Bankruptcy Generally

How much in punitive damages is enough to punish unlawful conduct and deter its repetition? $45 million was one bankruptcy court's opinion, in the case of a wrongful home foreclosure and eviction in knowing violation of the automatic stay.

The Second Circuit currently has a pending case (Anderson v. Credit One Bank, No. 16-2496) that raises the question of whether an alleged violation of the bankruptcy discharge injunction is subject to a predispute arbitration agreement. Professors Ralph Brubaker and Bruce Markell have joined me on an amicus brief explaining why the answer has to be "no." You can download the brief from SSRN.

Today in bankruptcy I taught In re Trump Entertainment Resorts, Inc. (Bankr. D. Del. Feb. 20, 2015).  The case isn't in my casebook (although some might notice that I presciently included in the problem sets a recurring character named Ronald Grump, a real estate developer with frequent bankruptcy dealings), but I added it to my syllabus this fall because of the election connection.

Bankruptcy filings by major cities have reinvigorated attention to municipal bankruptcy. As chapter 9 and its application have become more like chapter 11, a wide range of creditors are being swept into the process. As written before, city cases now have classes of general unsecured creditors.

The Second Circuit handed down its much-anticipated decision on the GM successor liability claims. Bottom line is that most, if not all, of the various claims against New GM are not barred by the Sale Order because of lack of procedural Due Process.  That said, there's a lot more in the ruling.  My thoughts below the break: