Retail Seminar Business In re Telligenix Corporation (Bankr. M.D. Fla.) Case no. 09-15238

Residential Lots in Mississippi In re South Marsh Developers, LLC(Bankr. N.D. Fla.) Case no. 09-32148

The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held on Nov. 5, 2009, that a creditor was entitled to its post-bankruptcy legal fees incurred on a pre-bankruptcy indemnity agreement. Ogle v. Fid. & Deposit Co. of Md., __F.3d __, No. 09-0691-bk, 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 24329 (2d Cir. Nov. 5, 2009). Affirming the lower courts, the Second Circuit explained that the Bankruptcy Code (“Code”) “interposes no bar . . . to recovery.” Id. at *8-9 (citing Travelers Cas. & Sur. Co. of Am. v. Pac. Gas & Elec. Co., 549 U.S.

On Nov. 10, 2009, a Pennsylvania district court held that secured creditors do not have an absolute right to credit bid1 their debt under the Bankruptcy Code (the “Code”) in an asset sale conducted pursuant to a “cramdown” plan of reorganization that proposes to provide the secured creditors with the “indubitable equivalent” of their claims. In re Philadelphia Newspapers, LLC, Civil Action 09-00178 at 57 (E.D. Pa. Nov. 10, 2009). This decision is on appeal to the Third Circuit Court of Appeals.

Facts

This evening, the OTS closed Century Bank, FSB, headquartered in Sarasota, Florida, and the Florida Office of Financial Regulation closed Orion Bank, headquarte

On November 4, 2009, the Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC” or “Commission”) held a public forum to discuss proposed amendments to the Commission's Telemarketing Sales Rule (“TSR”) to address the sale of debt relief services. The proposed rules would reshape the availability of alternatives to bankruptcy and services to counter the efforts of debt collectors.

Yesterday, Daniel K. Tarullo, a governor of the Federal Reserve System, continued his vigorous speaking schedule with a speech at the Institute of International Bankers Conference on Cross-Border Insolvency Issues in New York.

Yesterday, FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair, the keynote speaker at the Institute of International Bankers Cross-Border Insolvency Issues Conference in New York, stressed the need to end the “too big to fail” mentality by “eliminating the belief that the government will always support large, interconnected financial firms.” Chairman Bair noted that in order to do so, “we need an effective mechanism to close large, financial intermediaries when they get into trouble.”

Whether or not a bankrupt tenant is required to pay post-petition rent, and when that rent needs to be paid, are issues of significant importance to both debtors and landlords. A recent decision by the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the Eighth Circuit (the jurisdiction that encompasses Minnesota) adds yet another dimension to the spectrum of cases addressing the payment of "stub" rent by a bankrupt tenant under a non-residential lease of real property and at the same time highlights the importance of working with legal counsel whenever a tenant is in financial distress.

Yesterday afternoon, the House Judiciary Committee held Part II of its series of hearings entitled “Too Big to Fail – the Role for Bankruptcy and Antitrust Law in Financial Regulation Reform.” Yesterday’s hearing focused on proposed financia