In re The Free Lance-Star Publ’g Co. of Fredericksburg, VA, 512 B.R. 798 (Bankr. E.D. Va. 2014) –

After the debtors obtained court approval of bidding procedures to auction substantially all of their assets, a secured creditor sought a court determination that it had valid perfected liens on the assets, and the debtors sought to limit the secured creditor’s right to credit bid in the bankruptcy sales.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, on Sept. 3, 2014, vacated bankruptcy court and district court Chapter 11 debtor-in-possession (“DIP”) financing orders due to: (1) the lender’s lack of good faith in relying on a third party’s shares of stock as collateral; and (2) the bankruptcy court’s lack of subject matter jurisdiction. In re TMT Procurement Corp., 2014 WL 4364894 (5th Cir. Sept. 3, 2014).

On Aug. 26, 2014, Judge Robert Drain of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York denied the payment of a $200 million make-whole premium. See Corrected and Modified Bench Ruling on Confirmation of Debtors’ Joint Chapter Plan of Reorganization for Momentive Performance Materials Inc. and its Affiliated Debtors, In re MPM Silicones, LLC, No. 14-22503 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. Sept. 9, 2014) [D.I.

In a recent bench decision in In re MPM Silicones, LLC et al., Case No. 14-22503-RDD (Bankr. S.D.N.Y. August 26, 2014), the Bankruptcy Court considered bondholders’ right to recover make-whole premiums (premiums paid for early repayment of debt) upon the payment of accelerated debt following the borrower’s bankruptcy default. The Court ruled that the governing loan documents lacked specific language requiring a make-whole premium upon acceleration.

In the preparation of a comprehensive estate plan for a client, an attorney must consider the size of the estate, the manner in which assets are titled, transfer and income tax issues, and family dynamics.  In light of the recent United States Supreme Court decision in Clark v. Rameker[1], ("Clark") there is now one more area of concern.

Before Clark

“Okay. Here we go. The short, short version.” – The Minister, Spaceballs

“I meant what I said and I said what I meant.” – Horton Hatches the Egg, Dr. Seuss

In connection with a contentious restructuring, Judge Drain of the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, ruled recently that certain lenders to Momentive Performance Materials Inc. (Case No. 14-22503) had no enforceable claim to a so-called “make-whole” premium.   

In its Scantling opinion, the Eleventh Circuit held that a Chapter 20 debtor (a chapter 13 debtor who previously filed and concluded a chapter 7 case) could strip off valueless junior liens on her principal residence even thought she was ineligible for a discharge in the chapter 13 case. Full disclosure: our firm, Berger Singerman, represented the appellee, Ms. Scantling.

As we all know, on June 9 of this year, the Supreme Court issued its long awaited decision in Executive Benefits Ins. Agency vs. Arkison, 134 S. Ct. 2165, 189 L. Ed. 2d 83 (2014), which we had hoped would resolve the open questions arising from Stern v. Marshall, 131 S. Ct. 2594, 180 L.Ed 2d 475 (2011).

As wealth preservation for future generations has become a popular topic among clients, estate planning practitioners have changed their tune when advising clients on how distributions should be made to beneficiaries.