11th Circuit

The Absolute Priority Rule Is Alive and Well in Individual Chapter 11 Cases

The BAPCPA amendments in 2005 did not abrogate the absolute priority rule for individuals in chapter 11, Bankruptcy Judge Russin says.

Eleventh Circuit Narrowly Reads a State Fee-Shifting Statute

The lawsuit was under federal law, not state law, even though Section 544(b)(1) incorporated state fraudulent transfer law.
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Assets Purchased with Exempt Social Security Benefits Are Not Themselves Exempt

Two judges in Georgia say that personal property is not exempt even if the purchase was traceable to Social Security benefits.

Recoveries on Postpetition Tort Recoveries Do (Do Not) Belong to Creditors in ‘13’

Rather than invoking the best interests and disposable income tests for plan confirmation, the Eleventh Circuit may have departed from the statute by ruling that the ‘ability to pay’ gives postpetition tort claims to creditors in chapter 13.

Three Circuits Now Require Refunds for Overpayment of U.S. Trustee Fees

The government has filed a petition for certiorari raising the question of whether refunds are the proper remedy following the Supreme Court’s Siegel decision finding that the 2018 increase in U.S. Trustee fees was unconstitutional.
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A Writ of Possession Doesn’t Terminate a Lease or Preclude Assumption

A landlord who terminates a lease isn’t entitled to a claim for future rent, at least in Florida, according to a district judge who affirmed Bankruptcy Judge Isicoff.

Another Court Holds that Debts of Corporate Sub V Debtors Can’t Be Nondischargeable

Contrary to the Fourth Circuit, five bankruptcy courts have now held there’s no such thing as nondischargeability for corporate Sub V debtors. The question is now before the Fifth Circuit.

Notification of Bankruptcy Requires Lifting Garnishment of Post-Petition Income

Although the automatic stay does not require turning over property garnished before bankruptcy, a creditor may not continue garnishing property after filing, Judge Burgess says.

Renewing a Title Loan Just Before Chapter 13 Didn’t Make the Filing in Bad Faith

Ruling the other way would have barred chapter 13 filings after renewing title loans.

Eleventh Circuit Explains an Interlocutory Order Can Become ‘Final’ for an Appeal

Federal Rule 41(a)(1)(A) only permits voluntary dismissal of an entire action, not individual claims, the Eleventh Circuit says.
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