The Supreme Court clarified the insolvency categorisation for interest rate swap contracts, classifying them as insolvency credits, as they fail to meet the functional synallagma requirement, which establishes functional reciprocal obligations.

Firms offering comprehensive financial services scored a significant victory on April 9, 2013, when Judge Robert Sweet of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed Capmark Financial Group Inc.’s (“Capmark”) insider preference action against four lender affiliates of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. (“Goldman Sachs”), which arose out of Capmark’s 2009 bankruptcy.¹ Davis Polk represented the Goldman Sachs lender affiliates and advanced the arguments adopted by Judge Sweet.

Compensation of a debt made after the debtor’s bankruptcy declaration via the appropriation of securities pledged by virtue of a financial guarantee, is admitted.

The validity of a transaction assessed as “compensation” that was carried out after the bankruptcy declaration of the company in debt was questioned before the Supreme Court. The credit entity applied the value obtained from the reimbursement of an investment fund that had been pledged to secure a credit policy to reduce the debt.

JUDGEMENTS NO. 541/2012, OF OCTOBER 23, 2012, BY THE ZARAGOZA BRANCH OF THE COURT OF APPEALS, NOS. 413/2011, OF DECEMBER 19, AND 18/2012, OF JANUARY 18, BY THE BURGOS BRANCH OF THE COURT OF APPEALS, NO. 132/2012, OF APRIL 10, BY THE RULING OF THE VALENCIA BRANCH OF THE COURT OF APPEAL, AND NOS. 210/2012 AND 211/2012, BOTH OF JULY 20, BY THE ALICANTE COMMERCIAL COURT

Guarantees granted by a group company for securing a loan used to repay the insolvent party’s personal debts are detrimental to the insolvency estate. Article 10 of the Mortgage Market Act refers solely to mortgages that are already part of an issue of mortgage securities.

The Supreme Court sets a precedent regarding the bankruptcy classification of the credits arising from contracts with reciprocal obligations whose performance is ordered by the judge in the interest of the bankruptcy: these are credits against the bankrupt estate independently of when they are originated.

The Supreme Court rescinded a payment made to the creditor that petitioned for compulsory insolvency in a case where the creditor withdrew its petition and the debtor applied for voluntary bankruptcy several weeks later.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court made the following significant assertions in respect of insolvency rescission of payments:

Under Additional Provision Four of the Insolvency Act,¹ which regulates the courts’ sanction of refinancing agreements, the effects of the moratorium established in the agreement will be extended to dissenting financial entities, provided that the conditions specified in that precept are fulfilled (where the requisites imposed under article 71.6 of the Insolvency Act regarding the agreement itself are met and where it has been signed by creditors representing at least 75% of the financial entities’ liabilities at the time of the agreement).

On December 31, 2012, Strategic Growth Bancorp Inc. (“Strategic Growth”), an El Paso, Texas-based bank holding company, acquired Mile High Banks (the “Bank”), a Colorado community bank, from the Bank’s parent, Big Sandy Holding Company (“Big Sandy”), through an auction process conducted pursuant to section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code. Davis Polk represented Strategic Growth and advised on the complex and overlapping bankruptcy, mergers and acquisitions, credit, tax and bank regulatory issues presented by the transaction.

El TS clarifica la calificación concursal de los contratos de permuta de tipos de interés y los califica como créditos concursales por no cumplir con el requisito del sinalagma funcional que se predica de las obligaciones recíprocas.