If any class of creditors under a chapter 11 plan is "impaired," the Bankruptcy Code provides that the plan can be confirmed by the bankruptcy court only if at least one impaired class of non-insider creditors votes to accept the plan. This "impaired class acceptance" requirement—stated in section 1129(a)(10) of the Bankruptcy Code—is straightforward in cases involving a single debtor, or in cases where the bankruptcy estates of several debtors are "substantively consolidated" so that the assets and liabilities of each debtor are deemed to belong to a single consolidated entity.

On April 12, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts entered judgment in favor of a national bank, determining that the plaintiff failed to, among other things, “carry his burden to prove that he incurred injury” concerning economic or emotional distress damages as a result of the original lender’s violations.

On April 20, 2020, Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker signed legislation suspending evictions of many residential and commercial tenants as well as halting the foreclosure of most residential properties. The new law, Chapter 65 of the Acts of 2020, “An Act providing for a Moratorium on Evictions and Foreclosures During the COVID-19 Emergency,” takes effect immediately and will remain in place until the earlier of August 18, 2020 or 45 days after Governor Baker lifts the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency declaration.

 In a decision published October 19, 2020, Judge Frank J. Bailey of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts found that an Indian tribe was not subject to the Bankruptcy Code’s automatic stay.

The Collapse Of Coal

Supreme Court of Gibraltar recognises United States Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings as a foreign main proceeding.

Canadian insolvency proceedings of Pacific Exploration & Production Corporation recognised as main proceedings by Colombia and US Bankruptcy Court

On December 17, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware approved a settlement between Starion Energy Inc. and the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in which Starion agreed to pay up to $10 million to resolve claims that it engaged in deceptive business practices and violated state telemarketing laws.

Starion is a retail provider of electricity and natural gas that offers service to residential and commercial customers in states where energy deregulation permits customers to choose their supplier.

In In re Fortin, 598 B.R. 689 (Bankr. D. Mass. 2019), the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Massachusetts considered whether a lender may enforce a mortgage despite the unenforceability of the underlying promissory note. The court held that a lender’s inability to collect on a note due to the expiration of the statute of limitation for enforcement of the note does not adversely affect enforcement of the mortgage so long as the debt remains unpaid.

Transfers and transactions up to ten years old may be scrutinized, unwound and recovered by a trustee, the bankruptcy court sitting in Massachusetts recently held in the NECCO (think chalky wafer candy) bankruptcy case. The ruling, in a case of first impression in Massachusetts, expands the reach back period from the typical four-year period for fraudulent transfer recovery, so long as the IRS is a creditor in the case.

The United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts recently dismissed a borrower’s complaint against a lender, finding that the lender did not wrongfully foreclose on the borrower or engage in predatory lending. SeeHealy v. U.S. Bank, N.A. for LSF9 Master Participation Tr., 2018 WL 3733934 (D. Mass. Aug. 3, 2018). In the case, the borrower executed a loan agreement secured by a mortgage on his house in 2004. In 2013, he defaulted on the loan, and the note and mortgage were assigned to the defendant lender thereafter.

Should a Massachusetts homeowner be allowed to claim a homestead exemption in a principal residence that is also used for business or other commercial purposes? Answering this question several years ago as a matter of first impression, the U.S.