On June 15th, the Second Circuit held that district courts may issue anti-litigation injunctions barring bankruptcy filings as part of their broad equitable powers in the context of an SEC receivership. SEC v. Byers. Reuters reported on the involuntary bankruptcy petitions filed by creditors which prompted the district court's anti-litigation order.

On June 14th, the First Circuit modified the bankruptcy court's $250,000 sanction award against a mortgage servicer who erroneously claimed to be the mortgage holder. The mortgage servicer did not deliberately or intentionally seek to mislead the bankruptcy court and its actions were not prejudicial. First Circuit therefore modified the award to $5,000. In re Jacalyn S. Nosek.  

Merger and acquisition transactions frequently have included ongoing obligations of the parties to each other. In a recent decision by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, a trademark licensee in a 1991 acquisition survived an effort by the bankrupt licensor to overturn the license. (In re: Exide Technologies, U.S. Third Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 08-1872 filed June 2, 2010) The case illustrates that the time in which agreements in a merger and acquisition transaction remain at issue can be longer than would be expected.  

Masuda, Funai, Eifert & Mitchell routinely represents creditors in bankruptcy proceedings in order to protect their contractual and legal interests and rights to payment. The following is a list of some recent larger U.S. bankruptcy filings in various industries. To the extent you are a creditor to any of these debtors, or other entities which may have filed for bankruptcy protection, you as a creditor are entitled to certain protections under the Bankruptcy Code.  

PAPER

In re Texas Eastern Overseas, Inc., 2009 WL 4270799 (Del. Ch. Nov. 30, 2009).  

This suit involved Petitioner AmeriPride Services Inc. (“AmeriPride”)’s motion for the appointment of a receiver pursuant to 8 Del. C.

Generally the best evidence of a property’s market value is a recent sale price, but that is not always the case. The First District Appellate Court recently ruled in Calumet Transfer LLC v.

IN RE: MCKINNEY (June 23, 2010)

During the current economic downturn, a number of financially distressed franchisees either have filed or may file for bankruptcy protection to restructure their financial obligations. As a result, franchisors should familiarize themselves with some bankruptcy basics before they are confronted with the situation.

What Happens If One of Our Franchisees Declares Bankruptcy?

A Massachusetts trial court has denied a borrower’s request to stop a foreclosure proceeding despite the borrower’s claim that the loan was “unfair” under the Massachusetts consumer protection law, Chapter 93A of the General Laws. In its May 13 decision denying the borrower’s request for an injunction, the court examined a stated income (no documentation) loan and determined that the borrower was not likely to prevail on a claim that the loan featured a combination of four characteristics that qualify as “unfair” under Chapter 93A.

What is an inherited IRA? It is the IRA a non-spouse beneficiary receives upon the death of the IRA holder. Unlike a spousal beneficiary, the non-spouse beneficiary must maintain an inherited IRA in the name of the decedent for the benefit of the beneficiary. What is at stake? When the beneficiary files for bankruptcy protection, are the assets of the inherited IRA part of the bankruptcy estate and available to pay claims of creditors? Or is the inherited IRA exempt from the bankruptcy estate and free from creditor claims? Recent court cases have differing answers.