Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Publication Type
Articles 1 - 3 of 3
Full-Text Articles in Law
Pandemic Hope For Chapter 11 Financing, David A. Skeel Jr.
Pandemic Hope For Chapter 11 Financing, David A. Skeel Jr.
All Faculty Scholarship
One of the biggest surprises of the recent pandemic from a bankruptcy perspective has been the ready availability of financing. A variety of factors—such as an estimated $2.5 trillion in available funding at the outset of the crisis and the buoyant stock market—may have contributed. In this Essay, I focus on a less widely appreciated factor, a striking shift in the capital structure of many corporate debtors. Rather than borrowing from one group of lenders, debtors now often borrow from multiple groups of diverse lenders. Although the new capital structure complexity has downsides, it also could counteract a longstanding problem …
A Certainty Of Hopelessness: Adjustments To Student Exceptionalism In Bankruptcy Law, Jordan Higham, Jenica Bunderson
A Certainty Of Hopelessness: Adjustments To Student Exceptionalism In Bankruptcy Law, Jordan Higham, Jenica Bunderson
Brigham Young University Prelaw Review
For over forty years, student exceptionalism has been a crucial doctrine of U.S. bankruptcy law, stating that student debt can only be discharged in bankruptcy under extraordinary circumstances of undue hardship. This practice has been essential for the survival of the federal student loan program, however, the high and unclear standards for what constitutes undue hardship makes it almost impossible for even the most deserving debtors to discharge student debt. This paper explores the history of student exceptionalism and makes proposals for how to balance fairness between debtor and creditor.
Bankruptcy For Banks: A Tribute (And Little Plea) To Jay Westbrook, David A. Skeel Jr.
Bankruptcy For Banks: A Tribute (And Little Plea) To Jay Westbrook, David A. Skeel Jr.
All Faculty Scholarship
In this brief essay, to be included in a book celebrating the work of Jay Westbrook, I begin by surveying Jay’s wide-ranging contributions to bankruptcy scholarship. Jay’s functional analysis has had a profound effect on scholars’ understanding of key issues in domestic bankruptcy law, and Jay has been the leading scholarly figure on cross-border insolvency. After surveying Jay’s influence, I turn to the topic at hand: a proposed reform that would facilitate the use of bankruptcy to resolve the financial distress of large financial institutions. Jay has been a strong critic of this legislation, arguing that financial institutions need to …