This week, the Ninth Circuit takes a close look at a sizable antitrust jury award, and explains what constitutes a tax “return” for purposes of bankruptcy law.
OPTRONIC TECHNOLOGIES, INC v. NINGBO SUNNY ELECTRONIC CO. LTD.
The Court held that sufficient evidence supported a jury verdict holding telescope manufacturers liable for antitrust violations.
This week, the Ninth Circuit explains the ins-and-outs of property abandonment under the Bankruptcy Code, and explores the government’s privilege to withhold the identity of informants in discovery.
On August 9, 2011, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit held that a non-insider's debt claim can be recharacterized as equity in Grossman v. Lothian Oil Inc. (In re Lothian Oil, Inc.).2 The Fifth Circuit, in reversing the district court, held that: (i) there is no per se rule limiting to insiders the recharacterization of debt claims as equity and (ii) non-insider debt claims may be recharacterized as equity under section 502(b) of the Bankruptcy Code.
In a decision that is expected to have wide-ranging implications for secured lenders and reorganization plan sales nationwide, the Seventh Circuit’s June 28, 2011 opinion in In re River Road1 marks a jurisdictional split on the contours of credit bidding in bankruptcy. While this decision is squarely at odds with decisions of the Courts of Appeals for the Third and Fifth Circuits, its holding is in many respects a validation of Judge Ambro’s robust dissent in Philadelphia News,2 and is arguably more aligned with mainstream bankruptcy thinking on credit bidding issues.