On Bankruptcy and Mediation
Ignoring the issue? (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson A Petition for certiorari is before the U.S. Supreme Court in Speech & Language Center, LLC, and Chryssoula Marinos-Arsenis v. Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey (Case No. 21-1154, filed 2/16/2022). Petition’s Question The Question presented in the Petition is this: “Can parties... Continue Reading →
A Justice Breyer opinion at the U.S. Supreme Court -- Stern v. Marshall By Donald L. Swanson In a few months, Justice Stephen G. Breyer is set to retire from the U.S. Supreme Court. The bankruptcy world will miss him. The reason for discussing this subject now (instead of waiting for the retirement to actually happen)... Continue Reading →
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 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 →
Flip-Flopping (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson “The Congress shall have Power . . . To establish . . . uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout the United States” (U.S. Const., Article I, §8, cl. 4). Once upon a long time ago, the U.S. Constitution’s Bankruptcy Clause, and its “uniform Laws” requirement,... Continue Reading →
Uniformity (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson The United States of America is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to rule on the constitutionality of having U.S. Trustees in 88 judicial districts and Bankruptcy Administrators in 6 judicial districts. What follows is a summary of the U.S. Trustee’s explanation of the constitutionality issue in a... Continue Reading →
Title page of U.S. Supreme Court's 1803 opinion, Wood v. Owings By Donald L. Swanson “The committing an act of bankruptcy is, in law, considered as criminal. The bankrupt law is, therefore, in this respect, to be construed strictly.” This quotation is a punch line from the very first opinion by the U.S. Supreme Court on... Continue Reading →
Imprisoned in a Safari Park (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson Bankruptcy laws must (and do) change. That’s because the U.S. economy is always changing: it has been in an ever-expanding mode—punctuated by recessions and depressions from time-to-time—throughout the course of its existence. One example of change is abolition of the debtors prison remedy.... Continue Reading →
Uniformity (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson This is bizarre: Back in the 1980s, federal politicians in Alabama and North Carolina carve out a special deal for themselves (their bankruptcy funding is by taxpayers), while all other 48 states have a different deal (bankruptcy funding is by debtor fees); andThis disparity persists in varying... Continue Reading →
Failing to perform their function (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson The doctrine of equitable mootness “is irreconcilable with” the “virtually unflagging obligation” of appellate courts “to exercise the jurisdiction given them.” --From Amicus Brief of 21 Bankruptcy Law Professors, in Hargreaves v. Nuverra Environmental Solutions Inc., Case No. 21-17, U.S. Supreme Court (Petition... Continue Reading →
MEDIATBANKRY 