On Bankruptcy and Mediation
Conflict? By: Donald L Swanson “conflict has its own advantages and can be productive.” --From “Benefits of Conflict” [Fn. 1]. The “Benefits of Conflict” study shows how international conflicts “can be beneficial” for the countries in conflict. Moreover, the study's findings and conclusions may have merit in the context of inter-personal relations and mediation as well.... Continue Reading →
A weathered bell (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson “Bellwether trials” are jury trials that serve as test cases.[FN. 1] Bellwether trials happen when many parties sue the same defendant over the same types of injuries from a defective product or wrongful action. The bellwether trial idea is to have jury trials in a... Continue Reading →
Supervision (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson For some reason, there is a fascination out there (not sure where, exactly) with having every assignment for benefit of creditors (“ABC”) supervised by a court from the get-go. This fascination suggests that every ABC effort requires court action and judicial approvals, from the beginning and throughout... Continue Reading →
Fallout and follow-up? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson In its Siegel v. Fitzgerald opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court declares that disparate quarterly fee amounts between U.S. Trustee and Bankruptcy Administrator districts are unconstitutional, under the uniformity requirement of the U.S. Constitution’s bankruptcy clause. The most recent fallout from that opinion is the following... Continue Reading →
Working together? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson Illinois follows the common law of assignments for benefit of creditors (“ABC”): a non-judicial, trust-like process for liquidating a failed business. That ABC process can work, hand-in-hand, with the Bankruptcy Code. The case of In re Computer World Solutions, Inc., Case No. 07-21123, Northern Illinois Bankruptcy... Continue Reading →
Appearing and being heard? (Photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson Back in Subchapter V’s early days, I’m serving as Trustee in a Subchapter V case. In that case: One of the parties files a motion, to which I file a written response. The motion has nothing to do with any of the four topics... Continue Reading →
Sri Lanka on the map By: Donald L Swanson Mediation has occurred for centuries—and millennia—in various forms, all across the world. What follows is a summary of information on the effective use of mediation in today’s Sri Lanka.[Fn. 1] Legal Framework Sri Lanka has a history of mediation, running back to the times of ancient kingdoms,... Continue Reading →
Really-cool but rarely used (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson There are lots of state statutes out there on assignments for benefit of creditors (“ABC”) with really-cool provisions. But the problem with those really-cool provisions is this: they are rarely used. Put plainly: a failing businesses needs to shut its business down efficiently... Continue Reading →
By: Donald L Swanson Many years ago, back when mediation is a rarity in bankruptcy disputes, I asked an old-timer this question: Why is the bankruptcy system a lagging adopter of mediation?” A Surprising Answer The old-timer gave this surprising answer: “At the time of the Bankruptcy Code's enactment, the bankruptcy judge was viewed as a... Continue Reading →
Persistence through adversity (photo by Marilyn Swanson) By: Donald L Swanson You’ve gotta admire the Debtor in In re Deirdre Ventura. Debtor has been fighting to save a Bed and Breakfast business through bankruptcy: beginning in 2018 with a regular Chapter 11, and then struggling to get into Subchapter V. Debtor's is a you-can’t-make-this-stuff-up story of... Continue Reading →
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