Mid Cap
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February 06, 2025
Earthlink Investors' Attys Score $28M In Merger Suit
The attorneys who helped Earthlink investors score an $85 million settlement with the company after they said they were tricked into approving a $1.1 billion merger with a failing telecommunications company will be walking away with almost $28 million for their trouble.
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February 06, 2025
First Mode Gets OK For Ch. 11 Plan Ballot, $15M Sale
Bankrupt electric-engine developer First Mode Holdings Inc. can seek votes for its Chapter 11 plan after a Delaware bankruptcy judge on Thursday overruled an objection from its unsecured creditors over the ballot's third-party releases.
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February 06, 2025
Old Eletson Seeks Pause In Ch. 11 Plan Enforcement
Former shareholders and executives of Greek shipping group Eletson Holdings Inc. asked a New York bankruptcy judge for more time to comply with last month's order directing them to assist in updating the reorganized company's address of record with the Liberian International Ship & Corporate Registry.
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February 06, 2025
Girardi's Mental Evaluation At NC Prison Extended By 15 Days
A California federal judge Thursday ordered Tom Girardi's psychiatric evaluation at a North Carolina federal prison to be extended by 15 days, and she also lectured Girardi's public defender while saying she "could not have imagined" why it took 17 days to get his client's medical records sent to the facility.
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February 06, 2025
NJ Flooring Co. Owner Can't Shake Biz Sales Tax Liabilities
A shuttered flooring company's sole shareholder is responsible for the company's sales and use tax liabilities that were outstanding after bankruptcy, a New Jersey state appeals court ruled, holding that the statute of limitations for issuing assessments didn't block the state from pursuing the taxes.
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February 06, 2025
Russia Sanctions, COVID Landed Plastic Suppliers In Ch. 11
Ohio-based compostable film producer Plastic Suppliers Inc., which has filed for Chapter 11 protection in New Jersey, says it was driven to bankruptcy by a confluence of factors, including a severe blow to its revenues delivered in part by U.S. sanctions on Russia.
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February 05, 2025
'Pay-To-Pay' Fees Are Unfair Debt Practice, 11th Circ. Rules
The Eleventh Circuit said a mortgage servicing company illegally charged borrowers fees for online and phone payments, upholding a Florida federal court's decision that it improperly collected so-called pay-to-pay convenience fees that were not expressly allowed by underlying loan agreements.
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February 05, 2025
US Trustee Blasts Releases In First Mode Ch. 11 Disclosures
The Office of the U.S. Trustee asked a Delaware bankruptcy judge to reject the Chapter 11 plan disclosure from bankrupt electric-engine developer First Mode Holdings Inc., arguing that it provides too little information on the third-party releases, uses a confusing ballot, and imposes involuntary third-party releases.
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February 05, 2025
Wave Of Defaults Looms For Fed's Main Street Loans
Some businesses that took out big loans backed by American taxpayers during the COVID-19 pandemic have gone bankrupt, and the stage is set for a wall of similar debt to start crashing later this year when large payments come due.
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February 05, 2025
Judge Nixes Jones' Ch. 7 Deal With Sandy Hook Families
A deal proposed by the Chapter 7 trustee in the bankruptcy case of right-wing conspiracy peddler Alex Jones that would have resolved the nearly $1.5 billion in claims held by the families of Sandy Hook school shooting victims failed to gain court approval Wednesday when a Texas judge said he couldn't grant the requested relief.
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February 05, 2025
Meet The Attys Helping Liberated Brands Through Ch. 11
Outdoor apparel retailer Liberated Brands LLC has assembled a team of attorneys from Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg LLP and Kirkland & Ellis LLP to guide the company through a Chapter 11 case aimed at winding down and selling parts of its business.
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February 05, 2025
Girardi Keese Trustee Sues NY Atty Who Funded Girardi
The bankruptcy trustee for disgraced California attorney Tom Girardi's defunct law firm is suing to prevent New York attorney Joseph DiNardo from discharging $7.5 million in his own bankruptcy, claiming DiNardo received the money by helping Girardi defraud his own clients.
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February 05, 2025
Lowenstein Sandler Aims To Combine Dueling Dispensary Suits
Lowenstein Sandler LLP has moved in New Jersey state court to consolidate its $800,000 legal fee case against a cannabis dispensary with a malpractice suit that the dispensary recently filed against it and handle the cases in Essex County.
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February 04, 2025
Catching Up With New Bankruptcy Case Action
A company that sells Volcom, RVCA and Billabong-branded clothes is seeking Chapter 11 protection after losing its key brand licensing agreements. Meanwhile, the owner of one of the world's largest cobalt processing plants entered bankruptcy with hopes of restructuring under a lender-backed plan.
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February 04, 2025
Liberated Brands Gets OK To Tap $25M In Ch. 11 Financing
A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Tuesday agreed to give interim approval for outdoors and athletic clothing retailer Liberated Brands LLC to access $25 million of its $35 million debtor-in-possession financing.
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February 04, 2025
Discount Retail Chain Bargain Hunt Hits Ch. 11
Discount retailer Bargain Hunt Stores, which operates almost 100 outlets, has entered bankruptcy in Tennessee with plans to shut its doors through Chapter 11.
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February 04, 2025
BAPCPA At 20: A Legacy Of Reform, Good And Bad
Two decades after Congress enacted the most sweeping changes to bankruptcy law in modern history, Americans are still dealing with its most enduring legacy: shutting out middle-class consumer debtors from Chapter 7 protection in the name of preventing abuse of the system.
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February 04, 2025
Commercial Ch. 11s Up 16%, Outpacing Individual Filings
Commercial Chapter 11 filings rose by 16% in January compared to the same month a year before, exceeding the increase in consumer bankruptcy filings over the same period, according to data provided by legal tech firm Epiq AACER.
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February 04, 2025
US Trustee Wants Stay For Container Store Plan Appeal
The U.S. Trustee's Office asked a Texas bankruptcy judge to put The Container Store's Chapter 11 plan on hold while it appeals his decision that a creditor's failure to opt out of the plan's third-party releases constitutes consent to those releases.
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February 04, 2025
Travel App Mondee's DIP, Sale Plan Abusive, Investor Says
A Mondee shareholder has alleged the insolvent travel app company's proposed debtor-in-possession financing and bidding procedures would violate the Bankruptcy Code by allowing the transfer of "substantially all" estate assets to an insider and certain creditors while shielding them from litigation, and that other parties would be left uncompensated.
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February 04, 2025
Guo Trustee Gets OK To Keep Law Firm Deal Sealed For Now
The Chapter 11 trustee overseeing convicted Chinese fraudster Miles Guo's bankruptcy estate can keep secret for 180 days an adversary proceeding settlement with a New York law firm because similar clawback cases should proceed without being impacted by the terms of the deal, a Connecticut bankruptcy judge has ruled.
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February 04, 2025
Bankruptcy Group Of The Year: Paul Hastings
Paul Hastings LLP spent 2024 representing renowned bankruptcy cases, including FTX, Core Scientific, WeWork and Diamond Sports Group's Chapter 11, helping various creditors recover billions of dollars and overcome challenging restructuring hurdles, earning the firm a spot as one of the 2024 Law360 Bankruptcy Groups of the Year.
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February 04, 2025
Judge Rejects Blink Fitness Ch. 11 Plan Exculpations
A Delaware bankruptcy judge Tuesday rejected Blink Fitness' request to shield the administrator of its Chapter 11 wind-down plan from legal liability, saying she can't release claims for future acts.
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February 04, 2025
King & Spalding Adds Restructuring Partners In New York
King & Spalding LLP said it has hired away two Alston & Bird partners for the firm's bankruptcy stable.
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February 03, 2025
Under The Radar: Bankruptcy News You May Have Missed
A New Jersey event venue, a lithium battery maker and the operator of one of the world's largest cobalt refineries hit Chapter 11; retailer Party City wants to beef up security for its current and former directors, citing threats of violence; and yet another former member of Byju's Alpha's top brass was sanctioned for contempt of court.
Expert Analysis
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Del. Ruling Shows Tension Between 363 Sale And Labor Law
The Delaware federal court's ruling in the Braeburn Alloy Steel case highlights the often overlooked collision between an unstayed order authorizing an asset sale free and clear of successor liability under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code and federal labor law imposing successor liability on the buyer, say attorneys at Proskauer.
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How Clients May Use AI To Monitor Attorneys
Excerpt from Practical Guidance
Artificial intelligence tools will increasingly enable clients to monitor and evaluate their counsel’s activities, so attorneys must clearly define the terms of engagement and likewise take advantage of the efficiencies offered by AI, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.
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Del. Insurance Co. Liquidation Reveals Recovery Strategies
Arrowood's recent liquidation in the Delaware Chancery Court offers a positive development for policyholders and claimants, providing access to guaranty association protections amid the company's demise, say Timothy Law and Ann Kramer at Reed Smith.
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The Pop Culture Docket: Judge D'Emic On Moby Grape
The 1968 Moby Grape song "Murder in My Heart for the Judge" tells the tale of a fictional defendant treated with scorn by the judge, illustrating how much the legal system has evolved in the past 50 years, largely due to problem-solving courts and the principles of procedural justice, says Kings County Supreme Court Administrative Judge Matthew D'Emic.
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Navigating Asset Tracing Challenges In Bankruptcy
A Virginia court’s recent ruling in Health Diagnostic Laboratory Inc.'s bankruptcy highlights the heightened demand for asset tracing and the strategic use of the lowest intermediate balance rule in recovering funds from commingled accounts, says Daniel Lowenthal at Patterson Belknap.
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Lender Agreements And Unitranche Facilities: A Fresh Look
Unitranche facilities — which offer blended interest rates in a single loan document — are gaining prevalence, and lenders and borrowers should understand their advantages, as well as concerns over the enforceability of a unitranche-style agreement among lenders in bankruptcy, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.
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What Banks Should Know About FDIC Assessment Rule
Max Bonici at Venable answers questions banking organizations may have about the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s recent approval of a rule implementing a special assessment on banks to recoup costs associated with protecting uninsured depositors after the bank failures earlier this year, and highlights other considerations for uninsured deposits.
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Performing Music Makes Me A Better Lawyer
The discipline of performing live music has directly and positively influenced my effectiveness as a litigator — serving as a reminder that practice, intuition and team building are all important elements of a successful law practice, says Jeff Wakolbinger at Bryan Cave.
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Bankruptcy Must Be On The Table As A Student Loan Solution
Amid the ongoing discourse on student loan forgiveness, borrowers must have a deeper understanding of U.S. Departments of Justice and Education guidance regarding how the government will agree to discharge loans in bankruptcy, or miss a life-changing opportunity currently available to regain control over their financial condition, say Jonathan Carson and Eric Kurtzman at Stretto.
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Breaking Down High Court's New Code Of Conduct
The U.S. Supreme Court recently adopted its first-ever code of conduct, and counsel will need to work closely with clients in navigating its provisions, from gift-giving to recusal bids, say Phillip Gordon and Mateo Forero at Holtzman Vogel.
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Rockport Ch. 11 Highlights Global Settlement Considerations
A Delaware bankruptcy court’s recent rejection of Rockport’s proposed settlement serves as a reminder that there is a risk that a global settlement executed outside of a plan may be rejected as a sub rosa plan, but shouldn’t dissuade parties from seeking relief when applicable case law supports approval, says Kyle Arendsen at Squire Patton.
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How Purdue High Court Case Will Shape Ch. 11 Mass Injury
The U.S. Supreme Court's recent arguments in Harrington v. Purdue Pharma, addressing the authority of bankruptcy courts to approve nonconsensual third-party releases in Chapter 11 settlement plans, highlight the case's wide-ranging implications for how mass injury cases get resolved in bankruptcy proceedings, says George Singer at Holland & Hart.
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Legal Profession Gender Parity Requires Equal Parental Leave
To truly foster equity in the legal profession and to promote attorney retention, workplaces need to better support all parents, regardless of gender — starting by offering equal and robust parental leave to both birthing and non-birthing parents, says Ali Spindler at Irwin Fritchie.