Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%
Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.
Notice Requirement Clarified for Successor Liability Protection in Chapter 11 Asset Sale Orders
A bankruptcy court's asset sale order limiting specific pre-bankruptcy product liability claims required prior “actual or direct mail notice” to claimants when the debtor “knew or reasonably should have known about the claims,” held the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on July 13, 2016. In re Motors Liquidation Co., 2016 U.S. App. LEXIS 12848, *46-47 (2d Cir. July 13, 2016).
“[M]ere publication notice” to known or knowable claimants, explained the court, was insufficient when the debtor sought to enforce a “free and clear” provision in a “Sale Order” insulating the asset buyer from successor liability based on tort claims “that ' could have been brought against” the debtor-seller. Id. at *26-27. Had the requisite notice been given, though, the Sale Order (and the buyer's protection against successor liability) would probably have been enforceable. See Bankruptcy Code (Code) ' 363(f)(1) (sale may be made “free and clear of any interest in such property”); In re Chrysler LLC, 576 F. 3d 108, 126 (2d Cir. 2009) (successor liability claims are interests), vacated as moot, 558 U.S. 1087 (2009).
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
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.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.