In the Limitless Mobile, LLC bankruptcy proceeding (Delaware Bankruptcy Case No. 16-12685), a formation meeting has been scheduled for December 16, 2016 at 10:00 a.m. (ET) at the J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building, 844 King Street, Room 3209, Wilmington, DE 19801. Click Here for a copy of the Notice of Formation Meeting for Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors issued by the Office of the United States Trustee.

The United States Supreme Court will review a decision of the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, Johnson v. Midland Funding, LLC, to resolve a dispute between the circuits regarding whether the Bankruptcy Code provides the exclusive mechanism to determine the validity of a Proof of Claim or whether the filing of a faulty Proof of Claim gives rise to a debtor’s right to sue under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (the “FDCPA”). The Bankruptcy Code permits a creditor to file a claim if, among other things, the creditor has a right to payment.

“Any ... suit [against creditors’ committee members for their official acts] must be brought in the bankruptcy court, or in another court only with the express permission of the bankruptcy court,” held the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on Nov. 28, 2016. In re Yellowstone Mountain Club LLC, 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 21187, *9 (9th Cir. Nov. 28, 2016).

The First Circuit recently issued an important interpretation of bankruptcy law that directly impacts trademark licensing rights. In In re Tempnology LLC, 559 B.R. 809 (1st Cir. BAP 2016), the First Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel held that a debtor-licensor’s rejection of a trademark licensing agreement “did not vaporize” the licensee’s contractual right to use the debtor’s mark and logo.

Brexit. Trump. The year 2016 can be characterized as one of unpredicted results and impending uncertainty. In June, the UK electorate voted to leave the European Union and in November, a tumultuous presidential campaign in the United States ended in a stunning win by Donald Trump. Businesses throughout the world sought not only to understand the possible implications of these and other major events, but also to take strategic advantage of them.

“Top hat plans” have many attractive features, but a new court decision is a reminder that top hat plan participants have limited protections under ERISA – and that assets held in a rabbi trust are not protected from the claims of creditors upon the employer’s bankruptcy or insolvency.

(Bankr. E.D. Ky. Dec. 6, 2016)

Two recent federal court decisions establish that managers of financially troubled Missouri limited liability companies do not owe a fiduciary duty to creditors of their troubled enterprises. Imperial Zinc Corp. v. Engineered Products Industries, L.L.C., No. 4:14-CV-1015-AGF, 2016 WL 812695 (E.D. Mo. Mar. 2, 2016); Imperial Zinc Corp. v. Engineered Products Industries, L.L.C., No. 4:16-CV-551-RWS, 2016 W 6611129 (E.D. Mo. Nov. 9, 2016).

On appeal from a decision in the In re Energy Future Holdings Corp. bankruptcy case, the US Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit recently held that contractual make-whole premium provisions are enforceable where the obligation to repay bond debt is accelerated by a bankruptcy filing.

At the end of my October blog post, Dear Debtor, You Said I was Your First Priority, a VIP!, I suggested that you might want to join a “support group” called the “Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors” (fondly referred to as the OCC or GUCCs), if you felt angry or depressed about your unsecured claim status. Admittedly, I may have led you astray.