The Supreme Court’s Decision:
CentsAbility: Creditors' Rights Law Update
In a recent case from the Business Court in Brunswick County, a North Carolina Judge held that Defendants could assert a claim for breach of the duty to negotiate in good faith finding that negotiations for a loan modification and renewal gave rise to a genuine issue of material fact as to whether the parties had entered into a “binding preliminary agreement.” RREF BB Acquisitions v. MAS Properties, LLC, No. 13 CVS 193, 2015 NCBC 58, 2015 WL 3646992 (N.C. Super. Ct. June 9, 2015).
(U.S. Sup. Ct. May 16, 2016)
Although our Blog focuses more on corporate restructuring issues than individual bankruptcies, the discharge of student loan debt is a topic that seems to be an exception to that rule (see The Eternal Pursuit to Collect: Due Process Rights and Actions to Collect on a Debtor’s Defaulted Student Loans,
(Published in the Spring 2016 issue of The Bankers' Statement)
Introduction
Summary
Smart Summary for Commercial Landlords
On May 16, 2016 the United States Supreme Court issued an opinion regarding the meaning of “actual fraud” under the Bankruptcy Code. Husky Int’l Electronics, Inc. v. Ritz represents a win for creditors by making it easier to show that a debtor committed fraud. A showing of a more general fraud, as opposed to a specific false representation by the debtor, will suffice to prevent certain debts from being discharged in bankruptcy.
Background
Early this week, a California Bankruptcy Court schooled counsel on abiding by local rules, avoiding gamesmanship, and maintaining a level of civility in litigation proceedings. These lessons arose in the context of an adversary proceeding in which counsel filed an emergency motion for a continuance of the deadline to respond to a complaint following retention of new counsel.
Lesson #1: Check for Typos