Law Commons^™

Inside Safe Assets, Anna Gelpern, Erik F. Gerding

Publications

“Safe assets” is a catch-all term to describe financial contracts that market participants treat as if they were risk-free. These may include government debt, bank deposits, and asset-backed securities, among others. The International Monetary Fund estimated potential safe assets at more than $114 trillion worldwide in 2011, more than seven times the U.S. economic output that year.

To treat any contract as if it were risk-free seems delusional after apparently super-safe public and private debt markets collapsed overnight. Nonetheless, safe asset supply and demand have been invoked to explain shadow banking, financial crises, and prolonged economic stagnation. The economic literature …

Calculating Exemptions In Bankruptcy: All Points Capital Corp. V Meyer, Roger Bernhardt

Publications

This article discusses a bankruptcy case involving 11USC §522(f)’s formula for avoiding judgment liens on properties in which the debtor holds only a partial interest.

Landlords Draws Upon Letters Of Credit In Bankruptcy: Redback Networks V Mayan Networks, 2004, Roger Bernhardt

Publications

This article discusses a California case where a landlord was entitled to fully draw down on a tenant’s letter of credit that was smaller than its rent claim and also smaller than a year’s rent.

Escrow Agent’S Duty Of Care To Nonparties: Summit Fin. Holdings V Continental Lawyers Title, (2001), Roger Bernhardt

Publications

This article discusses a California case which held that an escrow holder that who the principals’ escrow instructions owes no duty of care to nonparties to the escrow.

Postponement And Reinstatement Of Trustee Sales: Hicks V E.T. Legg, 2001, Roger Bernhardt

Publications

This article discusses a California case dealing with lender postponement and reinstatement issues prior to a foreclosure sale.

Antideficiency Rule Sanctions: In Re Prestige Ltd. Partnership-Concord, 2000, Roger Bernhardt

Publications

This article discusses a decision which held that a secured creditor who sues a debtor’s guarantor instead of foreclosing on security loses its security interest but may still recover the underlying debt in California.

Community Property Reimbursement, Roger Bernhardt

Publications

This article discusses how California community property rules intersect with dissolution and bankruptcy claims, dealing with the effect of a couple making the down payment with funds from one of the spouse’s parents.

Consumer Bankruptcy: A Roundtable Discussion, Janice E. Kosel

Publications

No abstract provided.

Limitations On Use Of The California Homestead Exemption In Bankruptcy Cases: The Case For Following In Re Pladson, Leslie Burton, Jeffrey C. Wurms

Publications

Two decisions, a 1991 California Court of Appeal decision, Spencer v. Lowery, and a 1993 United States District Court for the Northern District of California decision, In re Pladson, severely restricted the homestead exemption available in bankruptcy cases filed in California. Some bankruptcy courts have refused to follow the Spencer and Pladson cases and the California Legislature has passed new legislation on the use of the homestead exemption in bankruptcy. This article will explore the background and rationale of the decisions and the legislative scheme, and offer support for limiting the Homestead exemption in bankruptcy cases.