What happens to the a licensee’s right to use a trademark if the licensor files for bankruptcy?
In deciding whether to afford administrative priority to claims arising from goods shipped shortly before a debtor’s bankruptcy filing, the Third Circuit, in In re World Imports Ltd., 862 F.3d 338 (3d Cir. July 10, 2017), interpreted the term “received” under section 503(b)(9) to mean “physical possession.” In effect, the Third Circuit’s decision provides additional protection to trade vendors that conduct business with distressed debtors.
The Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware recently issued a decision that will undoubtedly influence strategies in bankruptcy cases involving plugging and abandonment liabilities. The court’s ruling in Venoco, LLC v. City of Beverly Hills illuminates the Bankruptcy Code’s rehabilitative purposes by explaining that financial harm, without more, is not sufficient to enjoin a debtor’s actions.
What Happened
Unlike the parenting technique that requires a misbehaving child to sit in a designated area for a set amount of time, Gymboree Corporation, the well-known San Francisco-based company that operates specialty retail stores of children’s apparel, will serve its time-out before Judge Keith L. Phillips in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia.
The Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware recently held in the bankruptcy proceedings of Nortel Networks Inc., et al. (“Nortel”), Case No. 09-10138 (KG), that it would not second guess the work of an indenture trustee and its counsel on matters related to the trustee (i) in its capacity as indenture trustee on behalf of noteholders; (ii) in its capacity as a member of a creditors’ committee; and (iii) in defending its fees.
On appeal from a decision in the In re Energy Future Holdings Corp. bankruptcy case, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently held that contractual make-whole premium provisions are enforceable where the obligation to repay bond debt is accelerated by a bankruptcy filing.
In 2009, General Motors (“Old GM”) commenced a chapter 11 case and sold the bulk of its business and assets to a new entity (“New GM”) “free and clear” of liabilities against New GM. Notwithstanding the “free and clear” language of the 2009 sale order (the “Sale Order”), a Second Circuit panel recently held that plaintiffs could assert claims against New GM over faulty ignition switches in cars manufactured by Old GM and recalled in early 2014.
With the August 4, 2010 auction of the division leading Texas Rangers looming and the memory of last year's bankruptcy sale of the Phoenix Coyotes fresh in our minds, there has been a lot of discussion among bankruptcy professionals about the unique issues that arise when a sports club files for bankruptcy. Generally, sports clubs file bankruptcy for the same reasons as other businesses — as a last resort to save going concern value and/or to avail themselves of some strategic advantage under the Bankruptcy Code.
- On August 4, 2010, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part a Wisconsin federal district court’s ruling on the Wisconsin bankruptcy court’s disposition of three of Telephone and Data Systems’ (TDS) claims, and the FCC’s objections thereto, filed in Airadigm’s Chapter 11 reorganization plan. The principal assets at issue were a series of C- and F-block spectrum licenses for mobile phone service in certain areas of Wisconsin, Iowa, and Michigan that Airadigm had won at auction in the late 1990s.