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Bankruptcy Law Commons

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Bankruptcy Law

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Articles 91 - 120 of 192

Full-Text Articles in Bankruptcy Law

Corporate Cancellation Of Indebtedness Income And The Debt-Equity Distinction, Katherine Pratt Mar 2004

Corporate Cancellation Of Indebtedness Income And The Debt-Equity Distinction, Katherine Pratt

ExpressO

This Article considers whether a corporation should have cancellation of indebtedness income (COD income) when it issues new stock or debt in exchange for its outstanding debt. It challenges the conventional wisdom about our current tax treatment of these exchanges and suggests alternative approaches. It also stresses the relationship between the COD income rules and the corporate interest deduction rules, and highlights the error correction function of the COD income rules. The current COD income rules applicable in debt-for-debt and stock-for-debt exchanges were enacted without regard for certain economic incentives they create. Consideration of these economic incentives may warrant a …


Contracting Out Of Bankruptcy: An Empirical Intervention, Jay L. Westbrook, Elizabeth Warren Mar 2004

Contracting Out Of Bankruptcy: An Empirical Intervention, Jay L. Westbrook, Elizabeth Warren

ExpressO

No abstract provided.


The Role Of History And Culture In Developing Bankruptcy And Insolvency Systems, Nathalie Martin Mar 2004

The Role Of History And Culture In Developing Bankruptcy And Insolvency Systems, Nathalie Martin

ExpressO

No abstract provided.


Credible Coercion, Oren Bar-Gill, Omri Ben-Shahar Mar 2004

Credible Coercion, Oren Bar-Gill, Omri Ben-Shahar

Law & Economics Working Papers Archive: 2003-2009

The ideal of individual liberty and autonomy requires that society provide relief against coercion. In the law, this requirement is often translated into rules that operate “post-coercion” to undo the legal consequences of acts and promises extracted under duress. This Article argues that these ex-post anti-duress measures, rather than helping the coerced party, might in fact hurt her. When coercion is credible—when a credible threat to inflict an even worse outcome underlies the surrender of the coerced party—ex post relief will only induce the strong party to execute the threatened outcome, to the detriment of the coerced party. Anti-duress relief …


The Unfortunate Life And Merciful Death Of The Avoidance Powers Under Section 103 Of The Durbin-Delahunt Bill: What Were They Thinking?, (With C. Mooney, Jr.)., Steven L. Harris Feb 2004

The Unfortunate Life And Merciful Death Of The Avoidance Powers Under Section 103 Of The Durbin-Delahunt Bill: What Were They Thinking?, (With C. Mooney, Jr.)., Steven L. Harris

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


The Political Economy Of Property Exemption Laws, Richard M. Hynes, Anup Malani, Eric A. Posner Jan 2004

The Political Economy Of Property Exemption Laws, Richard M. Hynes, Anup Malani, Eric A. Posner

Faculty Publications

Exemption laws enable people who default on loans to protect certain assets from liquidation. Every state has its own set of exemption laws, and they vary widely. The 1978 federal bankruptcy law contains a set of national exemptions, which debtors in bankruptcy are permitted to use instead of their state's exemptions unless the state has formally "opted out" of the federal system. We contend that states' decisions to opt out shed light on their exemption levels. We find that states are more likely to opt out if their state exemption is lower than the federal exemption and that states are …


Overoptimism And Overborrowing, Richard M. Hynes Jan 2004

Overoptimism And Overborrowing, Richard M. Hynes

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Bankruptcy's Acephalous Moment: Postpetition Transfers Under The Bankruptcy Code, David G. Carlson Jan 2004

Bankruptcy's Acephalous Moment: Postpetition Transfers Under The Bankruptcy Code, David G. Carlson

Articles

No abstract provided.


Valuation Averaging: A New Procedure For Resolving Valuation Disputes, Keith Sharfman Dec 2003

Valuation Averaging: A New Procedure For Resolving Valuation Disputes, Keith Sharfman

Rutgers Law School (Newark) Faculty Papers

In this Article, Professor Sharfman addresses the problem of "discretionary valuation": that courts resolve valuation disputes arbitrarily and unpredictably, thus harming litigants and society. As a solution, he proposes the enactment of "valuation averaging," a new procedure for resolving valuation disputes modeled on the algorithmic valuation processes often agreed to by sophisticated private firms in advance of any dispute. He argues that by replacing the discretion of judges and juries with a mechanical valuation process, valuation averaging would cause litigants to introduce more plausible and conciliatory valuations into evidence and thereby reduce the cost of valuation litigation and increase the …


The Control Of Wealth In Bankruptcy, Jay L. Westbrook Oct 2003

The Control Of Wealth In Bankruptcy, Jay L. Westbrook

ExpressO

No abstract provided.


Behavioral Approach To Analyzing Corporate Failures, A. Mechele Dickerson Apr 2003

Behavioral Approach To Analyzing Corporate Failures, A. Mechele Dickerson

Faculty Publications

Recent corporate failures indicate that existing laws fail to give boards of directors adequate incentives to acknowledge that some financially troubled firms simply cannot be salvaged. Relying primarily on insights from law and behavioral science literature, this Article notes that directors have a natural tendency to underestimate risks and overestimate their ability to save an insolvent or near insolvent firm. This Article urges the imposition of a duty to file a timely bankruptcy petition because such a duty will encourage directors to consider the interests of all the firms' constituents, including workers, creditors, and the local community, when making decisions …


Approving Employee Retention And Severance Programs Judicial Discretion Run Amuck, A. Mechele Dickerson Apr 2003

Approving Employee Retention And Severance Programs Judicial Discretion Run Amuck, A. Mechele Dickerson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Muddy Property: Generating And Protecting Information Privacy Norms In Bankruptcy, Edward J. Janger Mar 2003

Muddy Property: Generating And Protecting Information Privacy Norms In Bankruptcy, Edward J. Janger

William & Mary Law Review

Bankruptcy law does not deal well with website promises to protect personal information. The legal treatment of privacy policies in bankruptcy currently turns on whether such policies are viewed as creating contract rights or property rights. Neither characterization fits well, and any attempt to shoehorn information privacy into either category has significant costs. Contract obligations are subject to discharge in bankruptcy, and any consumer expectations of privacy (contractual or otherwise) are likely to be defeated. By contrast, if personal information is deemed property of the website customer, information transfers that might benefit consumers will be stifled. This Article develops an …


Confusion And Solution: Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Trustee's Standard Of Care For Personal Liability, David P. Primack Feb 2002

Confusion And Solution: Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Trustee's Standard Of Care For Personal Liability, David P. Primack

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.


Optimal Bankruptcy In A Non-Optimal World, Richard M. Hynes Jan 2002

Optimal Bankruptcy In A Non-Optimal World, Richard M. Hynes

Faculty Publications

Consumer bankruptcy insures individuals against misfortune. Like other forms of insurance, bankruptcy reduces an individual's incentive to guard against misfortune and provides her with an incentive to overstate her need for relief. The "first-best," or optimal, bankruptcy system, like the first-best tax or public assistance system, solves these moral hazards without any loss of efficiency. In bankruptcy, this first-best approach would deny relief to debtors responsible for their own distress and reduce the deserving debtors' obligations to an amount commensurate with their ability to pay. While the Bankruptcy Code tries (in part) to follow this first-best approach, such a utopian …


Bankruptcy Reform: Does The End Justify The Means?, A. Mechele Dickerson Apr 2001

Bankruptcy Reform: Does The End Justify The Means?, A. Mechele Dickerson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


America's Uneasy Relationship With The Working Poor, A. Mechele Dickerson Nov 1999

America's Uneasy Relationship With The Working Poor, A. Mechele Dickerson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Bankruptcy's Organizing Principle, David G. Carlson Apr 1999

Bankruptcy's Organizing Principle, David G. Carlson

Articles

No abstract provided.


Flight And Fugitive Issues In Bankruptcy Fraud Cases, Angela J. Davis Jan 1999

Flight And Fugitive Issues In Bankruptcy Fraud Cases, Angela J. Davis

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

No abstract provided.


The Rotten Foundations Of Securitization, David Gray Carlson Apr 1998

The Rotten Foundations Of Securitization, David Gray Carlson

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.


Bright Lines Or Blurry Labels, Walter Effross Jan 1998

Bright Lines Or Blurry Labels, Walter Effross

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

Introduction:The emerging mathematical discipline of "fuzzy logic" has recently sparked dramatic efficiencies in modern industrial processes while inviting comparisons to the age-old philosophies of Taoism and Zen. As concepts of "fuzziness" have filtered from technical journals to popular science magazines to trade paperbacks, they have begun to appear in legal commentaries as well.


To Love, Honor, And (Oh) Pay: Should Spouses Be Forced To Pay Each Other's Debts?, A. Mechele Dickerson Jan 1998

To Love, Honor, And (Oh) Pay: Should Spouses Be Forced To Pay Each Other's Debts?, A. Mechele Dickerson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


Family Values And The Bankruptcy Code: A Proposal To Eliminate Bankruptcy Benefits Awarded On The Basis Of Marital Status, A. Mechele Dickerson Jan 1998

Family Values And The Bankruptcy Code: A Proposal To Eliminate Bankruptcy Benefits Awarded On The Basis Of Marital Status, A. Mechele Dickerson

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.


On Considering The Public Interest In Bankruptcy: Looking To The Railroads For Answers, Julie A. Veach Oct 1997

On Considering The Public Interest In Bankruptcy: Looking To The Railroads For Answers, Julie A. Veach

Indiana Law Journal

No abstract provided.


Christians V. Crystal Evangelical Free Church: Interpreting Rfra In The Battle Among God, The Government, And The Bankruptcy Code, Susan Franck Apr 1997

Christians V. Crystal Evangelical Free Church: Interpreting Rfra In The Battle Among God, The Government, And The Bankruptcy Code, Susan Franck

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

In keeping with their religious traditions as devout Protestants, Bruce and Nancy Young regularly gave to their church in New Hope, Minnesota. From February 1991 to February 1992, the Youngs tithed $13,450 to their church.' Unfortunately-due to financial difficulties--the Youngs filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in February 1992. Because the Youngs tithed the $13,450 while insolvent, the bankruptcy trustee for their estate initiated a proceeding to void the transfers and return the contributions to the estate.


Measuring The Social Costs And Benefits And Identifying The Victims Of Subordinating Security Interests In Bankruptcy, (With C. Mooney, Jr.). , Steven L. Harris Feb 1997

Measuring The Social Costs And Benefits And Identifying The Victims Of Subordinating Security Interests In Bankruptcy, (With C. Mooney, Jr.). , Steven L. Harris

All Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.


A Case Of Misplaced Priorities: A Proposed Solution To Resolve The Apparent Conflict Between Sections 507 And 1113 Of The Bankruptcy Code, Steven Kropp Jan 1997

A Case Of Misplaced Priorities: A Proposed Solution To Resolve The Apparent Conflict Between Sections 507 And 1113 Of The Bankruptcy Code, Steven Kropp

Cardozo Law Review

A single corporate bankruptcy is like a pebble thrown into a pond: the ripples keep extending out. Every bankruptcy filing has negative consequences for the corporation's creditors, including its workers. Indeed, a corporate bankruptcy may push many small creditors over the financial brink and even force some of them to file for bankruptcy.


Bankruptcy Law - Discharging Student Loans Under 11 U.S.C. 523(A)(8)(B): Find Some Dependents, Make A Few Payments And Disconnect The Cable Television (A Discussion Of Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency V. Faish (In Re Faish)), Jonathan L. Marsh Jan 1996

Bankruptcy Law - Discharging Student Loans Under 11 U.S.C. 523(A)(8)(B): Find Some Dependents, Make A Few Payments And Disconnect The Cable Television (A Discussion Of Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency V. Faish (In Re Faish)), Jonathan L. Marsh

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.


Ladies In Red: Learning From America's First Female Bankrupts, Marie Stefanini Newman Jan 1996

Ladies In Red: Learning From America's First Female Bankrupts, Marie Stefanini Newman

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Several years ago, the Honorable Joyce Bihary, a bankruptcy judge in Atlanta, Georgia, asked me3 why our country's first bankruptcy law specifically referred to debtors using “he” or “she” rather than a gender-neutral noun (such as “bankrupts”) or the male possessive pronoun “he.” Implicitly, she was also asking whether there were any women debtors under our early bankruptcy laws. Although I had read the Bankruptcy Act of 1800 more than once, I did not recollect its use of these gender-inclusive pronouns. Nor did I know why the Act employed them. Despite having given considerable thought to contemporary women in debt, …


The Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust: Lessons For The Future, Frank J. Macchiarola Jan 1996

The Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust: Lessons For The Future, Frank J. Macchiarola

Cardozo Law Review

I will outline the story of the Manville Personal Injury Settlement Trust. While reading this tale, I urge the reader to ask the following questions: Was the Trust procedure effective? Could other procedures have better resolved the difficulties faced by asbestos victims? Could these other procedures fit into the legal framework, or does equity demand that a workable solution fall outside the legal structure? Could the system developed for the Trust be adapted for future mass torts, or did it simply result from compromises that would not have occurred save for the fact that there was no "bottomless pit" of …