A court affirmed the denial of W.R. Grace & Co.’s asbestos insurance claims against the liquidation estate of Grace’s insolvent excess-of-loss insurer, on the ground that Grace failed to submit timely “absolute” claims under New Jersey’s version of the Uniform Insurers Liquidation Act. Grace, which has been undergoing bankruptcy restructuring, had established a plan with a creditor’s committee to create a trust to pay asbestos claims.
As if it wasn’t hard enough trying to displace the internal combustion engine as the motive force of the automobile, then this happens. First the plug-in hybrid Chevy Volt’s battery starts catching fire. Then battery-maker Ener1 files for bankruptcy protection. Last Thursday,
As real estate-related bankruptcy filings remain steady, courts continue to see debtors challenging the validity of deeds of trust and mortgages due to minor scriveners’ errors. The United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina is viewed by debtors as a favorable venue in which to bring such challenges due to a string of prior rulings starting with In re Head Grading in 2006, which invalidated a North Carolina deed of trust that incorrectly cited the date of the related note by one day. The latest chapter in this saga involves an effort by a
Summary
In a 32 page decision signed January 3, 2012, Judge Walrath of the Delaware Bankruptcy Court ruled that holders of litigation tracking warrants that would be paid out in stock of the debtor were equity instruments, and would be paid out at the same priority as common equity under the bankruptcy plan. Judge Walrath’s opinion is available here (the “Opinion”).
Background
Summary
Introduction
It is not uncommon for firms to use standard language in their account agreements that creates liens on Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). Two recent federal court decisions, however, suggest that granting such a lien on an IRA may constitute a prohibited transaction that causes these accounts to lose their tax exempt status, which in turn could potentially make IRAs subject to third-party creditor claims. These two decisions could have far-reaching implications for any firm that has used or still uses similar lien-creating language in their account agreements.
Prepayment provisions are intended, in part, to protect lenders in a depressed market from losses resulting from the costs of replacing their loans sooner than expected and having to relend at rates lower than those originally charged. A New York federal district court recently upheld a bankruptcy judge's ruling denying a lender's claim for a $7.5 million prepayment premium against a borrower-debtor.1 The lender must have been both surprised and disappointed to learn from the courts' decisions that this result could have been avoided had the lender's loan documents included
Reliance Insurance Company in Liquidation (the “Liquidator”) petitioned a Pennsylvania state court for a declaratory judgment holding that Aramark Corporation must reimburse certain state guaranty associations (“GAs”) for claims allegedly improperly paid to Aramark and subsequently presented to the Reliance Estate by the GAs for payment. The Liquidator also sought a declaration that Aramark’s claims against the Estate should be given low priority.