On November 28, 2016, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in the appeal of Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors v. CIT Group/Business Credit Inc. (In re Jevic Holding Corp.), 787 F.3d 173 (3d Cir. 2015), as amended (Aug. 18, 2015), cert. granted sub nom.Czyzewski v. Jevic Holding Corp., 136 S. Ct. 2541 (2016). The question before the Court is whether a bankruptcy court may authorize the distribution of settlement proceeds in derogation of the absolute priority rule; the issue is the subject of a circuit split.

Thomas Edison famously said that “opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work.” Consistent with Edison’s musings, companies in an acquisition mode often overlook opportunities that arise in the bankruptcy arena because they lack knowledge of the system and think bankruptcy is an unruly beast dressed in extra-large overalls.

Section 502(e)(1)(B) of the Bankruptcy Code allows debtors to seek disallowance of certain types of contingent claims to avoid being twice liable on a single obligation. It has the added benefits of facilitating debtors’ efficient exit from bankruptcy and ensuring that unsecured creditors are paid in a timely fashion. Debtors commonly seek Section 502(e)(1)(B) relief for claims involving environmental remediations or tort lawsuits, for example personal injury actions.