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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).
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.