Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%
Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.
The Equitable Mootness Doctrine
Over time, equitable mootness, a court-created doctrine, had been consistently applied and embraced by appellate courts. The doctrine, as it has been applied, provides that appeals from orders confirming Chapter 11 plans will be considered moot ' and thus not subject to appellate review ' if: 1) a plan has been substantially consummated; and 2) granting appellate relief would unravel the plan or be inequitable to third parties relying on the order confirming the plan. Based on, and consistent with, decisions such as that of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in In re Chateaugay , 94 F.3d 772, 776 (2d Cir. 1996), and the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in In re Continental Airlines , 91 F.3d 553, 560 (3d Cir. 1996) ( en banc ), the equitable mootness doctrine has been read broadly to create a presumption that if a plan has been substantially consummated, appeals of the confirmation order are equitably moot.
Recently, three separate appellate court decisions, one by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Grasslawn Lodging v. Transwest Resort Props . ( In re Transwest Resort Props .), 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 11312 (9th Cir. Ariz. July 1, 2015); and two by the Third Circuit in One2One Communs. v. Quad/Graphics , 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 12544 (3d Cir. N.J. July 21, 2015) and Tribune Media Company v. Aurelius Capital Management , 2015 U.S. App. LEXIS 14530 (3d Cir. Del. Aug. 19, 2015), highlight the fact that there are differences among the circuit courts with respect to the appropriateness of the equitable mootness doctrine and the presumption of its application. In reasoning and result, these decisions challenge the doctrine and call into question its continued existence. By reason of these decisions, for parties-in-interest and for practitioners, consideration of whether to consummate a Chapter 11 plan while an appeal of the confirmation order is pending should and must be reevaluated.
Law Firms are Reducing Redundant Real Estate by Bringing Support Services Back to the Office
A trend analysis of the benefits and challenges of bringing back administrative, word processing and billing services to law offices.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
Bit Parts
Summary Judgment Denied Defendant in Declaratory Action by Producer of To Kill a Mockingbird Broadway Play Seeking Amateur Theatrical Rights
Risks of “Baseball Arbitration” in Resolving Real Estate Disputes
“Baseball arbitration” refers to the process used in Major League Baseball in which if an eligible player's representative and the club ownership cannot reach a compensation agreement through negotiation, each party enters a final submission and during a formal hearing each side — player and management — presents its case and then the designated panel of arbitrators chooses one of the salary bids with no other result being allowed. This method has become increasingly popular even beyond the sport of baseball.
Disconnect Between In-House and Outside Counsel
'Disconnect Between In-House and Outside Counsel is a continuation of the discussion of client expectations and the disconnect that often occurs. And although the outside attorneys should be pursuing how inside-counsel actually think, inside counsel should make an effort to impart this information without waiting to be asked.