News

Article courtesy of Wendy Harlan (Unum) Among other new members who have joined during the first half of 2023, the ACIC is thrilled to welcome: Marla Berger (Kuvare Insurance Services) Jake Gawlak (Akin Gump) John Hreno (Morgan Lewis) Ben Leese (ArentFox Schiff) Rob Lewton (The Hartford) Jillian Ludwig (Allstate) Matthew Melick (State Farm) Chris Nowatarski […]

Article courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) In re Buchanan, 31 F.4th 1091, 1092 (8th Cir. 2022) This case arises from a dispute between Jay Buchanan and Lori Buchanan (the “Buchanans”), sole owners of Signature Electric, LLC (“Signature”), and Lund-Ross Constructors, Inc., a general contractor (“Lund-Ross”). Lund-Ross hired Signature to do electrical work on […]

Article courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) In re West, No. 21 31047 JDA, 2022 WL 1309939 (Bankr. E.D. Mich. May 2, 2022) In an adversary proceeding, the defendant, Shiawassee County in the State of Michigan, sought to dismiss the plaintiff/debtor’s four count complaint, which alleged that the state court judgment of foreclosure against […]

Article courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) In re Juntoff, 636 B.R. 868 (B.A.P. 6th Cir. 2022) In a consolidated appeal arising from two separate Chapter 13 cases, the debtors objected to priority unsecured claims filed by United States on behalf of Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) for “shared responsibility payment” (“SRP”) assessed for failure […]

Article courtesy of Maggie Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump) and Jake Gawlak (Akin Gump) Purdue Pharma L.P. v. City of Grande Prairie (In re Pharma L.P.), 69 F.4th 45 (2d Cir. 2023) Overview: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed the order of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York […]

Article courtesy of Maggie Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump) and Jake Gawlak (Akin Gump) TLA Claimholders Grp. v. LATAM Airlines Grp. S.A. (In re LATAM Airlines Grp. S.A.), 55 F.4th 377 (2d Cir. 2022) Overview: Unsecured creditors of Tam Linhas Aéreas S.A., a subsidiary of LATAM Airlines Group S.A., appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for […]

Authored by Barry Russell and Richard Hornshaw of Akin Gump Introduction The English court’s recent decision in Re AGPS BondCo PLC raises a number of important issues for fixed income investors in the debt of companies where those companies may be able to take advantage of the new restructuring plan in the UK. In particular, […]

A message from the co-chairs of the 2023 Fall Annual Meeting and Education Conference, Margaret Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump) and Thomas Pasuit (Kuvare): On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the Education Committee, we invite you to join us at the ACIC’s 2023 Fall Investment Forum to be held at the Westin Grand Central in […]

Recap of the 2023 Spring Investment Forum Authored by: Andy Christianson (Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren) Read more here: Recap of the 2023 Spring Investment Forum

Article courtesy of Kevin P. Braun of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP   District Court affirmed the Bankruptcy Court’s order awarding an oversecured creditor payment of default interest, because it did not engage in misconduct, the unsecured creditors were not unduly harmed by the payment of default interest at the 3% contractual rate and default […]

Article courtesy of Kevin P. Braun of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP   Convertible notes with default interest exceeding the Massachusetts statutory maximum violated the Massachusetts Usury Act, since they were not registered with the Massachusetts Attorney General’s office; however, the court declined to void the loans as permitted under the Act, but ordered the […]

Article courtesy of Kevin P. Braun of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP   Security interest did not attach to a pledged investment account when collateral description included reference to the grantor’s property “in the possession of, or subject to the control of, Lender” and the depositary bank never signed the control agreement. Berkshire Bank v. […]

Article courtesy of Jeff Dutson of King & Spalding   As South Carolina law does not recognize the continuing breach theory, the question of whether separate breaches of contract trigger the same statute of limitations depends on the parties’ contractual relationship and intent, which is to be determined through the court’s factual analysis of the […]

Article courtesy of Jeff Dutson of King & Spalding   LLC member had no duty to work at the LLC full-time or to contribute to the LLC’s debt where there was no written LLC agreement to do so under Alabama law. Sadler v. Players Recreation Grp., LLC, 2022 WL 3700373 (Ala. 2022). An Alabama limited-liability […]

Article courtesy of Jeff Dutson of King & Spalding   Lender does not qualify for equitable subrogation exception to race-notice statute. Due to lender’s failure to obtain title examination to ascertain existence of intervening liens, the equitable subrogation exception to South Carolina’s race-notice statute was inapplicable and lender did not retain its senior lien priority […]

Article courtesy of Tyler Margolis of ArentFox Schiff LLP Communications Committee The Communications Committee is responsible for communications among the College’s members and for communications between the College and the investment community at large. The Committee is prepares and publishes the College’s newsletter, Private Notes.  Among other items of interest to the College’s members, the […]

Article courtesy of Tom Bannister, Emma Butler, Lauren Pflueger, Barry Russell and Emma Simmonds (Akin)   Introduction Over recent years, a prolonged period of low interest rates, together with a competitive financing market, has resulted in greater leverage and control for private companies (and their sponsors) when it comes to negotiating terms with current and […]

Article courtesy of David Simonds and Edward McNeilly (Hogan Lovells)   In re TBH19, LLC, 2022 WL 16782946 (B.A.P. 9th Cir. Nov. 8, 2022)   In In re TBH19, the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (“BAP”) decided whether a claim should have been disallowed under section 502(e)(1)(B) of the Bankruptcy Code as a contingent claim […]

Article courtesy of David Simonds and Edward McNeilly (Hogan Lovells)     In re Priddis, 2023 WL 2203562 (9th Cir. Feb. 24, 2023)   In February 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals weighed in on the numerosity requirement for involuntary bankruptcy petitions. Overruling the lower courts, the Ninth Circuit held that an involuntary petition […]

Article Courtesy of David Simonds and Edward McNeilly (Hogan Lovells)   In re Mariner Health Cent., Inc, 2023 WL 187175 (Bankr. N.D. Cal. Jan. 12, 2023)   In In re Mariner Health Central, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California (the “Bankruptcy Court”) denied the debtors’ motion to extend the automatic […]

Article courtesy of Clint Culpepper of Baker Botts Wilson v. Cap. Partners Fin. Grp. USA, Inc., No. 05-20-00704-CV, 2022 WL 2437595, 2022 Tex. App. LEXIS 4600 (Tex. App.—Dallas July 5, 2022) (unpublished opinion)   In Wilson v. Cap. Partners Fin. Grp. USA, Inc., No. 05-20-00704-CV, 2022 WL 2437595, 2022 Tex. App. LEXIS 4600 (Tex. App.—Dallas […]

Article courtesy of Chiraag Kumar (MetLife) The ACIC is thrilled to have welcomed the following new members during the second half of 2022: Kaileigh Fagan Hobson (King & Spalding) Chris Parrott (Akin Gump) Bret Strzelczyk (Greenberg Traurig) Hailey Osland (Lincoln Financial) Jamie Kocis (Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel) To learn more about these esteemed new […]

Article courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) In re Franklin, No. 21 20657 DOB, 2022 WL 903735 (Bankr. E.D. Mich. Mar. 28, 2022) In a dispute between Jermaine Franklin Jr., the debtor, and Mark Haak, Mr. Franklin looked to have the court determine if he must continue performing the tasks required under a personal […]

Article courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) Peters Broadcast Engineering, Inc. v. 24 Cap., LLC, 40 F.4th 432 (6th Cir. 2022) In a dispute between Peters Broadcast Engineering, Inc. (“Peters Broadcast”), a broadcasting company, alleging RICO violations against 24 Capital, LLC (“24 Capital”) and its operations manager, the United States Court of Appeals, Sixth […]

Article courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig, LLP) FishDish, LLC v. VeroBlue Farms USA, Inc., No. 19 CV 3026 CJW KEM, 2022 WL 1093271 (N.D. Iowa Apr. 12, 2022) In a dispute between FishDish, LLC (“FishDish”) and Alder Aqua, Ltd. (“Alder Aqua”), VeroBlue Farms USA, Inc. (“VeroBlue”), and Broadmoor Financial L.P. (collectively “appellees”) on appeal […]

Article courtesy of Maggie Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump) and Jake Gawlak (Akin Gump) Halperin v. Morgan Stanley Investment Mgmt. (In re Tops Holding II Corp.), Docket Nos. 18-22279, 20-08950, 2022 Bankr. LEXIS 2899 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Oct. 12, 2022) Overview: Litigation trustee for unsecured creditors of Tops Holding II Corporation in its chapter 11 bankruptcy case brought […]

Article courtesy of Maggie Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump) and Jake Gawlak (Akin Gump) Bayside Cap. Inc. v. TPC Group Inc. (In re TPC Group Inc.), Docket Nos. 22-10493 (CTG), 22-50372 (CTG) (Bankr. D. Del. July 6, 2022) Overview: Minority holders of notes issued by chapter 11 debtor TPC Group Inc. under a 2019 indenture filed an […]

Article courtesy of Maggie Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump) and Jake Gawlak (Akin Gump) Citibank, N.A. v. Brigade Capital Mgmt., LP, 49 F.4th 42 (2d Cir. 2022) Overview: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit considered whether, under New York law, lenders to Revlon were entitled to keep an erroneous payment of approximately $500 million […]

A message from the co-chairs of the 2023 Spring Investment Forum, Manny Rodriguez (Avila Law) and Brendan Kelly (New York Life): On behalf of the Board of Trustees and the Education Committee, we invite you to join us at the ACIC’s 2023 Spring Investment Forum to be held at the Four Seasons Hotel in Chicago […]

Authored by Tom Bannister, Lauren Pflueger, Barry Russell and Emma Simmonds (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP)   When the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (CIGA) introduced the restructuring plan in England [1], comparisons with plans of reorganization under chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (U.S. Bankruptcy Code) were inevitable. A […]

Authored By: Amy Kennedy, Chris Lawrence, Inderveer Hothi, Maggie Parker Yavuz, Mike Gustafson, Tom O’Connor, Bruce E. Simonetti, and Michael Roebuck of Akin Gump Environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) factors are becoming increasingly relevant across a range of financial investments. This has been driven in part by changes in the legal and regulatory landscape, including […]

Contributed by Benjamin Cordiano (Morgan Lewis) — The ACIC is pleased to congratulate and welcome its newest officers and trustees. The following individuals were elected to the positions described below during the ACIC’s annual meeting. Officers for 2022-2023: President: Renée M. Dailey (Akin Gump Straus Hauer & Feld LLP) Vice President 1: Luke Weedon (Baker […]

Recap of the 2022 Fall Annual Meeting and Education Conference (held October 20 & 21, 2022) Prepared by Andy Christianson (Reinhart Boerner Van Deuren) This year’s ACIC Fall Annual Meeting and Education Conference was held at the Boston Marriott Long Wharf, simulcast on the Whova platform for remote attendees, and co-chaired by Jennifer Fitzpatrick (Pacific […]

Article courtesy of Clint Culpepper of Baker Botts A debtor challenged a notice of intent to accelerate by asserting a statute of limitations defense. The case was determined based on the sufficiency of notice to the debtor of the intent to abandon a previous acceleration notice. U.S. Bank Nat’l Ass’n v. Lamell, 2022 U.S. App. […]

Article Coursey of Amy Maloney, Authored by Casey S. August (Morgan Lewis)   Signed into law on August 16, 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 includes a wide range of legislation addressing climate change, healthcare, prescription drug pricing, and tax matters.  Among its most significant features, the act includes approximately $370 billion in energy […]

All Settlements Final: District of Montana Bankruptcy Court Refuses to Set Aside Releases Alleged to Have Been Obtained by Fraud   In re Shoot the Moon, LLC, 635 B.R. 568 (Bankr. D. Mont. 2022)   Article Courtesy of David Simonds of Hogan Lovells   Summary In In re Shoot the Moon, LLC, the United States […]

Ninth Circuit Holds that Unimpaired Creditors of Solvent Debtor Are Entitled to Postpetition Interest   In re PG&E Corp., No. 21-16043, 2022 WL 3712478 (9th Cir. Aug. 29, 2022) Article Courtesy of David Simonds of Hogan Lovells   Summary In In re PG&E Corp., a panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the […]

A Hotel That Is Not Operational and Non-Revenue Producing Is a Single Asset Real Estate Debtor   In re Source Hotel, LLC, No. 8:21-BK-10525-ES, 2022 WL 2072673 (C.D. Cal. June 8, 2022) Article Courtesy of David Simonds of Hogan Lovells   Summary In In re Source Hotel, LLC, the United States District Court for the […]

Compiled by Tyler Margolis of ArentFox Schiff LLP Communications Committee The Communications Committee is responsible for communications among the College’s members and for communications between the College and the investment community at large. The Committee is responsible for preparing and publishing the College’s monthly newsletter, Private Notes. The monthly Private Notes includes summaries of recent […]

Article courtesy of Jeff Dutson of King & Spalding Love and affection, while nice, do not constitute reasonably equivalent value for transfer of properties worth more than $1 million under Georgia’s Uniform Fraudulent Transfers Act. Tuggle v. Ameris Bank, 363 Ga. App. 600 (Ct. App. Ga. 2022) A borrower transferred two parcels of property to […]

Article courtesy of Jeff Dutson of King & Spalding Overturning prior appellate court precedent, the Kentucky Supreme Court upheld the trial court’s and Court of Appeals’ determination that the Kentucky UCC does not require future advances be explicitly stated in a security agreement in order to be secured by such security agreement so long as […]

Article courtesy of Jeff Dutson of King & Spalding Under Delaware law, requirement that a shareholder first make demand on the board before bringing suit is not excused on the basis of substantial likelihood of liability claim in the absence of showing that the board had actual knowledge of the alleged misconduct prior to the […]

Article courtesy of Jeff Dutson of King & Spalding Debtor’s knowledge imputed to debtor’s co-principals, rendering land sale from debtor to debtor’s co-principals voidable under the UVTA as to debtor’s creditor. Cherry Cmty. Org. v. Sellars, 871 S.E. 2d 706 (N.C. 2022) A North Carolina nonprofit entity focused on the preservation and restoration of a […]

Article courtesy of Kevin P. Braun of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Debtor’s proposed plan of reorganization failed to satisfy the “best interests of creditors” test and Bankruptcy Code cramdown requirements due to plan’s proposed modifications to secured lender’s note, including paying secured lender less than the full amount of it’s claim while paying other […]

Article courtesy of Kevin P. Braun of Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP Purported senior lienholder failed to perfect its security interest in aircraft by not satisfying the FAA’s recordation requirements when it filed only a claim-of-lien letter with the FAA; competing lienholder with no knowledge of adverse claims qualified as a good faith purchaser for […]

Article Courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig)   Peterson v. Colony American Finance Lender LLC, et al. (In re Mack Industries Ltd., et al.), 71 BCD 42, 2021 WL 6015700 (Bankr. N.D. Ill. 2021)   U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Carol A. Doyle of the Northern District of Illinois (the “Court”) partially granted a motion to dismiss […]

Article Courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig)   Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission v. Vanhorn (In re Vanhorn), 69 BCD 240, 2021 WL 741999 (Bankr. N.D. Iowa 2021)   Overview Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thad J. Collins of the Northern District of Iowa (the “Court”) ruled that a business lender’s purchase-money security interest (“PMSI”) does […]

Article Courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig)   Lowry v. Southfield Neighborhood Revitalization Initiative, et al. (In re Lowry), 71 BCD 36, 2021 WL 6112972 (6th Cir. 2021)   Overview As the price paid by the city of Southfield, Michigan (the “City”) to acquire the debtor’s home bore no relationship to the property’s fair market […]

Article Courtesy of Michael Robson (Greenberg Traurig)   In re Nu-Cast Step & Supply Inc., 639 B.R. 440 (Bankr. E.D. Mich. 2021)   Overview The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Michigan (the “Bankruptcy Court”) ruled that a company that bought a liquidated concrete business’s assets may not reopen the debtor’s 4-year-old […]

Article Courtesy of Margaret G. Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP); Secondary Contributor Troy DeLeon (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP)   Miller v. Fallas (In re J & M Sales Inc.), Nos. 18-11801 (JTD), 20-50775 (JTD), 2022 Bankr. LEXIS 434 (Bankr. D. Del. Feb. 22, 2022)   Overview: Bankruptcy trustee in […]

Article Courtesy of Margaret G. Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP); Secondary Contributor Troy DeLeon (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP)   In re Ocean View Motel, No. 20-21165-ABA, 2022 Bankr. LEXIS 190 (Bankr. D.N.J. Jan. 25, 2022)   Overview: Secured creditor objected to the cramdown of his claim in the confirmation […]

Article Courtesy of Margaret G. Parker-Yavuz (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP); Secondary Contributor Troy DeLeon (Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP) Tilton v. MBIA Inc. (In re Zohar III, Corp.), 639 B. R. 73 (Bankr. D. Del. March 25, 2022) Overview: Plaintiff creditors filed a complaint with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for […]

Article authored by Larry G. Halperin, Joon P. Hong, and Helena Honig, Chapman and Cutler LLP Content kindly provided by Charles C. Calloway, Jr., Chapman and Cutler LLP   In an opinion issued on June 15, 2022, the Delaware Supreme Court reversed a decision by the Chancery Court and found that a transfer by an […]