Bankruptcy Law Commons^™

Applicability Of Discharge Exceptions To Corporate Debtors In Subchapter V: A “Death Blow” To Rescuing Small Businesses, Robert J. Landry Iii

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

On August 23, 2019, the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 (SBRA) was signed into law, adding a new subchapter to Chapter 11 for small business debtors, i.e. “Subchapter V”. The underlying driver for SBRA was a concern that while most Chapters 11 cases are small business debtors, most small business debtors face difficulty successfully reorganizing under Chapter 11. SBRA is intended to streamline Chapter 11 reorganization for small business debtors by making the process quicker and cheaper. However, SBRA arguably curtailed the scope of discharge when a plan is confirmed without the consent of the creditors for corporate small …

Data In Distress: Effectuating State Data Privacy Laws During Bankruptcy, Cameron Love

Emory Law Journal

In 2000, an online toy retailer, Toysmart.com, attempted to liquidate consumer data to pay creditors in its bankruptcy case. The attempted sale drew objections from the Federal Trade Commission and forty-seven state attorneys general. Five years later, Congress attempted to resolve privacy concerns in bankruptcy, amending the Bankruptcy Code to provide clear procedures for the liquidation of “personally identifiable information.” Recently, scholars have criticized these amendments, characterizing them as “limited,” “outdated,” and “privacy theater.” This Comment adds to these criticisms, arguing the amendments’ failure to mandate consideration of relevant nonbankruptcy law puts these permissive sales procedures on a collision course …

Safe Harboring Sloppiness: The Scope Of, And Available Remedies Under, Sections 363(M) And 364(E), Vishal Patel

Emory Bankruptcy Developments Journal

No abstract provided.

Third-Party Bankruptcy Releases And The Separation Of Powers: A Stern Look, Henry Reynolds

Emory Bankruptcy Developments Journal

In the last few years, bankruptcy scholars and professionals have criticized mass tort debtors’ use of chapter 11 bankruptcy as a litigation forum. One such criticism concerns mass tort debtors’ use of third-party releases: provisions in chapter 11 reorganization plans that enjoin creditors’ claims against non-debtor third parties. If a bankruptcy court approves such releases, creditors lose claims against the released third parties, which often include the debtor’s directors, insurers, or employees.

Third-party releases have troubled many. Critics and courts have said that third-party releases violate (1) the Bankruptcy Code, (2) bankruptcy policy, (3) the constitutional right to due process, …

The Lease Of All Evils: How A Middle-Ground Approach Can Resolve The Bankruptcy Code Conflict Between Section 363(F) Sales And Section 365(H) Lessee Protections, Kate Christensen

Fordham Journal of Corporate & Financial Law

The Fifth Circuit’s recent decision in In re Royal St. Bistro, LLC has awakened an unsettled issue in the Bankruptcy Code that has divided the bankruptcy community for over two decades. The question examined by the Fifth Circuit was whether a non-debtor lessee with a right to continued possession through section 365(h) of the Bankruptcy Code loses this right if the debtor-lessor can sell its property “free and clear” under section 363(f). While early decisions held that section 365(h) always protects lessees against debtors’ free and clear sales, some subsequent decisions created a circuit split by ruling that section 365(h) …

Chapter 13: Let’S Call The Whole Thing Off, Lawrence Ponoroff

Emory Bankruptcy Developments Journal

Courts cannot agree on much of anything about chapter 13, and legislators cannot agree and are confused over what to do about it. This state of affairs benefits no one and shows no signs of abating. So, in this Article, I propose to throw in the towel by imagining a world without chapter 13. Spoiler alert: although I am not superstitious, with just a few tweaks and tucks to chapter 7, I think the Bankruptcy Code might just be better off operating like a high-rise elevator that goes directly from floor twelve to floor fourteen. I will lay it out …

Bankrupting The Matrix: Daos And The Code, Ryan Levin

Emory Bankruptcy Developments Journal

The utilization of the novel Decentralized Autonomous Organization (“DAO”) structure to conduct business activity creates substantial challenges for the Bankruptcy Code (the “Code”). The characteristics of this unregulated, extralegal entity, built entirely on a blockchain and controlled by anonymous members through digital tokens, provides endless opportunities to avoid legal enforcement and exploit the Code. While the Code has provisions to apply to both individuals and organized actors, such as partnerships and corporations, neither DAOs nor their individual token holders fit neatly into these molds. When a DAO, or a DAO token holder, eventually faces bankruptcy, the current state of the …