Faced with the unprecedented challenge of responding to the COVID-19 crisis and its impact on the nation’s economy, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, commonly referred to as the CARES Act. The CARES Act includes several provisions designed to assist individuals and businesses dealing with this emerging economic catastrophe.

Insurance covering the representations and warranties of a seller in a purchase agreement (RWI) has become relatively commonplace in non-distressed M&A transactions. Insurance covering other specific contingent risks associated with a transaction, such as environment liability or tax liability or benefits, is also available. Less commonly, but with increasing frequency, these transaction insurance policies are being marketed and sold in transactions arising in bankruptcy and insolvency transactions.

Through the CARES Act and subsequent legislation, Congress provided up to $659 billion in potentially forgivable loans to businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Amid the throes of the COVID-19 pandemic, industries across the U.S. economy have been impacted in unprecedented ways. Small businesses in the service industry, including restaurants, continue to experience significant disruption in their operations and correspondingly their ability to generate cash flow and profits. Since the outbreak of the virus, restaurants have experienced the forced closure of their dining rooms due to government orders, leaving only those that could operate at reduced capacity through take-out or delivery services. Consequently, U.S.

Although they disagree about the severity, economists and market watchers generally agree that the U.S. economy is headed for a slow-down. According to data from the Federal Reserve Bank in St. Louis, industrial production and retail sales are at all-time highs, exceeding levels seen before the 2008 recession. Unemployment rates are at the lowest levels since November 2000. So why the gloomy predictions for 2019 and beyond? Historically, retail sales, industrial production and employment are at their peaks right before a recession.

The world of bankruptcy law has been divided into nine parts since the Bankruptcy Code was enacted in 1978. But is that number fixed by nature? Could there be ten? That would be like discovering another planet! But that may happen.

We currently have nine chapters:

Introduction

As society’s technology continues to grow more and more complex, bankruptcy attorneys find themselves on the front lines of an ever-evolving legal practice. One such emerging technology, cryptocurrency, has only just begun to become a new thorn in the sides of bankruptcy attorneys and requires their increased attention.

What is Cryptocurrency?

In 2019, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the finality of an asset sale previously approved by the bankruptcy court, providing valuable precedent in support of this core aspect of Chapter 11 practice. Fulmer v. Fifth Third Equip. Fin. Co. et al. (In re Veg Liquidation, Inc.), 931 F.3d 730 (8th Cir. 2019)

Introduction

Prognostications of an impending recession are appearing in regular dispatches ranging from daily news media to quarterly economic reports. Like the Great Recession, the if and when of any recession will only be answered after it has occurred. Moreover, these conclusions are simply an aggregation of the particular experience of a wide-range of industries, and diverse and distinct companies within those industries. What is true today for each of those individual companies is that their particular economic ecosystem is changing rapidly, and often with increasing financial challenges.