Large Cap
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December 03, 2024
SVB Parent's Claims Tiff Headed Back To Bankruptcy Court
A New York federal judge has sent the question of whether Morgan Stanley can assert late claims in the Chapter 11 case of the former parent of Silicon Valley Bank back to the bankruptcy court, saying the court must first decide if it could have collected on the claims in the first place.
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December 03, 2024
Byju's Unit Trustee Calls Ch. 11 Stay Violation 'Egregious'
The Chapter 11 trustee of three units affiliated with Indian education technology giant Byju's told a Delaware bankruptcy judge on Tuesday that "egregious" and continuing violations of an automatic stay triggered by the affiliates' bankruptcy filings should be met with punitive damage sanctions.
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December 03, 2024
New Judges Include One Who Aided Puerto Rico Bondholders
The Senate on Tuesday confirmed two federal judges for Pennsylvania and one for the District of Columbia, who came under scrutiny during her confirmation hearing for her work at Jones Day.
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December 03, 2024
Catching Up With New Bankruptcy Case Action
In a more muted holiday week for bankruptcy filings, the courts still saw several cases come in, including the U.S. arm for iconic vodka brand Stoli and the Cayman Island subsidiaries of struggling budget airline Spirit.
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December 03, 2024
Alex Jones Atty Seeks Leniency Over Sandy Hook 'Mistake'
The lead attorney in Infowars host Alex Jones' $1.44 billion Connecticut defamation trial admits he "made a mistake" when he approved sending several Sandy Hook Elementary School victims' confidential records to other Jones attorneys, saying Tuesday he should receive either no discipline or a reprimand in a pared-down case.
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December 03, 2024
Celsius Founder Cops To Fraud That Sunk $25B Crypto Lender
Celsius Network founder Alex Mashinsky told a Manhattan federal judge Tuesday that he lied when he told the public that the fallen $25 billion crypto lender's tokens were a safe investment, pleading guilty to fraud charges ahead of a January criminal trial.
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December 02, 2024
Girardi Won't Get New Fraud Trial Despite Memory Claims
A California federal judge on Monday denied Tom Girardi's bid for a new trial after a jury found he misappropriated $15 million worth of client settlement funds, standing by a prior assessment that the disbarred attorney was "exaggerating" symptoms of mild cognitive impairment.
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December 02, 2024
Metropolitan Commercial Bank Aided Voyager Fraud, Suit Says
Voyager Digital's former bank, Metropolitan Commercial Bank, has been hit with a 53-count complaint in New York federal court alleging it was complicit in bad behavior by the now-defunct crypto lender and should be on the hook for repaying platform users.
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December 02, 2024
FDIC Must Face Some Of SVB Ex-Parent's Claims In $1.9B Suit
A California federal judge has pared down a lawsuit looking to force financial regulators that stepped in after the high-profile collapse of Silicon Valley Bank to return some $1.9 billion in frozen deposits to the bank's former operator as part of a multipronged effort to recover the funds.
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December 02, 2024
Deal Struck In Discount Chain Plan, No Sanctions In J&J Case
Holders of notes issued by 99 Cents Only will take a $297 million haircut, Beasley Allen dodged discovery sanctions in Johnson & Johnson's latest spinoff bankruptcy and a Mexican industrial equipment leasing group sought U.S. recognition for its reorganization. This is the week in bankruptcy.
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December 02, 2024
Airline GOL Linhas' Ch. 11 Deal Cuts Debt To Brazil By $750M
Low-cost Brazilian airline GOL Linhas has reached a settlement that will cut the amount of taxes and fees it owes to government agencies in Brazil by about $750 million, as it seeks to restructure in Chapter 11.
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December 02, 2024
Yellow Fights Teamsters' Call For 10th Circ. To Nix Claims
The Tenth Circuit should not pay mind to arguments from the Teamsters about upholding a lower court's dismissal of Yellow Corp.'s $137 million suit against the union, the company is arguing, doubling down on its claims that it was not required to exhaust the grievance process under a contract.
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December 02, 2024
Justices On Fence In Tax Clawback Case For Defunct Utah Co.
U.S. Supreme Court justices seemed divided during oral arguments Monday over whether the Tenth Circuit was correct to allow the bankruptcy trustee of a defunct Utah company to use state law to claw back $145,000 in federal taxes after the two-year deadline, a ruling that has created a 3-1 circuit split.
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December 02, 2024
Jackson Walker 'Extinguished' Privilege Over Judge Romance
An Oregon federal judge has said Holland & Knight LLP lawyers must turn over documents regarding their advice to Jackson Walker LLP on how to handle the "debacle" of a former firm partner's intimate relationship with a former bankruptcy judge, finding Jackson Walker has "utterly extinguished" any claim to attorney-client privilege.
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December 02, 2024
Bankrupt Dental Co. To Repay Customers $4.8M, NY AG Says
Dental telehealth company SmileDirectClub has agreed to pay $4.8 million in refunds to customers who were improperly charged after the company went bankrupt and shut down in 2023, according to a settlement announced Monday by New York Attorney General Letitia James.
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December 02, 2024
Long Island Diocese Ch. 11 Plan Sparks US Trustee Protest
The U.S. Trustee's Office has asked a New York bankruptcy judge to reject confirmation of a Long Island-based Roman Catholic diocese's Chapter 11 plan that some 99% of sexual abuse survivors support, arguing the deal violates a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision by proposing to shield third parties from abuse claims.
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November 27, 2024
Special Master In Citgo Sale Suit Goes Back To Drawing Board
The special master overseeing the sale of Citgo's parent company in a proceeding aimed at satisfying billions of dollars in Venezuelan debt has agreed to abandon his proposed sales plan after it became clear how little support it had garnered from creditors, he told a Delaware judge on Tuesday.
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November 27, 2024
Byju's Unit Trustee Seeks Sanctions For Ch. 11 Stay Violations
The Chapter 11 trustee for three U.S.-based subsidiaries of Indian educational technology giant Byju's has urged a Delaware bankruptcy judge to sanction a handful of parties that she alleged have violated an automatic stay by interfering with the Byju's units' property.
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November 27, 2024
Meet The Attorneys Directing CareMax's Ch. 11
A team of lawyers from Sidley Austin LLP is guiding medical services company CareMax Inc. as it plans to sell its assets during its Chapter 11 case in Delaware.
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November 27, 2024
Compass NJ Tapped To Sell $33M Miles Guo Mansion In Ch. 11
The trustee handling the Chapter 11 of exiled Chinese businessman and convicted fraudster Miles Guo asked the Connecticut bankruptcy court to let him hire four agents with residential real estate firm Compass to sell a historic 58-room mansion in Mahwah, New Jersey.
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November 27, 2024
Up Next At The High Court: Transgender Care, Holocaust Art
The U.S. Supreme Court will return to the bench Monday for its December arguments session, which will include blockbuster questions about the constitutionality of state laws banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors and whether Hungary can be held liable for property stolen during World War II.
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November 27, 2024
Tech Co. Afiniti Gets Ch. 15 Recognition Of Bermuda Reorg
A Delaware bankruptcy judge said she would recognize the Bermuda insolvency proceedings of software company Afiniti Ltd. as it seeks to restructure more than $500 million in debt.
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November 26, 2024
Mexican Lender Seeks US Recognition Of UK Reorg
The England and Wales-based subsidiary of a Mexican industrial equipment leasing and financing group has asked a New York bankruptcy court to grant Chapter 15 recognition of insolvency proceedings it launched in the U.K. to deal with about $351 million of debt.
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November 26, 2024
Purdue Wins Shortened Extension Of Ch. 11 Deal Talks
A New York bankruptcy judge on Tuesday granted Purdue Pharma LP more time to negotiate a new settlement with certain members of the Sackler family who own the bankrupt OxyContin maker, as mediators say they have ironed out a term sheet and are getting ever closer to finalizing a deal.
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November 26, 2024
Beasley Allen Escapes Sanctions For J&J Deposition No Show
A Texas bankruptcy judge on Tuesday laid ground rules for documents and communications to be shared in a messy discovery phase of the Chapter 11 of Red River Talc, Johnson & Johnson's latest liability spinoff, while also saying he wouldn't sanction a Beasley Allen attorney who didn't appear at a deposition last week.
Expert Analysis
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Revisiting Scalia's 'What's It To You?' After Kaiser Ruling
While the U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser allows insurers to be considered "parties in interest" in Chapter 11 cases, they still need to show they would face an injury in fact, answering the late Justice Antonin Scalia's "what's it to you?" question, say Brent Weisenberg and Jeff Prol at Lowenstein Sandler.
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Florida Banking Brief: All The Notable Legal Updates In Q2
The second quarter of 2024 brought two notable bills that will affect Florida's banking and finance community across many issues, including virtual currency abandonment, cancellation of financial services on the basis of political opinions, and the exemption amount of motor vehicles, say Joshua Prever and Andrew Balthazor at Holland & Knight.
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How To Clean Up Your Generative AI-Produced Legal Drafts
As law firms increasingly rely on generative artificial intelligence tools to produce legal text, attorneys should be on guard for the overuse of cohesive devices in initial drafts, and consider a few editing pointers to clean up AI’s repetitive and choppy outputs, says Ivy Grey at WordRake.
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Purdue Ch. 11 Ruling Reinforces Importance Of D&O Coverage
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma, holding that a Chapter 11 reorganization cannot discharge claims against a nondebtor without affected claimants' consent, will open new litigation pathways surrounding corporate insolvency and increase the importance of robust directors and officers insurance, says Evan Bolla at Harris St. Laurent.
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Atty Well-Being Efforts Ignore Root Causes Of The Problem
The legal industry is engaged in a critical conversation about lawyers' mental health, but current attorney well-being programs primarily focus on helping lawyers cope with the stress of excessive workloads, instead of examining whether this work culture is even fundamentally compatible with lawyer well-being, says Jonathan Baum at Avenir Guild.
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Parsing Justices' Toss Of Purdue's Controversial Ch. 11 Plan
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent nixing of OxyContin manufacturer Purdue Pharma's Chapter 11 proposal prevents the Sackler family from settling thousands of civil opioid lawsuits without the consent of all of the plaintiffs, and holds profound implications for bankruptcy cases, say attorneys at MoloLamken.
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No Matter The Purdue Ruling, Mass Tort Reform Is Needed
The U.S. Supreme Court will soon issue its opinion in the bankruptcy of Purdue Pharma LP, and regardless of the outcome, it’s clear legal and policy reforms are needed to address the next mass tort, says William Organek at Baruch College.
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How Associates Can Build A Professional Image
As hybrid work arrangements become the norm in the legal industry, early-career attorneys must be proactive in building and maintaining a professional presence in both physical and digital settings, ensuring that their image aligns with their long-term career goals, say Lana Manganiello at Equinox Strategy Partners and Estelle Winsett at Estelle Winsett Professional Image Consulting.
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Yellow Corp. Lease Assumption Shows Landlord Protections
Yellow Corp.’s recent filing of a motion to assume unexpired leases is a helpful reminder to practitioners to maintain a long-term approach about what is most beneficial for an estate and to not let a debtor's short-term cash position dictate business decisions, says Kyle Arendsen at Squire Patton.
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Insurers Have A Ch. 11 Voice Following High Court Ruling
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent ruling in Truck Insurance Exchange v. Kaiser Gypsum — which reaffirmed a broad definition of "party in interest" — will give insurers, particularly in mass tort Chapter 11 bankruptcies, more opportunity to protect their interests and identify problems with reorganization plans, says George Singer at Holland & Hart.
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Considerations For Cooperation Contracts In Loan Trades
Significant challenges to settling trades can arise when lenders of syndicated bank loans enter into defense-oriented cooperation agreements, which are growing in popularity, but working through these issues on the front end of a trade can save hours down the road, says Robert Waldner at Crowell & Moring.
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Firms Must Rethink How They Train New Lawyers In AI Age
As law firms begin to use generative artificial intelligence to complete lower-level legal tasks, they’ll need to consider new ways to train summer associates and early-career attorneys, keeping in mind the five stages of skill acquisition, says Liisa Thomas at Sheppard Mullin.
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Think Like A Lawyer: Always Be Closing
When a lawyer presents their case with the right propulsive structure throughout trial, there is little need for further argument after the close of evidence — and in fact, rehashing it all may test jurors’ patience — so attorneys should consider other strategies for closing arguments, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.