Case Reviews
Taggart v. Lorenzen: the standard for discharge contempt
A creditor’s subjective good faith does not alone resolve civil contempt for violating a discharge order.
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Case Reviews
City of Chicago v. Fulton: retaining property and the automatic stay
The Court distinguished passive retention under section 362(a)(3) from other possible turnover or stay obligations.
Case Reviews
Czyzewski v. Jevic: priority cannot be skipped through structured dismissal
A final distribution attached to dismissal cannot bypass affected creditors’ priority without their consent.
Case Reviews
Bartenwerfer v. Buckley: liability for a partner’s fraud and discharge
Section 523(a)(2)(A) can apply even when the debtor did not personally commit the fraud giving rise to the debt.
Case Reviews
Lamar, Archer & Cofrin v. Appling: one asset can describe financial condition
A statement about a single asset can trigger the writing requirement in the financial-condition fraud exception.
Case Reviews
Mission Product v. Tempnology: rejection is a breach
Rejecting an executory contract does not itself rescind rights already granted to the counterparty.
Case Reviews
Truck Insurance v. Kaiser Gypsum: an insurer’s right to be heard
Financial responsibility for bankruptcy claims can make an insurer a party in interest under section 1109(b).
Case Reviews
Rodriguez v. FDIC: deciding who owns a consolidated tax refund
The Court rejected a federal common-law allocation rule without deciding the refund’s ultimate owner.
Case Reviews
Merit Management v. FTI: identify the transfer before applying the safe harbor
A financial intermediary’s participation did not replace analysis of the transfer the trustee sought to avoid.
Case Reviews
Law v. Siegel: equitable powers cannot override an exemption rule
Serious debtor misconduct did not authorize payment of administrative expenses from protected homestead value.
Case Reviews
Purdue Pharma and the limits of nondebtor releases
What the Supreme Court decided about a Chapter 11 plan releasing claims against nondebtors.
Case Reviews
MOAC: a sale appeal restriction is not a jurisdictional bar
Why the classification of section 363(m) matters, and what the decision did not guarantee.