The Bankruptcy Reform and Consumer Protection Act which became effective on October 17, 2005 has been criticized for its lack of clear and concise language. One issue, concerning the limit of the value of homestead exemptions, has already been discussed in three conflicting opinions from Arizona and the Southern District of Florida.
Sections 522(p) [...]

IS GM NEXT?
Just wanted to pass along this short Reuters item. The SEC is looking into GM’s accounting practices in light of the Delphi banktupcy, fueling rumors that GM could find itself in Chapter 11 before long. GM has rubbished the rumors, but its potential liability (estimated at up to $12 billion) for some Delphi-connected [...]

On October 25, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld lower court decisions that drastically reduced the fees awarded to a financial consulting firm retained to represent a group of unsecured creditors in a bankruptcy proceeding. Houlihan, Lokey, Howard & Zukin Capital (”Houlihan”) had requested fees totaling $1,920,967.74; the Bankruptcy Court ultimately awarded $904,000.
As part [...]

The Delaware bankruptcy court has issued an interesting opinion regarding the ability of a winning bidder to receive an award of administrative expenses attributable to an entity attempting to purchase a debtor’s assets. In Women First Healthcare, Inc., the court had initially approved an asset sale to Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries, Ltd. (”Sun”), but before the [...]

Last Friday I had the opportunity to make a second presentation on the impact of the new bankruptcy law on businesses. The first seminar was held in Dallas and the second in Houston. It was also presented via video in San Antonio. Much has been written on the impact of the new law [...]

The deadline to file under the old bankruptcy laws has come and gone. Thousands of debtors lined up at the federal courts to make last minute filings while many of us were on Pacer for electronic filings. Now we wait and see how the Bankrutpcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 [...]

In In re Congoleum Corp., 2005 US App. Lexis 22066 (3rd Cir. 2005), the Court reversed a bankruptcy court decision authorizing the retention of a law firm that acted as counsel for the debtor pre-petition in negotiating settlement arrangements. The Court concluded that conflicts existed which precluded the firm’s retention under the Rules of [...]

From the Washington Post:
“And finally there is Refco, a major commodities broker that profited by borrowing and lending securities for hedge funds. Prosecutors say one of those funds, Liberty Corner Capital, engaged in offsetting transactions at the end of each quarter, and the beginning of the next, allowing Refco chief executive Phil R. Bennett to [...]

It’s official. We’re now living under The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention, Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA). Although we knew it was coming, many bankruptcy practitioners still have questions about exactly what this will mean for them and their practices.
One aspect of the BAPCPA that’s caused a great deal of consternation among bankruptcy practitioners is the [...]

Here is an article from the Houston Chronicle which addresses the high number of companies in the US which have had their debt downgraded to junk status. Their headline may be a bit overwrought, but they have a point:
“Companies have not been in such shape since the Depression …
Not since the Depression of 1929 [...]