corporate stock through an intermediary. The “best of times” are because five circuit courts of appeals construe § 546(e)... Continue Reading →

The U.S. Supreme Court and Funny-Money in Credit Bidding Auctions

By: Donald L. Swanson The U.S. Supreme Court has a penchant for rulings that, as a practical matter, screw up our bankruptcy world. The most recent example is the Supreme Court’s March 22, 2017, ruling in the In re Jevic case [see this article]. Another case, where the U.S. Supreme Court did us no favors in... Continue Reading →

Student Loan Crisis: High-Priced Colleges Support Beautiful Campuses (and Other Luxuries) on the Backs of their Students

By:  Donald L. Swanson “Back when I was in school . . .” This is a tired-old phrase, usually followed by tales of hardship. The Olden Days But here’s an opposite twist:  Back when I was in college (during the 1970s), you could actually pay your way through, with little-to-no debt, by working part-time jobs... Continue Reading →

New Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch Will be Good for Bankruptcy Law

By: Donald L. Swanson The only things I know about Judge (now Justice) Neil Gorsuch are from what I’ve read in two contexts: His rating by the American Bar Association’s Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary, which voted unanimously to give its best possible rating to Judge Gorsuch as a Supreme Court nominee; and Five... Continue Reading →

Structured Dismissal Negotiations are Ripe for Mediation: Until the Supreme Court Upends Precedent (In re Jevic)

By: Donald L. Swanson “We are not final because we are infallible, but we are infallible only because we are final.” --From concurring opinion of U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, in Brown v. Allen, 344 U.S. 443 (1953), on role and function of the U.S. Supreme Court. Structured dismissals are [correction: were] a... Continue Reading →

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