On March 14, 2022, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (the “Fifth Circuit”) revisited the issue of the rejection of filed-rate contracts in bankruptcy where such contracts are governed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”). The ruling marks the first time the Fifth Circuit has addressed this issue since its 2004 decision in In re Mirant Corp.¹ In Federal Energy Regulatory Commission v.

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) is this:

• The triumph of Justice Breyer’s Footnote 2 in Merit Management, as accomplished by a denial of certiorari on 2/22/2022.

What follows is a summary of four important Supreme Court bankruptcy opinions in which Justice Breyer played a significant role—starting with the Footnote 2 opinion.

On March 17, 2022, New York-based Buyk Corp., a mobile app grocery delivery service operating in New York and Chicago, filed a petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York (Case No. 22-10328).

Agricultural economists have long warned of a looming farm crisis. However, for the most part, they have been wrong. In 2021, nationwide Chapter 12 family farmer bankruptcy filings were at second lowest level since Chapter 12 was enacted in 1987. The low level of Chapter 12 filings is all the more surprising given that Congress more than doubled the debt limit for Chapter 12 eligibility (to $10 million) in 2019.

This entry is part of Nelson Mullins’s ongoing “Bankruptcy Basics” blog series that is intended to address foundational aspects of bankruptcy for non-bankruptcy practitioners and professionals. This entry will explain the concepts of the bankruptcy “estate” and “property of the estate” and the importance thereof.

In a recent decision,¹ the United States Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the 9th Circuit clarified an important step that construction lienholders must take to perfect their liens when the debtor has filed a bankruptcy petition before the lienholder files a foreclosure lawsuit.

A bankruptcy court’s recent decision in Bailey Tool & Mfg. Co., et al. v. Republic Bus. Credit (In re Bailey Tool & Mfg. Co.), Adv. No. 16-03025-SGJ (Bankr. N.D. Tex. Dec. 23, 2021) serves as a reminder for lenders that they should avoid certain actions when dealing with distressed borrowers. Specifically, in Bailey, a bankruptcy judge found a lender squarely at fault for its borrower’s bankruptcy and subsequent liquidation, and held the lender liable to the borrower’s bankruptcy estate for various breach of contract, tort, and bankruptcy claims.

Overview

Claims are “impaired,” unless the plan “leaves” their rights “unaltered.”§ 1124(1).

This rule is not as simple and unequivocal as it seems, according to an In re Hertz opinion. [Fn. 1] Here’s why.

Plan Treatment of Unsecured Claims

Claims of unsecured creditors in the Hertz bankruptcy are treated, under its Chapter 11 Plan, as follows:

Imagine this: a U.S. District Court enters judgment in a case that’s “related to” a bankruptcy, and we want to file a motion for new trial or to amend the judgment.

So, which deadline applies to the motion: