Commercial Lease Claims and Environmental Cleanup Claims In Bankruptcy Law
November 01, 2025
In this article, we report on two recent decisions. One involves the calculation of landlord damage claims under Section 502 of the Bankruptcy Code, and the other involves whether environmental clean-up claims under federal and state law for commercial real estate were discharged under a confirmed Chapter 11 plan.
Navigating the SARE Runway: A Secured Creditor’s Perspective
October 31, 2025
Many single asset real estate (SARE) bankruptcies will check some or all of the boxes for a bad faith filing. The timing of a SARE filing commonly suggests an intent to delay, as SARE filings are generally a last resort to stay foreclosure. Nevertheless, courts may be reluctant to dispose of these cases as bad faith filings, absent particularly egregious circumstances evidencing patent abuse of the bankruptcy process.
DE Bankruptcy Court Addresses Standing In the Context of a Fraudulent Conveyance Action
October 31, 2025
In the recent case of In re ONH AFC CS Investors, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware examined the issue of standing in the context of a fraudulent conveyance action and whether a liquidating trustee had standing to pursue fraudulent conveyance claims when the beneficiaries of those claims were the debtors’ equity holders. Under limited circumstances, which were present in this case, the court found that the trustee could pursue such claims.
Liability Management Exercises: Lender On Lender Violence?
October 31, 2025
Liability management exercises (LMEs) have gained considerable attention during the past few years. Whether intended for good purposes or not, LMEs have significantly disrupted the traditional loan business through aggressive priming and subordination tactics — leading some to characterize this phenomenon as lender-on-lender violence.
Bankruptcy Judges Struggle With Meaning of ‘Consensual Release’ Post-Purdue
October 01, 2025
Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2024 decision in Purdue, which held that nonconsensual third-party releases are impermissible under the Bankruptcy Code, bankruptcy judges across multiple jurisdictions have been grappling with what constitutes a “consensual” release. Harrington v. Purdue Pharma L.P., 603 U.S. 204 (2024). This article analyzes how different judges have defined “consent” and provides guidance on best practices for structuring third-party releases.
Fourth Circuit: Subject-Matter Jurisdiction In Bankruptcy Depends On Statute, Not Debtor Solvency
October 01, 2025
The Fourth Circuit’s opinion focused on answering the core question presented — whether jurisdiction is determined by statute, rather than by a debtor’s financial condition. It reasoned that since the Constitution grants Article III power over “all cases arising under the laws of the United States” and the Bankruptcy Code is a law under the United States, the petition to reorganize under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code is clearly within the judicial ambit of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.
