Since 1988, the ‘rule in West Mercia’ – so named after the West Mercia Safetywear v Dodd Court of Appeal case – has been the leading authority for when directors of financially stressed companies are subject to the so-called ‘creditor duty’, namely the duty to consider the interests of the company’s creditors.
USA, Company & Commercial, Insolvency & Restructuring, Litigation, Cooley LLP, Insolvency, Supreme Court of the United States
Overview
In Asarco, LLC v. Noranda Mining, Inc., the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals held that representations made to the bankruptcy court that the Debtor’s settlement of environmental claims reflected only the Debtor’s share of the cleanup costs did not judicially estop the Debtor from brining a contribution claim against another potentially responsible party for those same costs.
USA, Environment & Climate Change, Insolvency & Restructuring, Litigation, Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP, US Environmental Protection Agency, Title 11 of the US Code, United States bankruptcy court, Tenth Circuit