Contracts Commons^™

When Does Some Federal Interest Require A Different Result?: An Essay On The Use And Misuse Of Butner V. United States, Juliet Moringiello

Juliet M Moringiello

Thousands of judges and scholars have relied on the statement in the 1979 Supreme Court opinion in Butner v. United States that “property interests are created and defined by state law...unless some federal interest requires a different result.” Often, they cite to the statement as a policy constraint that elevates state property law over federal bankruptcy law. This Essay, written for the American Bankruptcy Institute – University of Illinois Symposium on Chapter 11 Reform, posits that the Butner rule is not as broadly applicable as commonly believed. To do so, the Essay surveys some notable uses and misuses of the …

Statutory Liens And The Bankruptcy Act: U.C.C. § 2-702 And Section 67(C), Robert Green

Robert A. Green

When Does Some Federal Interest Require A Different Result?: An Essay On The Use And Misuse Of Butner V. United States, Juliet Moringiello

Juliet M Moringiello

Thousands of judges and scholars have relied on the statement in the 1979 Supreme Court opinion in Butner v. United States that “property interests are created and defined by state law . . . unless some federal interest requires a different result.” Often, they cite to the statement as a policy constraint that elevates state property law over federal bankruptcy law. This Essay, written for the American Bankruptcy Institute – University of Illinois Symposium on Chapter 11 Reform, posits that the Butner rule is not as broadly applicable as commonly believed. To do so, the Essay surveys some notable uses …

'No Look' Attorneys' Fees And The Attorneys Who Are Looking: An Empirical Analysis Of Presumptively Approved Attorneys' Fees In Ch. 13 Bankruptcies And A Proposal For Reform, Bruce Price

Bruce M Price

This article presents original empirical research on the issue of “No Look” or presumptively approved attorneys’ fees in consumer Chapter 13 bankruptcy cases. 11 U.S.C. section 330 requires court approval of attorneys’ fees. Courts are frequently unable to address the volume of applications if individual review were required. As such, many courts have set presumptively approved attorneys’ fees in which the attorneys’ fees for routine services are approved administratively. Circuits are split as to whether this practice can be rationalized with existing case law, the Bankruptcy Code or legislative intent. The study examines the practices of each Bankruptcy Court and …

Halting, Altering And Agreeing, Bruce M. Price

Bruce M Price

Utilizing Felstiner, et al.'s Naming, Blaming and Claiming as a conceptual framework, I argue that the Chapter 11 bankruptcy process represents a dispute transformation mechanism. Disputes are transformed through a series of stages I call Halting, Altering and Agreeing. This transformative dispute process can be conceptualized as a form of disputing that accomplishes many of the goals of ADR, while avoiding the ideological and substantive critiques outlined by Harrington, Engle Merry, Yngvesson, and others. Finally, the development of this dispute mechanism is historically situated in light of the transition to the modern form of contract law and welfare state considerations …

Empirical And Policy Perspectives On Consumer Bankruptcy Law In The United States (In Endeudamiento Del Consumidor E Insolvencia Familiar), Melissa Jacoby

Melissa B. Jacoby

This chapter, published in Spanish, offers new empirical data from the U.S. on consumer bankruptcy filers from the 2007 Consumer Bankruptcy Project, an evaluation of the two-chapter bankruptcy system, and proposals for structural reform.

Exemptions, Margaret Howard

Margaret Howard

No abstract provided.