5th Circuit

Highland Capital Makes Law Again, This Time on Bankruptcy Appellate Standing

The ‘possibility of harm’ won’t confer bankruptcy appellate standing, the Fifth Circuit says.
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‘Gatekeeping’ in the Fifth Circuit May Be Broader than Exculpations

Bankruptcy Judge Jernigan interprets the Fifth Circuit’s Highland Capital opinion to mean that gatekeeping protections are not limited to parties entitled to exculpation in the Fifth Circuit.

Nonseverability Won’t Make a Confirmation Appeal Equitably Moot in the Fifth Circuit

When it comes to overbroad exculpations and nondebtor releases, a nonseverability clause in a chapter 11 plan won’t invoke equitable mootness to dismiss an appeal from confirmation.

Sometimes, a Settlement with No Admission of Liability Can Be Nondischargeable

To avoid automatic nondischargeability, the debtor in the settlement of a fraud suit must deny liability.

Unlike the Eleventh Circuit, Barton Is Alive and Well in the Fifth Circuit

In a case irreconcilable with two recent opinions from the Eleventh Circuit, the Fifth Circuit invokes Barton to bar a lawsuit against a trustee after the bankruptcy case had been closed.
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A UCC Lien on ‘Accounts’ Won’t Attach to a Postpetition Sale of Real Property

Although a UCC lien on ‘accounts’ would attach outside of bankruptcy to proceeds from the sale of real property, Section 552(b) cuts off attachment if the sale occurs after filing

Burford Abstention Can Apply in Bankruptcy Alongside Abstention in 28 U.S.C. § 1334(c)

Interference with state regulators can compel a bankruptcy court to abstain, even if abstention was not required under 28 U.S.C. § 1334(c).
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Judge Gargotta Splits with the Fourth Circuit on Nondischargeability in Subchapter V

The Fourth Circuit had recently held that both individuals and corporations in subchapter V of chapter 11 are barred from discharging debts that are nondischargeable under Section 523(a).

‘Economic Unit Approach’ Best Fixes the Size of a ‘Household,’ Judge Larson Says

The IRS and Census methods for determining the size of a ‘household’ undercount or overcount economic realities, judge says.

Fifth Circuit Interprets Section 363(m) More Broadly than Other Circuits

Anything that is ‘integrally related’ to a sale is moot in the Fifth Circuit, according to a New Orleans district judge.

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