According to the International Trademark Association (“INTA”), “whether a debtor-licensor can terminate a trademark license by rejection, thereby ‘taking back’ trademark rights it has licensed and precluding its licensee from using the trademark” is “the most significant unresolved legal issue in trademark licensing.” It likely will not stay unresolved for much longer; on October 26, 2018, the United States Supreme Court granted a petition for certiorari to resolve this specific issue as part of the Mission Product Holdings Inc. v. Tempnology LLC case.

David’s Bridal, Inc., along with three affiliates and subsidiaries, has filed a petition for relief under chapter 11 in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (Lead Case No. 18-12635).

Piercing the corporate veil (PCV) is a remedy often pursued by a creditor of an insolvent entity against the entity’s parent or principal.  While the corporate veil generally shields a shareholder from the general obligations of his or her corporation, PCV allows a creditor to look beyond the corporate shield and, in certain instances, hold a shareholder liable for the corporation’s debts.

In the wake of Sears’ pending Chapter 11 proceeding, the company has initially sought court approval to close approximately 234 stores across the U.S., including branded locations of Sears and Kmart (which merged with Sears in 2005 in a prior bankruptcy). Those stores include approximately five in Wisconsin, 11 in Illinois, four in Colorado, four in North Carolina, and five in Utah – all states in which Michael Best has offices. The Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York is set to hear the matter on November 15, 2018.

First appeared in Law360, (November 13, 2018)

The Bottom Line

Prescription Advisory Systems & Technology, Inc. (“PAST”), a medical technology and software company, has filed a petition for relief under chapter 11 in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (Case No. 18-12601).

On 26 October 2018 the US Supreme Court granted certiorari in the case of Mission Product Holdings Inc v Tempnology LLC. The court will consider to what extent a debtor or licensor's rejection of a trademark licence agreement terminates the rights of a licensee to continue to use the mark. The decision, expected in mid-2019, will resolve a growing split between the circuit courts of appeal.

Lamington Road Designated Activity Company LLC (Case No. 18-12615) and its subsidiary, White Eagle General Partner, LLC (Case No.

Starion Energy, Inc., along with two subsidiaries and affiliates, has filed a petition for relief under chapter 11 in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware (Lead Case No. 18-12608). Starion, headquartered in Middlebury, Connecticut, is a competitive retailer of electricity operating in eleven states.