Bankruptcy & Insolvency Blog
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Bankruptcy Round-Up: In The News
Members of the Bankruptcy, Reorganization and Capital Recovery Group at Greenberg Glusker have been turned to for their thought leadership by several news outlets this year. Here is a round-up of our activity thus far: Brian Davidoff was quoted in Law360 in the article " Bankruptcy Cases And Trends...
When it Comes to Assuming Executory Contracts, a Default is a Default; But the Equities Still Matter
The recent decision of the Ninth Circuit in In re Hawkeye Entertainment, LLC contains a few important takeaways with respect to the treatment of executory contracts and unexpired leases under section 365 of the Bankruptcy Code. First, for purposes of section 365(b)(1), the Ninth Circuit has established that a default...
A Decline In Chapter 11 Filings Allows Attorneys to Utilize Their Skills Elsewhere
Due to its relation to the state of the economy, a bankruptcy lawyer’s practice can be highly cyclical – actually, counter-cyclical. In the last 30 years or so we have seen a number of economic downturns – the bankruptcy boom of the late ‘80’s/early ‘90’s; the dot-com bubble of the...
License Rights and Bankruptcy: No “Silver Linings”
The Third Circuit’s decision in Spyglass Media Company v. Cohen has added to what is already a tangled web of cases dealing with the rights of licensees and licensors when one of them becomes a debtor in bankruptcy. In Spyglass , Bruce Cohen, the producer of the acclaimed film...
Top 10 Takeaways: Predictions and Trends for Distressed Assets
On January 26, 2021, I participated in a distressed asset panel at the Dressed for Distressed Forum hosted by Commercial Observer along with Aaron Ratner of Empire State Realty Trust, Michael May of Silverstein Properties, and Robert Verrone of Iron Hound Management Company. Fred Berk of Friedman LLP moderated...
To Ship or Not to Ship: 3 FAQ’s for Creditors Seeking Guidance Before or During a Retail Bankruptcy
COVID-19 has impacted an already shaky retail industry and pushed some of its participants into a rapid-fire series of bankruptcy filings. Although there was already a long list of prominent retail bankruptcies over the past several years prior to “shelter at home” orders – e.g. Toys “R” Us, Gymboree, Payless (twice), Forever 21, Barneys, Brookstone, Sears, Pier 1 (the list goes on) – it is unlikely that we have...
What Commercial Landlords and Tenants Should Know About Tenant Bankruptcies Amid Restricted Evictions
Recent COVID-19-related orders from state and local authorities which restrict evictions raise important questions for commercial landlords and tenants. The relationship of these orders to a subsequent tenant bankruptcy is discussed here. The answer may very well depend on the precise language of the orders issued by the particular...
When Contracts and Bankruptcy Collide, a Short Term May Be Better in the Long Term
As we learned during the downturn in 2008, the economic climate can change rapidly. When things are going well, many businesses forget the lessons of the past. No matter what industry your business is in, there may be occasions when you are asked to enter into a relatively long-term...
The Ninth Circuit Loosens the Cap on Landlord Damages in In re Kupfer
Any property owner which has experienced the bankruptcy of a tenant is doubtless keenly aware of the limitation on damages which the Bankruptcy Code imposes on the landlord. A new decision by the Ninth Circuit bolsters the position of landlords in this long-running tussle. Section 502(b)(6) Cap Refresher Before...
November Surprise? Ninth Circuit Resurrects Post-Default Interest
The additional “default interest” owed when a borrower defaults under a loan agreement is a technical but highly critical part of any lending arrangement. This important “default interest” was the subject of a recent Ninth Circuit decision in which the Circuit made a nearly 180-degree u-turn away from its...
Who Says There Are No More Big Los Angeles Chapter 11 Cases?
On July 30, 2015, Relativity Media, along with 144 of its affiliates, filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The multi-million dollar entertainment company, which produced films such as The Social Network , The Fighter , Limitless , and others, is headquartered on Beverly Blvd. in Beverly Hills. As of the...
As Retail Bankruptcies Rise, Landlords Must Prepare
Commercial landlords should take notice. Within the last several months, one women’s clothing retailer after another has gone out of business. On Dec. 4, 2014, Philadelphia-based Deb Shops filed Chapter 11. Next came Delia’s , based in New York, which filed bankruptcy only four days later. On Jan. 9...
Retail Chapter 11 Filings Up, Bucking Bankruptcy Trends In Economic Recovery
The economy is humming along and bankruptcy filings are at historic lows. Nevertheless, a recent trend in retail may suggest that the times, they are a-changing. Radio Shack, the 95-year-old national chain that for many years was the “go-to” store for consumer electronics, has been in the headlines as a...
When Things Do Not Go As Planned In A Bankruptcy Sale
Editor’s note: this post originally appeared in Law360 . Buying distressed assets is big business. Many distressed assets are acquired through the seller’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy case. In those instances, a buyer will enter into a purchase and sale agreement with the seller/debtor and the agreement is generally subject to notice...
When One Solution Is Better Than Two
Over the years, clients have sought my advice after they have obtained a judgment against a limited liability company or a corporation and after they have tried, without success, to collect on that judgment. All of the typical judgment enforcement methods have already failed. Because judgment debtors generally do...
To Stalk Or Not To Stalk? — That is the Question in a 363 Sale
The biggest trend in Chapter 11 bankruptcies over the past 10 years is to sell assets through a “Section 363 sale,” named for Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code, which describes the standards for sales in bankruptcy court. Previously, in most Chapter 11 cases, the debtor would propose a...