Court Administration

Consumers Paying Down Debt Helps Boost U.S. Expansion

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | October 16, 2012

October 16, 2012

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

CONSUMERS PAYING DOWN DEBT HELPS BOOST U.S. EXPANSION

Federal Reserve figures show that household debt as a share of disposable income sank to 113 percent in the second quarter from a record high of 134 percent in 2007 before the recession hit, Bloomberg News reported yesterday. Debt payments on that basis are the smallest in almost 18 years, while the delinquency rate for credit cards is the lowest since the end of 2008. The progress that consumers have been making will allow gross domestic product to absorb stepped-up deficit reduction by the federal government next year and keep on expanding, according to Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics Inc. He sees GDP growing 2.1 percent in 2013, a bit slower than this year’s projected 2.2 percent, as Congress allows some, but not all, of the scheduled year-end tax increases and spending cuts to go ahead. The GDP number will mask stronger growth for the private side of the economy, which Zandi expects to increase to 3.6 percent from 3.1 percent. Read more.

FED GOVERNOR'S PLAN TO LIMIT BANK SIZE FUELS DEBATE

While academics, politicians and even former bank chiefs have called for the nation's banking behemoths to be broken up or shrunk, Daniel K. Tarullo, a Federal Reserve governor who oversees bank regulation, said in a speech last week that an important part of a bank's balance sheet could be capped at a set percentage of the nation's gross domestic product, the New York Times DealBook blog reported yesterday. That a regulator at the Fed – the most powerful of the banking industry's overseers – would say that such a structural overhaul of the financial system might be considered was a sign that the policy debate over what to do about "too big to fail" might be shifting. Some Republicans looking to repeal the Dodd-Frank Act say that they still want to constrain large banks. Their concern is that the law may lead the market to believe that the government protects large banks. In turn, investors might then provide cheap loans to the biggest banks, fueling even more growth in the banks' balance sheets. "I am completely open to the proposal because of my similar concern about the growing size of institutions that are too big to fail," said Sen. David Vitter (R-La.). "Beyond this specific proposal, there is a growing nonpartisan consensus to do a lot more to limit the size of the megabanks." Read more.

BANKS SEE HOME LOANS AS GATEWAY TO BIG GAINS

Federal stimulus has ignited a boom in mortgage refinancing, and the trend could continue as the government steps up its support of the broad housing market, according to a report in the New York Times DealBook blog on Friday. In the third quarter, banks may have likely originated as much as $450 billion of home loans, according to estimates by Inside Mortgage Finance, a publication that tracks the industry. That figure, which includes both refinances of existing mortgages and new loans to buy a house, would be a considerable jump from the previous period. In the second quarter, banks originated $405 billion, with 68 percent in refinancings. In September, the Fed announced plans to buy large amounts of mortgage-backed bonds. The proposal has driven the price of such securities higher, letting banks earn an even bigger financial gain when they sell mortgages into the market. Read more.

ANALYSIS: FLIPPING HOUSES IS ONCE AGAIN A BOOMING BUSINESS

Flipping houses earned a bad reputation during the housing boom thanks to speculators who bought and sold millions of homes in search of easy profits, but the practice is gaining popularity again as the nation’s real estate market shows signs of life, the Washington Post reported yesterday. The number of flips rose 25 percent during the first half of 2012 from the same period a year earlier, according to research firm RealtyTrac, and the gross profit on each property averaged $29,342. Areas of the country that were hit particularly hard by the housing crash have seen the most pronounced boom in flipping, as investors gobble up foreclosures and short sales — properties sold for less than the owners owe on the mortgage — and resell them to buyers eager to take advantage of record-low interest rates. The Phoenix area leads the country with nearly 10,000 flipped properties during the first half of this year. Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami and Atlanta also are high on the list. Read more.

NEW JERSEY CASE MAY UPEND HOME LOAN DISCRIMINATION RULES

A fight between the government and residents of what remains of Mount Holly Gardens in New Jersey has now reached the U.S. Supreme Court, which may decide in the next several weeks whether to take up a case with nationwide implications for the housing industry, Bloomberg News reported yesterday. Civil rights advocates are battling the industry over whether the 1968 Fair Housing Act authorizes discrimination suits even without allegations of intentional bias. Lower courts have said that suits can claim that a government policy or company lending practice has a discriminatory effect, known as "disparate impact," even if that was not the intent. Mount Holly has been buying up what it says had become a blighted, high-crime neighborhood, with an eye toward redevelopment. The opponents say that the effort has hurt black and Hispanic residents, devastating the township's only predominantly minority neighborhood. Although the Mount Holly case involves municipal action, the U.S. Justice Department also enforces the disparate impact doctrine against financial institutions. The statute lacks the language supporting this doctrine, which Congress affirmatively included in other laws, so it should not apply, said Jeffrey Naimon, a banking attorney with BuckleySandler LLP. The courts have disagreed. "Allowing disparate impact claims under the FHA would render illegal many legitimate governmental and private activities designed to promote the general welfare of the community," Mount Holly argued in its appeal to the Supreme Court. Read more.

CFPB REPORT FINDS PRIVATE STUDENT LOAN BORROWERS FACE ROADBLOCKS TO REPAYMENT

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) Student Loan Ombudsman released a report today saying that private student loan borrowers are sometimes surprised by the terms and conditions of their loans, are given the runaround by their loan servicer and have few options to refinance or modify repayment for a better deal, insideARM.com reported. "Graduates don't have a fair chance to pay back their debts if they are faced with surprises, runarounds, and dead-ends by student loan servicers," said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. "Student loan borrower stories of detours and dead-ends with their servicers bear an uncanny resemblance to problematic practices uncovered in the mortgage servicing business," said CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman Rohit Chopra, who authored the report. Earlier this year, the CFPB announced that outstanding student loan debt crossed the $1 trillion mark. The Dodd-Frank Act established an ombudsman for student loans within the CFPB to assist borrowers with private student loan complaints. Today’s report, which was mandated by Congress, analyzed approximately 2,900 private student loan complaints, comments, and other submissions and input from borrowers. The report found that roughly 95 percent of the complaints are about loan servicing – when borrowers try to pay back their debt or are unable to pay. Read more.

Click here to read the CFPB report.

STUDY: WELL-OFF WILL BENEFIT MOST FROM CHANGE TO STUDENT DEBT RELIEF PLAN

While the federal government is making changes to its income-based student loan repayment plan to help borrowers with relatively high debt, a report released today by the New America Foundation, a nonprofit and nonpartisan policy institute, says that the changes ultimately will provide only marginal help for borrowers who are at the greatest risk of default, the New York Times reported. Rather, the changes would provide big benefits to middle- and high-income borrowers, particularly for those seeking a graduate degree, the authors found. The report says that at least one financial planning company is telling law school students that the changes could allow them to write off $100,000 in student debt. Under current rules, borrowers pay 15 percent of their discretionary income, based on a formula that is meant to exclude money spent on basic life necessities. The remaining balance and accrued interest is forgiven after 25 years of payments. The Obama administration is tweaking the program to lessen the burden for some borrowers by expediting changes that will reduce monthly payments from 15 percent of discretionary income to 10 percent and forgive outstanding balances after 20 years of payments, instead of 25 years. The New America Foundation report says the changes to income-based repayment could provide some benefits to all participants. But the primary beneficiaries would be high-income, high-debt participants who could make relatively small payments for 20 years and then have a large part of their debt forgiven, the authors said. Read more.

Click here to read the New America Foundation report.

WATCH COMMISSION HEARING LIVE TOMORROW!

ABI's Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11 will hold a public hearing tomorrow, October 17, at the LSTA Annual Conference in New York. The event will be live webcast beginning at 3:15 p.m. ET at the Commission's website (commission.abi.org).

SHOW YOUR SUPPORT FOR STEVEN GOLICK, A COLLEAGUE AND ABI LEADER

Our friend Steven Golick (Osler Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, Toronto) is facing a medical crisis. He has been diagnosed with a serious brain tumor, requiring complex surgery and treatment. Steven’s spirits are very strong and he and his family remain optimistic, but he can use our support. A prominent international restructuring attorney and an ABI member since 1994, Steven is also a founding member of the ABI house band, the Indubitable Equivalents. Because the band is important to Steven, his fellow band-mates have organized a new Blog site for Steven's friends and colleagues to show their love and support at this critical time. Please click on this link to share your thoughts with many others, and post as often as you'd like.

ABI IN-DEPTH

LATEST ABI PODCAST EXAMINES LITIGATION SURROUNDING THE DISSOLUTION OF A DISTRESSED LAW FIRM

The latest ABI podcast features Executive Director Sam Gerdano talking with Paul Hage of Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer & Weiss, PC (Southfield, Mich.) and Dylan Trache of Wiley Rein LLP (McLean, Va.) about unfinished business litigation and other issues surrounding the dissolution of a financially distressed law firm. Click here to listen.

MEMBERS WILL NOT WANT TO MISS ABI'S PROGRAM AT NCBJ'S ANNUAL MEETING ON OCT. 26

Members planning to attend the 86th Annual NCBJ Annual Conference in San Diego from Oct. 24-27 will not want to miss the exciting line-up scheduled for the ABI program track on Oct. 26. In addition to roundtable discussions on the hottest consumer and business bankruptcy topics, ABI will be hosting a ticketed luncheon that will feature the presentation of the 7th Annual Judge William L. Norton, Jr. Judicial Excellence Award and entertainment by Apollo Robbins, a sleight-of hand artist, security consultant and self-described gentleman thief. Click here to register for the Conference.

To view the list of ABI programs on Oct. 26 and the full NCBJ Annual Conference schedule, please click here.

ABI's Chapter 11 Reform Commission will also be holding a public hearing on Oct. 26 from 2:30-4:30 p.m. PT at the San Diego Marriott. Interested parties have the opportunity to submit testimony at the hearing. For further information, please contact ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano at [email protected].

LATEST CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: THE PRUDENTIAL INSURANCE COMPANY OF AMERICA V. CITY OF BOSTON (IN RE SW BOSTON HOTEL VENTURE LLC; 1ST CIR.)

Summarized by Neal Paul Donnelly of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware

In a dispute between a developer-debtor and its primary secured lender, the BAP affirmed the bankruptcy court's decision to calculate postpetition interest (§506(b)) owing to the lender at the contractual default rate. The BAP also reversed the lower court's ruling as to when the post-petition interest began accruing, finding that the lender had been oversecured since the petition date, so that was when the lender became entitled to interest payments under § 506(b).

There are more than 650 appellate opinions summarized on Volo, and summaries typically appear within 24 hours of the ruling. Click here regularly to view the latest case summaries on ABI’s Volo website.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: SUMMARY OF KEY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CHAPTER 9 AND CHAPTER 11 BANKRUPTCY

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent blog post summarizes several of the key differences between chapter 9 and chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Be sure to check the site several times each day; any time a contributing blog posts a new story, a link to the story will appear on the top. If you have a blog that deals with bankruptcy, or know of a good blog that should be part of the Bankruptcy Exchange, please contact the ABI Web team.

ABI Quick Poll

Bankruptcy courts should adopt formal loss mitigation procedures to facilitate the negotiation of residential mortgage modifications for consumer debtors.

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

HAVE YOU TUNED IN TO BLOOMBERG LAW'S VIDEO PODCASTS?

Bloomberg Law's video podcasts feature top experts speaking about current bankruptcy topics. The podcasts are available via Bloomberg Law's YouTube channel so that you can access the programs from your computer or device of your choice! Click here to view the Bloomberg Law video podcasts.

INSOL INTERNATIONAL

INSOL International is a worldwide federation of national associations for accountants and lawyers who specialize in turnaround and insolvency. There are currently 37 member associations worldwide with more than 9,000 professionals participating as members of INSOL International. As a member association of INSOL, ABI's members receive a discounted subscription rate. See ABI's enrollment page for details.

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THIS WEEK:

WATCH THE CHAPTER 11 COMMISSION HEARING LIVE TOMORROW AT 3:15 P.M. ET VIA WEBCAST!
CLICK HERE
Oct. 17, 2012

Oct. 18, 2012
Register Today!

ABI/ST. JOHN'S "BANKRUPTCY AND RACE: IS THERE A RELATION?" SYMPOSIUM
Oct. 19, 2012
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COMING UP:

ABI'S PROGRAM AT NCBJ'S ANNUAL MEETING
Oct. 26, 2012
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Nov. 7, 2012
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4TH ANNUAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Nov. 9, 2012
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Nov. 12, 2012
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Nov. 29 - Dec. 1, 2012
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Dec. 4-8, 2012
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Jan. 24-25, 2013
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Feb. 7-9, 2013
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Feb. 17-19, 2013
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

October
- International Insolvency and Restructuring Symposium
     October 18, 2012 | Rome, Italy
- ABI/St. John's "Bankruptcy and Race: Is There a Relation?" Symposium
     October 19, 2012 | Queens, N.Y.
- ABI Program at NCBJ's Annual Conference
     October 26, 2012 | San Diego, Calif.

November
- U.S./Mexico Restructuring Symposium
     November 7, 2012 | Mexico City, Mexico
- Professional Development Program
     November 9, 2012 | New York, N.Y.
- Detroit Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
     November 12, 2012 | Detroit, Mich.
- Winter Leadership Conference
     November 29 - December 1, 2012 | Tucson, Ariz.

December
- Forty-Hour Bankruptcy Mediation Training
December 4-8, 2012 | New York, N.Y.

2013

January
- Rocky Mountain Bankruptcy Conference
January 24-25, 2013 | Denver, Colo.

February
- Caribbean Insolvency Symposium
February 7-9, 2013 | Miami, Fla.
- Kansas City Advanced Consumer Bankruptcy Practice Institute
February 17-19, 2013 | Kansas City, Mo.

Read more about Consumers Paying Down Debt Helps Boost U.S. Expansion

State Bankruptcy Debate Returns

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | November 6 2012

November 13, 2012

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

STATE BANKRUPTCY DEBATE RETURNS

Nearly two years after a "fierce" debate that "fizzled as quickly as it started," University of Pennsylvania law professor David Skeel is arguing that the idea of giving states a way to file for bankruptcy remains relevant and necessary, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday. In addition to corporations and consumers, the Bankruptcy Code allows municipalities to seek chapter 9 protection. But there is currently no chapter set aside for states that find themselves teetering on the brink of insolvency, nor have states needed one. Yet with major budget deficits, underfunded pensions and declining tax revenues, some say that states should have a legal framework within which to restructure. Skeel advocated the idea of state bankruptcy in The Weekly Standard, as well as in the pages of the Wall Street Journal between November 2010 and January 2011, and the view picked up steam once Newt Gingrich and Jeb Bush added their voices. "Creditors of states have a great deal [of difficulty] collecting from the state," Skeel said recently in resurrecting the idea of state bankruptcy. "It's really hard to get a state to pay you because of sovereign immunity." Read more. (Subscription required.)

REGULATOR FACES ANOTHER LAWSUIT OVER DODD-FRANK

The Obama administration's new rules for Wall Street suffered another setback this week as the financial industry leveled a lawsuit challenging a crucial piece of the regulatory overhaul, the New York Times DealBook blog reported on Friday. The CME Group, a giant Chicago exchange, sued its regulator last Thursday over a new rule that aims to shed light on the murky derivatives trading industry. The regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, drafted the rule in January under guidance from the Dodd-Frank Act. The case is part of the financial industry's broader legal assault on Dodd-Frank. As regulators hash out the final details of some 400 rules, Wall Street has shifted the fight from backroom lobbying to the courtroom. The trading commission has already been sued twice over Dodd-Frank rules, and Wall Street plans to turn up the heat on the Obama administration next year with a bevy of other legal challenges. Read more.

ANALYSIS: CHILD'S EDUCATION, PARENTS' CRUSHING LOANS

There are record numbers of student borrowers in financial distress, but millions of parents who have taken out loans to pay for their children's college education make up a less-visible generation in debt, the New York Times reported yesterday. For the most part, these parents did well enough through midlife to take on sizable loans, but some have since fallen on tough times because of the recession, health problems, job loss or lives that took a sudden hard turn. In the first three months of this year, the number of student loan borrowers aged 60 and older was 2.2 million, a figure that has tripled since 2005. That makes them the fastest-growing age group for college debt. All told, those borrowers owe $43 billion, up from $8 billion seven years ago, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Read more.

TWO MILLION COULD LOSE UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS UNLESS CONGRESS EXTENDS PROGRAM

More than 2 million Americans stand to lose their jobless benefits unless Congress reauthorizes federal emergency unemployment help before the end of the year, the Washington Post reported today. The people in danger of having their unemployment checks cut off are among those who have benefited least from the slowly improving job market: Americans who have been out of work longer than six months. These workers have exhausted their state unemployment insurance, leaving them reliant on the federal program. In addition to those at risk of abruptly losing their benefits in December, 1 million people would have their checks curtailed by April if the program is not renewed, according to lawmakers and advocates pushing for an extension. Read more.

ANALYSIS: DEEP DISCOUNTS ON FORECLOSED HOMES DISAPPEARING

A market analysis by Zillow found that the average national discount on a foreclosure in September has fallen to only about 8 percent below market value, the Washington Post reported today. That is a significant change from the 24 percent average markdown reported in 2009 during the depths of the housing bust, and another signal that the country's housing market is inching toward recovery. "There’s no such thing as a fire sale on a foreclosure right now," said Marc Joseph, a real estate agent in Fort Myers, Fla. "We’re getting back to that point where if something good hits the markets, we’re getting multiple offers again." According to Zillow, the deepest discounts can be found on foreclosures in the Pittsburgh area, at 27 percent. Cleveland, Cincinnati and Baltimore have average markdowns on foreclosures topping 20 percent. But in many hard-hit markets, particularly ones where home prices fell sharply and investors and buyers have swooped in to buy up foreclosures, discounts have all but vanished. Zillow found that in Las Vegas and Phoenix, there is "no discernible difference" between foreclosure and non-foreclosure sales. Read more.

OPEN PUBLIC HEARING ON CHAPTER 11 REFORM AT ABI'S WINTER LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

ABI's Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11 will hold a public hearing on Friday, Nov. 30, at 11:15 a.m. (MT) during the Winter Leadership Conference in Tucson, Ariz., at the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort. Members are welcome to provide testimony on their suggestions for ways to improve the operation of chapter 11. The hearing is the fifth in a series of public field hearings. Statements and video from all the recent hearings can be found at the Commission website at http://commission.abi.org.

Interested members should contact Sam Gerdano at [email protected] for more details about in-person testimony. Those interested may also file written statements of any length for consideration by the Commission. All materials will be part of the Commission's record to be transmitted to Congress following the two-year investigation and report. Please consider this great opportunity to become part of the legal reform of the Bankruptcy Code.

The next public hearing will be Thursday, Nov. 15, at the CFA Annual Convention in Phoenix. For future Commission hearings, please click here: http://commission.abi.org/.

ABI IN-DEPTH

LATEST CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: OVERSTREET V. JOINT FACILITIES MANAGEMENT, LLC (IN RE CRESCENT RESOURCE LLC; 5TH CIR.)

Summarized by Eric Lockridge of Kean Miller LLP

The Fifth Circuit ruled that an untimely Rule 59(e) motion to alter or amend a district court's judgment affirming a bankruptcy court's dismissal order does not extend the 30-day deadline to file a notice of appeal of the district court's judgment.

There are nearly 700 appellate opinions summarized on Volo, and summaries typically appear within 24 hours of the ruling. Click here regularly to view the latest case summaries on ABI’s Volo website.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: DEWEY LEBOEUF AVOIDS LITIGATION MORASS OF MOST LAW FIRM BANKRUPTCY CASES

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent post examines how the settlement in the Dewey LeBoeuf case has helped the firm avoid the failures that typically produce lengthy and litigious bankruptcy cases. For more on issues related to large firm bankruptcies, listen to a recent ABI podcast here.

ABI Quick Poll

Despite the "free and clear" language of Sect. 363(f), purchasers of assets in 363 sales may still be liable for injuries to unidentifiable future claimants. (In re Grumman Olson Indus, S.D.N.Y.).

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

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NEXT EVENT:

Nov. 29 - Dec. 1, 2012
Register Today!

COMING UP:

Dec. 4-8, 2012
Register Today!

Jan. 21, 2013
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Jan. 24-25, 2013
Register Today!

Feb. 7-9, 2013
Register Today!

Feb. 17-19, 2013
Register Today!

Feb. 20-22, 2013
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

November
- Winter Leadership Conference
November 29 - December 1, 2012 | Tucson, Ariz.

December
- Forty-Hour Bankruptcy Mediation Training
December 4-8, 2012 | New York, N.Y.

2013

January
- Western Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
January 21, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.
- Rocky Mountain Bankruptcy Conference
January 24-25, 2013 | Denver, Colo.

February
- Caribbean Insolvency Symposium
     February 7-9, 2013 | Miami, Fla.
- Kansas City Advanced Consumer Bankruptcy Practice Institute
     February 17-19, 2013 | Kansas City, Mo.
- VALCON 2013
     February 20-22, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.

Read more about State Bankruptcy Debate Returns

February Bankruptcy Filings Decrease 21 Percent from Previous Year Commercial Filings Fall 29 Percent

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | March 5 2013

March 5, 2013

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

FEBRUARY BANKRUPTCY FILINGS DECREASE 21 PERCENT FROM PREVIOUS YEAR, COMMERCIAL FILINGS FALL 29 PERCENT

Total bankruptcy filings in the United States decreased 21 percent in February over last year, according to data provided by Epiq Systems, Inc. Bankruptcy filings totaled 82,285 in February 2013, down from the February 2012 total of 104,537. Consumer filings declined 21 percent to 78,611 from the February 2012 consumer filing total of 99,378. Total commercial filings in February 2013 decreased to 3,674, representing a 29 percent decline from the 5,159 business filings recorded in February 2012. Total commercial chapter 11 filings also decreased 21 percent, to 609 filings in February from the 756 commercial chapter 11 filings recorded in February 2012.

While bankruptcies were down from a year ago, February’s bankruptcy filings trended upward from January. Total bankruptcy filings for the month of February represented a 5 percent increase over the 78,565 total filings registered in January 2013. The total noncommercial filings for February also represented a 5 percent increase from the January 2013 noncommercial filing total of 74,831. Although the February commercial filing total represented a 2 percent decline from the January 2013 commercial filing total of 3,734, February commercial chapter 11 filings represented a 27 percent increase when compared to the 481 filings the previous month. Read the ABI press release.

STATES, PRIVATE PLAINTIFFS PRESS SUIT AGAINST WALL STREET REFORM LAW

The plaintiffs that are challenging the constitutionality of the Wall Street reform law and the leadership of the Obama administration's new consumer protection agency are fighting to keep alive a suit in Washington, D.C., federal district court, the Legal Times reported on Friday. The private plaintiffs, including advocacy group Competitive Enterprise Institute and Texas-based State National Bank of Big Spring, on Feb. 27 responded to the U.S. Justice Department's effort to end the litigation. The 11 states that have joined the suit include Texas, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Michigan, and Ohio. The attorneys for the private plaintiffs, including O'Melveny & Myers partner Gregory Jacob and C. Boyden Gray, said in their court papers that the plaintiffs have presented sufficient evidence that the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act gave "unchecked and unprecedented powers" to federal agencies, including the newly created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The states that joined the lawsuit are only challenging the government's ability to liquidate the largest banks, not the composition of the CFPB. Read more.

COMMENTARY: BLEEDING THE BORROWER DRY

Though 15 states have banned predatory, high-interest loans that payday lenders commonly use to pillage low-income borrowers, offshore lenders increasingly get around state laws by issuing predatory loans over the Internet, according to an editorial in yesterday's New York Times. About 12 million borrowers turn to payday lenders each year. A new study by the Pew Charitable Trusts found that only about 14 percent of borrowers can afford to take enough out of their monthly budget to repay the average payday loan. Instead, average borrowers carry a debt for five months, during which time they pay repeated fees to renew the loan. By the fifth month, someone who borrowed $375 will have paid about $520 in interest alone. Many also resort to borrowing from additional payday lenders. Not surprisingly, payday borrowers are more likely than others to default on credit card debt, to file for bankruptcy or to lose their bank accounts because of abuse of overdraft privileges. A bill pending in the Senate known as the Safe Lending Act would require all online lenders to comply with state laws that provide stronger consumer protections than the federal statutes. It would establish once and for all that payday loan borrowers have the right to stop lenders from raiding their bank accounts. State and federal regulators also need to prohibit banks from giving payday lenders access to the automatic payment system in states where predatory, high-interest loans are illegal. Read the full editorial.

REPORT: YOUNG ADULTS RETREAT FROM PILING UP DEBT

Young people are racking up larger amounts of student debt than ever before, but fresh data suggest they are becoming warier of other kinds of borrowing: Total debt among young adults dropped in the last decade to the lowest level in 15 years, the Wall Street Journal reported today. A typical young U.S. household—defined as one led by someone under age 35—had $15,000 in total debt in 2010, down from $18,000 in 2001 and the lowest since 1995, according to a recent Pew Research Center report and government data. Total debt includes mortgage loans, credit cards, auto lending, student loans and other consumer borrowing. In addition, fewer young adults carried credit card balances, and 22 percent did not have any debt at all in 2010—the most since government tracking began in 1983. Read more. (Subscription required.)

ANALYSIS: MOST BIG M&A DEALS FACED LEGAL CHALLENGES IN 2012

A study released by Cornerstone Research on Thursday found that it was rare for a merger or acquisition deal in 2012 to escape legal challenges from shareholders, Corporate Counsel reported on Friday. Nearly 96 percent of M&A deals valued at more than $500 million and 93 percent of those valued at more than $100 million engendered suits, according to Cornerstone's report titled, "Shareholder Litigation Involving Mergers and Acquisitions." On average, the report found that deals attracted more than 4.8 suits per transaction, with some filed within hours after an announcement. The average time between announcement of a deal and commencement of a legal challenge was 14 days, the report said. Read more.

DON’T MISS THE ABI LIVE WEBINAR ON APRIL 5 - "LEGACY LIABILITIES: DEALING WITH ENVIRONMENTAL, PENSION, UNION AND SIMILAR TYPES OF CLAIMS"

A panel of experts has been assembled for a webinar on April 5 from 1-2:15 p.m. ET to discuss environmental and pension liabilities, the statutory schemes under which these liabilities arise and the key players involved. Are non-monetary environmental claims dischargeable? Do post-petition expenditures for environmental cleanup constitute administrative expenses? When can an employer terminate a pension plan in bankruptcy, what is the process and what are the consequences? Learn the answer to these questions and more from the comfort of your own office. Special ABI member rate is available! Register here as this webinar is sure to sell out.

ABI'S ANNUAL SPRING MEETING: CONSUMER PROGRAMMING WITH CROSS-OVER APPEAL

With four session tracks looking at issues geared toward chapter 11 restructurings, financial advisors, professional development and consumer bankruptcy, a number of sessions at ABI's Annual Spring Meeting have cross-over appeal for both consumer and business practitioners. Sessions include:

• The Appellate Process: This distinguished panel will explore recent issues in appellate practice that are of interest to both consumer and business practitioners, including the ability to bypass intermediary appellate courts and take appeals directly to the circuit courts.

• Consumer Class Actions: This panel will explore the potential benefits and pitfalls of class actions by debtors/trustees against creditors in chapter 13 cases, which are highlighted by two recent decisions of the Fifth Circuit. Many of the issues discussed during this panel will be useful in business cases as well.

• The Individual Conundrum - Chapter 7, 11 or 13?: Deciding on the appropriate chapter for a high net worth individual contemplating a bankruptcy filing can be a daunting task. This panel will explore the considerations that guide the practitioner in advising individual clients in making this decision.

To register for the Annual Spring Meeting and to see the full schedule of program tracks and events, please click here.

ABI IN-DEPTH

MARK YOUR CALENDARS FOR APRIL 10 TO TAKE PART IN ABI’S LIVE WEBINAR "STUDENT LOANS: BANKRUPTCY MAY NOT HAVE THE ANSWERS – BUT DOES CONGRESS?"

Do not miss the "Student Loans: Bankruptcy May Not Have the Answers - But Does Congress?" webinar presented by ABI's Consumer Bankruptcy Committee on April 10 from noon-1:15 ET. ABI's panel of experts will provide an overview of the student loan industry, examine the numbers behind and causes of student loan debt, and discuss federal loan programs as well as federal consolidation and forgiveness programs. Faculty on the webinar includes:

Prof. Daniel A. Austin of Northeastern University School of Law (Boston)
Edward "Ted" M. King of Frost Brown Todd LLC (Louisville, Ky.)
Craig Zimmerman of the Law Offices of Craig Zimmerman (Santa Ana, Calif.)

CLE credit will be available for the webinar. This webinar is sure to sell out; register now for the special ABI member rate of $75!

NEW BANKRUPTCY PROFESSIONALS: DON'T MISS THE NUTS AND BOLTS PROGRAM AT ABI'S ANNUAL SPRING MEETING! SPECIAL PRICING IF YOU ARE AN ASM REGISTRANT!

An outstanding faculty of judges and practitioners explains the fundamentals of bankruptcy in a one-day Nuts and Bolts program on April 18 being held in conjunction with ABI's Annual Spring Meeting. Ideal training for junior professionals or those new to this practice area!

The morning session covers concepts all bankruptcy practitioners need to know, and the afternoon session splits into concurrent tracks, focusing on consumer and business issues. The session will include written materials, practice tip sessions with bankruptcy judges, continental breakfast and a reception after the program. Click here to register!

LATEST CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: PAUL V. ALLRED (IN RE PAUL; 8TH CIR.)

Summarized by Michael Tamburini of Polsinelli Shughart, PC

The BAP affirmed the order of the bankruptcy court concluding that the debtor had abandoned the subject property as his homestead, and therefore was not permitted to claim a homestead exemption on it.

There are more than 750 appellate opinions summarized on Volo, and summaries typically appear within 24 hours of the ruling. Click here regularly to view the latest case summaries on ABI’s Volo website.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: ASSIGNMENT OF RENTS: GOVERNMENT BENEFIT CARDS CAN OPEN DOORS TO BANKING SYSTEM

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. Cards preloaded with unemployment insurance, child support, food stamps and other government benefits can be viewed as potential bank accounts, waiting to be opened by people with the fewest quality opportunities to connect to the financial mainstream, according to a recent blog post.

ABI Quick Poll

As a result of the RadLAX decision, the right to credit-bid will likely chill bidding at auctions, as potential purchasers may be dissuaded from participating in the bidding process.

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

2013

March
- 37th Annual Alexander L. Paskay Seminar on Bankruptcy Law and Practice
March 7-9, 2013 | St. Petersburg, Fla.
- Bankruptcy Battleground West
March 22, 2013 | Los Angeles, Calif.

April
- ABI Live Webinar: "Legacy Liabilities : Dealing with Environmental, Pension, Union and Similar Types of Claims"
     April 5, 2013
- ABI Live Webinar: "Student Loans: Bankruptcy May Not Have the Answers - But Does Congress?"
     April 10, 2013
- "Nuts and Bolts" Program at ASM
     April 18, 2013 | National Harbor, Md.
- Annual Spring Meeting
     April 18-21, 2013 | National Harbor, Md.

May
- "Nuts and Bolts" Program at NYCBC
     May 15, 2013 | New York, N.Y.
- ABI Endowment Cocktail Reception
     May 15, 2013 | New York, N.Y.
- New York City Bankruptcy Conference
     May 16, 2013 | New York, N.Y.
- Litigation Skills Symposium
     May 21-24, 2013 | Dallas, Texas

June
- Memphis Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
June 7, 2013 | Memphis, Tenn.
- Central States Bankruptcy Workshop
June 13-16, 2013 | Grand Traverse, Mich.

Read more about February Bankruptcy Filings Decrease 21 Percent from Previous Year Commercial Filings Fall 29 Percent

Analysis Financial Reform Battle Continues over Dodd-Frank Law

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | January 3 2013

January 3, 2013

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

ANALYSIS: FINANCIAL REFORM BATTLE CONTINUES OVER DODD-FRANK LAW

The fate of financial reform may be decided in the coming year as congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle attempt to modify the Dodd-Frank Act, the Washington Post reported today. In the two years since Congress passed the far-reaching regulatory overhaul, lawmakers have railed against the law for either not going far enough to reform Wall Street or being too burdensome to the industry. Republicans have sought to dismantle Dodd-Frank through a series of failed bills, placing Democrats on the defensive despite their own misgivings about the law. GOP leaders tucked language into the failed “fiscal cliff” bill that would have cut automatic funding to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and stripped regulators of the power to unwind "too-big-to-fail" institutions. Meanwhile, the Senate unanimously passed a bill on Dec. 28 that would direct the Government Accountability Office to examine the economic benefits large banks receive for being "too big to fail." The bill, sponsored by Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and David Vitter (R-La.), asks the agency to study whether institutions with more than $500 billion in assets enjoy favorable pricing on their debt because of perceptions that the government will always step in to prevent their collapse. It is unclear whether the House will take up the bill in the next session, but advocates of reform are encouraged by the bipartisan support in the Senate. Read more.

MORTGAGE-FEE PLAN FACES PUSHBACK

The federal regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is running into opposition from lawmakers, state attorneys general and consumer advocates over a proposal to raise fees on loans in five states where foreclosures take the longest, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Officials in the states—New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Connecticut and Florida—say that the proposal by the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) would unfairly punish them for taking steps to protect borrowers from wrongful foreclosures. The five states are "judicial" states where lenders must seek court approval before a foreclosure can be completed. This can make the foreclosure process take longer, and the FHFA says that the delays cause Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to lose more money on foreclosures in those states. Read more. (Subscription required.)

ANALYSIS: RISK SEEN IN SOME MORTGAGE BONDS

After a surge in bonds backed by mortgages on commercial properties, some investors are finding cracks in the foundations, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Investors flocked to these bonds, which are made up of pools of loans linked to properties such as shopping malls and hotels, because of the relatively high yields they offered. But that demand has sent prices soaring, and yields tumbling to record lows. As well, some investors remain worried that defaults on these loans remain at historically high rates. In November, 9.71 percent of commercial-mortgage loans tied to these securities were at least 30 days delinquent, according to data provider Trepp. Delinquency rates were below 1 percent in October 2008. Nevertheless, investors are buying both older bonds, which were issued when underwriting standards were looser, as well as new ones. Sales of such bonds rose 46 percent to $44 billion in 2012, according to data provider Commercial Mortgage Alert. Richard Hill, a strategist at RBS Securities in Stamford, Conn., forecasts sales will rise to $65 billion in 2013, the highest since the record high of $228 billion in 2007. Read more. (Subscription required.)

ABA: CONSUMERS PAYING DOWN DEBT DESPITE OBSTACLES

The American Bankers Association said today that consumers continued to pay down debt in the third quarter of 2012, but slow job growth and the expiration of a tax cut could mean it will become more difficult to repay loans, Reuters reported. The composite ratio's delinquency rate fell to 2.16 percent of all accounts in the third quarter from 2.24 percent in the second quarter, the ABA said. Bank card delinquencies, which are not part of the composite, fell to 2.75 percent during the quarter, the lowest level since 1994, the group said. Read more.

COMMENTARY: WHAT IS INSIDE AMERICA'S BANKS?

Though the nation's political leaders and bankers have made efforts over the past four years to save the financial industry, clean up the banks, and reform regulation in order to restore trust and confidence in the American financial system, more work is still needed, according to a commentary in the latest edition of the Atlantic Monthly. Banks today are bigger and more opaque than ever, and they continue to behave in many of the same ways they did before the 2008 crash, according to the commentary. According to Gallup, back in the late 1970s, three out of five Americans said that they trusted big banks “a great deal” or “quite a lot.” Since the financial crisis of 2008, trust has evaporated as fewer than one in four respondents in June 2012 told Gallup that they had faith in big banks—a record low. A recent survey by Barclays Capital found that more than half of institutional investors did not trust how banks measure the riskiness of their assets. When hedge-fund managers were asked how trustworthy they find “risk weightings”—the numbers that banks use to calculate how much capital they should set aside as a safety cushion in case of a business downturn—about 60 percent of those managers answered 1 or 2 on a five-point scale, with 1 being “not trustworthy at all.” None of them gave banks a 5. At the heart of the problem is a worry about the accuracy of banks’ financial statements. Accounting rules have proliferated as banks, and the assets and liabilities they contain, have become more complex. Yet the rules have not kept pace with changes in the financial system, according to the commentary. Read the full commentary.

OUTLOOK FOR 2013 RESTRUCTURINGS, PROVIDED BY BLOOMBERG BRIEF

Read what leading restructuring professionals are saying about the coming activity predicted for the retail, real estate, financial services and energy industries this year. Also explore a comprehensive 2012 bankruptcy year-in-review with charts, tables and data. The report is provided as an exclusive to ABI members by our partners at Bloomberg Brief. To download your copy of the “Bloomberg Brief Bankruptcy & Restructuring 2012 Review & 2013 Outlook” report, please click here.

For more on the 2013 bankruptcy outlook, be sure to watch Bloomberg Law Bankruptcy Columnist Bill Rochelle’s latest video post.

ABI IN-DEPTH

LATEST CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: VIEIRA V. ANDERSON (IN RE BEACH FIRST NATIONAL BANCSHARES INC.; 4TH CIR.)

Summarized by Jennifer Lyday of Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, LLP

The Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's judgment, which dismissed the trustee's complaint for negligence and breach of fiduciary duty against the former officers and directors of a now bankrupt bank because the trustee did not have standing to bring the derivative claims under FIRREA as the right to pursue such claims belongs to the FDIC, regardless of whether the FDIC wishes to pursue the claims.

There are more than 700 appellate opinions summarized on Volo, and summaries typically appear within 24 hours of the ruling. Click here regularly to view the latest case summaries on ABI’s Volo website.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: COULD 2013 SEE LEHMAN BEING PUT BACK TOGETHER AGAIN?

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent blog features experts offering their predictions for 2013, including the possible reconstitution of Lehman Brothers.

ABI Quick Poll

A licensee of a trademark has the right to retain the license even when a debtor rejects the underlying contract creating the license. (Sunbeam Products, 7th Cir.)

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

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March 22, 2013
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April 18-21, 2013
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

2013

January
- Western Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
January 21, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.
- Rocky Mountain Bankruptcy Conference
January 24-25, 2013 | Denver, Colo.

February
- Caribbean Insolvency Symposium
February 7-9, 2013 | Miami, Fla.
- Kansas City Advanced Consumer Bankruptcy Practice Institute
February 17-19, 2013 | Kansas City, Mo.

- VALCON 2013
February 20-22, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.

March
- 37th Annual Alexander L. Paskay Seminar on Bankruptcy Law and Practice
March 7-9, 2013 | St. Petersburg, Fla.
- Bankruptcy Battleground West
March 22, 2013 | Los Angeles, Calif.

April
- Annual Spring Meeting
April 18-21, 2013 | National Harbor, Md.

Read more about Analysis Financial Reform Battle Continues over Dodd-Frank Law

Revamped Consumer Bankruptcy Forms Out for Public Comment

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | January 8 2013

January 8, 2013

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

REVAMPED CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY FORMS OUT FOR PUBLIC COMMENT

The Judicial Conference Committee on Rules of Practice and Procedure is asking for comment on the first proposed modernization of bankruptcy forms in two decades, according to a Department of Justice press release today. The revised forms, published for comment, are all used by individual debtors and include the fee waiver and installment fee forms, income and expense forms, and the means test forms, replacing previous forms. The comments, submitted by the public, will be reviewed over the coming months and will be used to fine-tune the forms. The deadline for submitting comments is Feb. 15. Click here to review the revised forms.

ANALYSIS: APPEALS COURT RULING ON ROTHSTEIN FORFEITURE COULD SET PRECEDENT IN BANKRUPTCY CASES

A new federal court case could overturn U.S. District Judge James Cohn's 2009 decision allocating which victims of Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein would receive proceeds from an asset sale, the South Florida Business Journal reported yesterday. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit could rule instead that a bankruptcy trustee overseeing the dissolution of Rothstein’s defunct law firm, Hebert Stettin, had the authority to corral and distribute Rothstein's loot. The outcome of the case could set a precedent that would further define the powers of a bankruptcy court-appointed trustee versus the U.S. Department of Justice in a complicated financial criminal case. Rothstein’s $1.4 billion fraud came to light at the end of October 2009. The feds moved quickly to seize cars, boats and luxury goods from Rothstein’s home. Rothstein’s law partners voluntarily sought a receiver to take over the firm on Nov. 1, 2009. Stettin was named a receiver under state court authority on Nov. 2. By Nov 10, investors who lost money in the scheme filed an involuntary bankruptcy petition, and Stettin became a bankruptcy trustee by order of U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Raymond Ray. Read more.

SWAP TRADERS CLOSE TO WINNING U.S. PORTFOLIO COLLATERAL OFFSET

U.S. regulators plan to allow hedge funds and other credit-swap traders to reduce the amount of collateral needed to back transactions through the use of accounts that offset different types of trades, Bloomberg News reported today. The Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission are close to allowing collateral offsets for credit swaps that are tied to indexes and single securities through a process known as “portfolio margining.” Atlanta-based Intercontinental Exchange Inc., owner of the largest clearinghouse for credit swaps, Citadel LLC and other hedge and mutual funds and banks, spent more than a year pushing regulators to support the system for client trades. The regulation was issued by the SEC for comment on Dec. 14, and a companion measure could be approved by the CFTC as soon as this week. Dodd-Frank Act requirements that credit swaps be guaranteed at clearinghouses are set to take effect mid-March. The central counterparties stand between buyers and sellers and accept collateral to limit the risk from a trade default spreading throughout the financial system. Read more.

COMMENTARY: MADOFF ASIDE, FINANCIAL FRAUD DEFIES POLICING

The challenge of financial fraud oversight is not getting any easier, as the ranks of financial advisers are swelling, according to a commentary in the New York Times DealBook blog yesterday. As new regulations instituted following the 2008 financial crisis put a crimp on profits, big banks like Wells Fargo are ramping up their brokerage businesses in an effort to make up for lost revenue. Amid the renewed focus, banks have spent millions of dollars to beef up their compliance systems and improve their oversight. Regulators, too, have bolstered their efforts, increasing enforcement and adopting new measures. Every month, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, a Wall Street watchdog, penalizes more than 100 brokers for various actions, including unauthorized trading and fraudulent activities, as well as smaller violations. "Theft, Ponzi schemes and other financial scams continue to happen at an alarming rate," according to plaintiff's lawyer Thomas Ajamie. Read more.

LATEST ABI PODCAST EXAMINES TREATMENT OF PERSONAL INDEBTEDNESS AROUND THE WORLD

ABI's latest podcast features ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano speaking with Professor Jason Kilborn of the John Marshall Law School (Chicago). Prof. Kilborn, the ABI Resident Scholar for the 2011 Fall Semester, chairs a drafting group for the World Bank to study and report on the various ways that nations approach personal indebtedness. Prof. Kilborn discusses the project and the initial report that was presented last month at the World Bank in Washington, D.C. Click here to listen.

ABI IN-DEPTH

LATEST CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: SULLIVAN V. COSTA (IN RE COSTA; 1ST CIR.)

Summarized by Samuel Mushell, The Kelly Firm, P.C

The Bankruptcy Appellate Panel for the First Circuit affirmed a bankruptcy court ruling that held that a creditor's untimely filing of a motion objecting to discharge had lapsed.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: COULD 2013 SEE LEHMAN BEING PUT BACK TOGETHER AGAIN?

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. A new post examines a case in which the BAP for the Sixth Circuit dismissed a debtor's chapter 11 petition because the debtor's filing was abusive.

ABI Quick Poll

A licensee of a trademark has the right to retain the license even when a debtor rejects the underlying contract creating the license. (Sunbeam Products, 7th Cir.)

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

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Jan. 21, 2013
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COMING UP:

Jan. 24-25, 2013
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Feb. 7-9, 2013
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Feb. 17-19, 2013
Registration Deadline Extended to Friday, Jan. 11!

Feb. 20-22, 2013
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March 7-9, 2013
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March 22, 2013
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April 18-21, 2013
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

2013

January
- Western Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
January 21, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.
- Rocky Mountain Bankruptcy Conference
January 24-25, 2013 | Denver, Colo.

February
- Caribbean Insolvency Symposium
February 7-9, 2013 | Miami, Fla.
- Kansas City Advanced Consumer Bankruptcy Practice Institute
February 17-19, 2013 | Kansas City, Mo.

- VALCON 2013
February 20-22, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.

March
- 37th Annual Alexander L. Paskay Seminar on Bankruptcy Law and Practice
March 7-9, 2013 | St. Petersburg, Fla.
- Bankruptcy Battleground West
March 22, 2013 | Los Angeles, Calif.

April
- Annual Spring Meeting
April 18-21, 2013 | National Harbor, Md.

Read more about Revamped Consumer Bankruptcy Forms Out for Public Comment

ABI Media Teleconference Examines Lessons Learned from Lehmans Chapter 11

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | September 12, 2013

September 12, 2013

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

ABI MEDIA TELECONFERENCE EXAMINES LESSONS LEARNED FROM LEHMAN’S CHAPTER 11

ABI held a media teleconference today looking at the Lehman chapter 11 filing, the lessons learned from it five years later and what the future holds for distressed large financial institutions. An audio archive of the teleconference will be posted soon on ABI.org, and its availability will be announced via social media (Twitter: twitter.abi.org; Facebook: facebook.abi.org). Key figures in the case who spoke on today's teleconference included:

- Bankruptcy Judge James Peck (S.D.N.Y.; New York) presided over the Lehman Brothers chapter 11 case.
- Harvey Miller of Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP (New York) was the lead debtor attorney for Lehman Brothers.
- Dennis Dunne of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy (New York) represented unsecured creditors in the Lehman case.
- Bryan Marsal of Alvarez and Marsal (New York) served as Lehman's Chief Executive Officer after it filed for chapter 11 until 2012.
- Chris Kiplock of Hughes Hubbard & Reed LLP (New York) worked with the team of attorneys representing trustee James W. Giddens in liquidating Lehman Brothers.

The moderator for the program was ABI Fall Resident Scholar Kara Bruce of Toledo University School of Law. Be sure to check ABI's feeds on Twitter or Facebook for the availability of the teleconference audio archive!

ANALYSIS: VOLCKER RULE TO CURB BANK TRADING PROVES HARD TO WRITE

Three years after first proposing that banks be prevented from making market bets with their own money, Paul Volcker's rule remains unfinished, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday. The Volcker rule, a centerpiece of the sweeping overhaul of financial regulation known as Dodd-Frank, is an attempt to protect the financial system from risk. The rule looks to prohibit banks from making investment bets with their own money, but it has proved difficult to apply. Five years after cratering financial firms ignited a global crisis, and three years after Dodd-Frank outlined the Volcker rule as a central part of the government response, the rule languishes unfinished and unenforced, mired in policy tangles and infighting among five separate agencies whose job is to produce the fine print. Read more. (Subscription required.)

COMMENTARY: FIVE YEARS LATER, FINANCIAL LESSONS NOT LEARNED

Sunday marks the fifth anniversary of the fateful day that investment bank Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy, signaling the start of a frightening financial meltdown, but we are still missing some of the lessons drawn out by the crisis, according to a commentary in yesterday's Wall Street Journal by Prof. Alan Blinder of Princeton University. Years of disgraceful financial shenanigans in the 2000s, some illegal but many just immoral, brought on the Great Recession with virtually no help from any co-conspirators, according to Blinder. Congress and President Obama reacted comparatively weakly with the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010, which Blinder said certainly did not seek to remake the U.S. financial system. A supporter of Dodd-Frank, Blinder has found that the law now seems to be withering on the regulatory vine. Far from being tamed, the financial beast has gotten its mojo back, according to Blinder. Read the full commentary. (Subscription required.)

ANALYSIS: SEC TRIES TO REBUILD ITS REPUTATION

The Securities and Exchange Commission is ending its push to punish financial-crisis misconduct in the same way it started -- with a new chairman vowing that Wall Street's top cop will be tougher in the future, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis today. In 2009, at the depths of the recession, Mary Schapiro took the reins at the SEC, promising to "move aggressively to reinvigorate enforcement" at the agency. She created teams to target various types of alleged misconduct, including one focused on the complicated mortgage bonds that helped set off a global financial panic. The agency has filed civil charges against 138 firms and individuals for alleged misconduct just before or during the crisis, according to the analysis, and it received $2.7 billion in fines, repayment of ill-gotten gains and other penalties. But some of the SEC's highest-profile probes of top Wall Street executives have stalled and are being dropped. In April, former federal prosecutor Mary Jo White took the reins as SEC chairman with a simple enforcement motto: "You have to be tough." She tossed out the SEC enforcement policy that allowed almost all defendants to settle cases without admitting wrongdoing. In August, hedge-fund manager Philip Falcone became the first example of this new approach when he and his firm, Harbinger Capital Partners LLC, admitted to manipulating bond prices and improperly borrowing money from a fund. The policy shift comes as the SEC turns the page on its financial crisis work. New investigations into misconduct linked to the meltdown have slowed to a trickle, and a statute-of-limitations deadline is looming for many cases, which will generally restrict the sanctions that the SEC can enforce for misconduct that is more than five years old. Read more. (Subscription required.)

U.S. FORECLOSURE FILINGS DROP 34 PERCENT AS PROPERTY PRICES RISE

RealtyTrac issued a report showing that foreclosure filings fell 34 percent in the U.S. last month as first-time defaults dropped to the lowest level in almost eight years and rising home prices made it easier for distressed owners to sell, Bloomberg News reported today. Default, auction and repossession filings totaled 128,560 in August, with one in 1,019 U.S. households receiving a notice, the Irvine, Calif.-based data seller said today in a report. It was the 35th consecutive month in which total notices declined on an annual basis, with foreclosure starts plunging 44 percent, RealtyTrac said. Increasing buyer demand and climbing property values are helping some troubled borrowers refinance or sell rather than lose their homes to foreclosure. The S&P/Case-Shiller index of property values in 20 cities rose 12.1 percent in June from a year earlier. Last month, foreclosure starts totaled 55,775, the lowest level since December 2005, and fell on a year-over-year basis in 38 states, RealtyTrac said. Read more.

LATEST ABI PODCAST EXPLORES BANKRUPTCY'S CORPORATE TAX IMPLICATIONS

ABI Resident Scholar Prof. Kara Bruce speaks with Prof. Diane Lourdes Dick of Seattle University School of Law about how companies in chapter 11, such as Solyndra and WaMu, preserve valuable tax attributes through holding companies. Prof. Dick discusses her current research looking into how stakeholders of financially distressed firms exploit various loopholes in chapter 11 to transfer value outside of bankruptcy's distributional norms. Click here to listen to the podcast.

NEW ABILIVE WEBINAR OCT. 3: THE INTERSECTION OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY AND BANKRUPTCY: KODAK, NORTEL AND OTHER CASES

IP experts will shed light on the mysteries of understanding IP law and navigating the often puzzling sales processes, drawing from their experiences in Nortel, Kodak and other important cases, in an abiLIVE webinar on Oct. 3 from 1:00-2:15 p.m. ET. Speakers will include David Berten (Global IP Law Group, LLC; Chicago), Pauline K. Morgan (Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP; Wilmington, Del.), Cassandra M. Porter (Lowenstein Sandler LLP; Roseland, N.J.), Kelly Beaudin Stapleton (Alvarez & Marsal; New York) and Christopher Burton Wick (Hahn Loeser & Parks LLP; Cleveland). To register, click here.

RECORDING AVAILABLE OF THE ABILIVE WEBINAR EXAMINING THE NEW U.S. TRUSTEE FEE GUIDELINES!

If you were not able to join ABI's recent well-attended abiLIVE webinar examining the U.S. Trustee Fee Guidelines for chapter 11 cases filed on or after Nov. 1, a recording of the program is now available for downloading! A panel of experts, including Clifford J. White, the director of the U.S. Trustee Program, discussed some of the ways the new guidelines could change day-to-day operations in firms, issues relating to the new market rate benchmarks, and how these changes might alter insolvency practice. The 90-minute recording is available for the special ABI member price of $75 and can be purchased here.

ABI GOLF TOUR UNDERWAY; LAST STOP FOR 2013 IS WINTER LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE IN DECEMBER

The 7th and final stop for the 2013 ABI Golf Tour is on Dec. 5 at the Trump National Golf Club, held in conjunction with ABI’s Winter Leadership Conference. Final scoring to win the Great American Cup — sponsored by Great American Group — is based on your top three scores from the seven ABI events. See the Tour page for details and course descriptions. The ABI Golf Tour combines networking with fun competition, as golfers "play their own ball." Including your handicap means everyone has an equal chance to compete for the glory of being crowned ABI's top golfer of 2013! A 22-handicapper won the tour event at July’s Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop. There's no charge to register or participate in the Tour.

ABI IN-DEPTH

NEW CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: MORRIS AVIATION LLC V. DIAMOND AIRCRAFT INDUSTRIES INC. (6TH CIR.)

Summarized by Mike Debbeler of Graydon Head & Ritchey LLP

The Sixth Circuit ruled that the airplane manufacturer's opinion of the "quality and reliability" of components was not a fraudulent or negligent misrepresentation where the component manufacturer filed bankruptcy and voided warranties on components shortly after plaintiff purchased the airplane from the manufacturer. The airplane manufacturer's mere opinion as to component manufacturer's financial health did not form the basis of a misrepresentation claim.

There are more than 1,000 appellate opinions summarized on Volo, and summaries typically appear within 24 hours of the ruling. Click here regularly to view the latest case summaries on ABI’s Volo website.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: HOW HAS THE FINANCIAL SECTOR CHANGED SINCE THE LEHMAN FILING?

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks more than 80 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent blog post explores how the financial sector has changed since the Lehman Brothers chapter 11 filing on Sept. 15, 2008.

ABI Quick Poll

Success fees for financial advisors should be prohibited.

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

INSOL INTERNATIONAL

INSOL International is a worldwide federation of national associations for accountants and lawyers who specialize in turnaround and insolvency. There are currently 43 member associations worldwide with more than 9,000 professionals participating as members of INSOL International. As a member association of INSOL, ABI's members receive a discounted subscription rate. See ABI's enrollment page for details.

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

2013

September
- Lawrence P. King and Charles Seligson Workshop on Bankruptcy & Business Reorganization
    Sept. 18-19, 2013 | New York
- abiLIVE Webinar: Complex Requirements and Ethical Duties of Representing Consumer Debtors
     Sept. 24, 2013
- Bankruptcy 2013: Views from the Bench
    Sept. 27, 2013 | Washington, D.C.

October
- abiLIVE Webinar: The Intersection of Intellectual Property and Bankruptcy: Kodak, Nortel and Other Cases
     Oct. 3, 2013
- Midwestern Bankruptcy Institute Program and Midwestern Consumer Forum
    Oct. 4, 2013 | Kansas City, Mo.
- Professional Development Program
    Oct. 11, 2013 | New York, N.Y.
- Chicago Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
    Oct. 14, 2013 | Chicago, Ill.
- International Insolvency & Restructuring Symposium
    Oct. 25, 2013 | Berlin, Germany

November
- Complex Financial Restructuring Program
   Nov. 7, 2013 | Philadelphia, Pa.
- Corporate Restructuring Competition
   Nov. 7-8, 2013 | Philadelphia, Pa.
- Austin Advanced Consumer Bankruptcy Practice Institute
   Nov. 10-12, 2013 | Austin, Texas
- Detroit Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
   Nov. 11, 2013 | Detroit, Mich.
- Delaware Views from the Bench
   Nov. 25, 2013 | Wilmington, Del.

December
- Winter Leadership Conference
Dec. 5-7, 2013 | Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif.
- ABI/St. John’s Bankruptcy Mediation Training
Dec. 8-12, 2013 | New York

Read more about ABI Media Teleconference Examines Lessons Learned from Lehmans Chapter 11

Senate Poised to End Filibuster on Nominees

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | July 11, 2013

July 11, 2013

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

SENATE POISED TO END FILIBUSTER ON NOMINEES

Majority Leader Harry Reid announced today his intention to force a vote on Monday to change the Senate’s longstanding rule permitting extended debate on executive branch nominees. The rule change would permit the majority to approve nominations with a simple majority vote. This so-called “nuclear option” would be a profound change in a fundamental Senate rule. Most immediately, the rule change would allow the Senate’s Democratic Majority to confirm Richard Cordray as Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, along with two nominees to the NLRB. Cordray was renominated after his recess appointment by President Obama was cast into doubt by a D.C. Circuit decision holding that the NLRB Nominees were recess appointed (on the same day in January 2012) in an unconstitutional manner.

HOUSE HEARING EXAMINES IF DODD-FRANK ACT'S "ORDERLY LIQUIDATION AUTHORITY" IS UNCONSTITUTIONAL

Arguing that due process rights “are vaporized” under the Dodd-Frank Act (DFA), witnesses told the House Financial Services Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on Tuesday that aspects of the DFA might be unconstitutional, the National Law Journal reported yesterday. Members of the subcommittee focused on the law’s all new—and as yet untested—orderly liquidation authority. Intended as a third way between bankruptcy and bailout, the provision gives the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (in conjunction with other regulators) the ability to take over an institution whose failure might pose a risk to the financial stability of the United States. Columbia Law School professor Thomas Merrill testified that DFA raises serious constitutional issues—almost sure to lead to litigaion the first time the provision is invoked, with potentially disastrous consequences. “It’s very likely to cause the whole process to go off the rails and become chaotic,” he said. “My concern is that the constitutional issues will work against the purpose [of the provision]…at a time when it’s least appropriate to bring them to the fore.” But Pepper Hamilton partner Timothy McTaggart argued that the law likely would pass constitutional muster, pointing out that fewer than 170 laws enacted by Congress between 1789 and 2002 were held unconstitutional. “A difference in policy choice as reflected in enacted legislation does not make the legislation unconstitutional,” he said. To date, no court has held Dodd-Frank to be unconstitutional, but a case pending before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, State National Bank of Big Spring v. Lew, may provide the first test. Former White House Counsel C. Boyden Gray is co-counsel in the case, brought by a Texas community bank, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, the 60 Plus Association and several states. He testified before the subcommittee that Dodd-Frank “violates the Constitution’s system of checks and balances” and gives “regulators effectively unlimited power.” Read more.

Click here to read the prepared witness testimony.

COMMENTARY: HOW TO AVOID THE NEXT MF GLOBAL SURPRISE

When MF Global went bankrupt in October 2011, thousands of its customers in the United States discovered that their overseas investments were not as safe or secure as they had assumed—and that they no longer had access to their funds, according to an editorial in yesterday's Wall Street Journal by MF Global Trustee James Giddens. The company faced extraordinary liquidity demands in its final, chaotic days, including margin calls on massive European sovereign-debt bets taken by CEO Jon Corzine and others. Desperate for funds, management improperly raided segregated customer money held by the company's broker-dealer in the U.S., resulting in a $900 million shortfall, according to Giddens. Once MF Global U.K. was put into liquidation, British administrators determined that under U.K. law virtually no money had been actually segregated for customers—which added an additional $700 million shortfall in customers' foreign accounts. Another problem in MF Global—and to some extent in Lehman Brothers—was the company's large, complicated legal structure. The trustee for the MF Global holding company had a different constituency of lenders and general creditors than Giddens did as trustee for the customers and creditors of the U.S. broker-dealer. Trustees with differing priorities led to confusion and further delay. Going forward, Giddens said that there is a need for clear and consistent cross-border rules regarding the protection of money in customer accounts. Clearer rules would pave the way for quicker and more efficient return of customer property when the next MF Global or Lehman occurs. Read more. (Subscription required.)

SENATORS NEAR DEAL ON STUDENT LOAN RATES

Senators are near a deal to provide a long-term fix to student loan rates, but that compromise will likely rest on a score from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), as well as members' ability to sell the compromise to skeptical members in both parties, The Hill reported today. The potential agreement would look broadly similar to a competing proposal offered by a group of Republicans and Democrats and comes one day after Senate Democrats failed to muster enough support for a one-year freeze of lower interest rates. A bipartisan group of senators pushing a competing student loan proposal met with Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) yesterday, as well as Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.). Harkin and Reed were strong proponents of the one-year freeze, which was broadly rejected by Republicans on the Senate floor on Tuesday. The senators pushing the competing proposal at the meeting were Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Angus King (I-Maine), Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.). Members at that meeting agreed on a framework of a bill and now are waiting for a CBO score to determine if the measure is close enough to deficit-neutral to assuage Democrats who had blasted the original proposal, which would have reduced the deficit by $1 billion. Read more.

COMMENTARY: GOOD AND BAD BANK CAPITAL

Three years after President Obama signed Dodd-Frank, U.S. financial regulators have taken their first significant step toward protecting taxpayers from giant bank failures, according to an editorial today in the Wall Street Journal. Under a proposal released on Tuesday from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., the eight largest U.S. financial houses would be required to hold more capital. Specifically, the FDIC and their regulatory colleagues at the Federal Reserve and Comptroller of the Currency proposed to increase the leverage ratio at giant bank holding companies to 5 percent from 3 percent, and to 6 percent for the insured deposit-taking banks inside these holding companies. The proposal is still a major step toward taxpayer protection, according to the editorial, and might require the giants to increase capital by close to $90 billion by 2018, or to shrink their balance sheets to operate more safely with the level of capital they hold today. Read more. (Subscription required.)

ANALYSIS: HOW STOCKTON’S BANKRUPTCY MAY CHANGE THE WAY WE ANALYZE MUNICIPAL CREDIT RISK

The bankruptcy of Stockton, Calif., and the forthcoming legal battle has the potential to permanently change the way municipal credit risk is viewed both in California and on a national level, according to a recent briefing paper prepared by Thornburg Investment Management. Bankruptcy Judge Christopher M. Klein on April 1 accepted the city of Stockton’s petition to proceed with chapter 9 bankruptcy. The interesting aspect of the Stockton case revolves around the treatment of pension obligations. Pensions are protected by California statute, to the detriment of bondholders. Because of this protection, public employees in Stockton and throughout California have traditionally been unwilling to make material concessions when negotiating with troubled municipalities. In fact, this issue is pervasive across the country. In general, public labor unions have seldom made material concessions because of a perceived protection of future benefits. Unfortunately for the public employees in Stockton and around the country, the bankruptcy case will be heard in federal court and the status of the pensions will play a key role. Should Judge Klein rule in favor of pension holders, protecting their benefits above the claims of bondholders, it would essentially subordinate bondholders to the claims of public workers. A ruling of that type would immediately decrease the credit quality of all municipal bonds. In the future, public employees would have no incentive to negotiate with stressed municipalities, knowing that their benefits are protected. The result could be an increase in chapter 9 filings as municipalities lose the flexibility to control future expenses. On the other hand, should Judge Klein rule that public employees must take a haircut in line with other creditors, municipal bondholders will benefit. Click here to read the full analysis.

COMMENTARY: TO CATCH A CREDITOR

Earlier this year the Federal Trade Commission completed a multiyear study of credit-report errors and found that nearly 20 percent of consumers had errors in at least one of their credit files, and that 13 percent saw an improvement in their scores when the errors were corrected, according to an op-ed in today' New York Times. A 2012 study by The Columbus Dispatch analyzed 30,000 complaints to the FTC; of those, 1,500 people reported that their files included someone else’s information. Nearly a third said that the credit agencies did not correct the errors, despite being asked to do so. Most egregious, almost 200 people said their reports showed them as deceased. While federal law requires credit bureaus to conduct a reasonable investigation of consumer complaints, the marketplace can penalize credit bureaus that investigate too aggressively, according to the op-ed. Credit bureaus are heavily dependent on lenders for both revenue and the information the bureaus package and sell; if a credit bureau presses a lender too hard, the lender could patronize a different bureau and withhold data about its customers. In contrast, consumers have little power over credit-reporting agencies. Consumers cannot, for example, block credit bureaus from obtaining information about their transactions. Read more.

ABILIVE WEBINAR NEXT WEEK TO FOCUS ON THE § 1111(b) ELECTION, PLAN FEASIBILITY AND CRAMDOWN ISSUES

Utilizing a case study, ABI's panel of experts will explore issues surrounding a lender’s decision on whether or not to make an election under § 1111(b), plan feasibility and voting. The abiLIVE panel will also walk attendees through the necessary mathematical analyses used to analyze these issues. The webinar will take place on July 15 from 1-2:15 p.m. ET. Special ABI member rate available! Click here to register.

NEW abiLIVE WEBINAR ON AUGUST 20: HOW WILL THE NEW U.S. TRUSTEE FEE GUIDELINES IMPACT YOU?

The new U.S. Trustee Fee Guidelines will affect all attorneys and firms who work on larger chapter 11 cases filed on or after November 1st. ABI's Ethics & Professional Compensation Committee will present a panel of experts, including Cliff White, the Director of the U.S. Trustee Program, to discuss some of the ways the new guidelines may change day-to-day operations in firms, issues relating to the new market rate benchmarks, and how these changes might alter insolvency practice. Register today to hear government, attorney and academic perspectives on this important and timely topic.

ABI GOLF TOUR UNDERWAY; NEXT STOP IS THE SOUTHEAST BANKRUPTCY CONFERENCE NEXT WEEK

The next stop for the ABI Golf Tour is the famed Golf Club of Amelia Island course on Amelia Island, Fla., in conjunction with the Southeast Bankruptcy Conference next week. Final scoring to win the Great American Cup—sponsored by Great American Group—is based on your top three scores at seven scheduled ABI events, so play as many as you can before the tour wraps up at the Winter Leadership Conference in December. See the Tour page for details and course descriptions. The ABI Golf Tour combines networking with fun competition, as golfers "play their own ball." Including your handicap means everyone has an equal chance to compete for the glory of being crowned ABI's top golfer of 2013! There's no charge to register or participate in the Tour.

ABI IN-DEPTH

NORTON JUDICIAL EXCELLENCE AWARD NOMINATIONS OPEN

Nominations are now open for the 8th Annual Judge William L. Norton Judicial Excellence Award, to be presented during the ABI luncheon at the annual meeting of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges on Nov. 1, 2013. The award is presented by ABI and Thomson Reuters each year to the current or retired bankruptcy judge whose career embodies the same continued dedication and outstanding contributions to the insolvency community as the award’s namesake, Judge Norton. Nominations are considered by a committee made up of representatives from the Norton treatise and past ABI presidents. Nomination forms are available from Clay Mattson at Thomson Reuters ([email protected]) and should be submitted by July 29.

NEW ABI "BANKRUPTCY IN DEPTH" ON-DEMAND CLE PROGRAM LOOKS AT PRINCIPLES OF PROPERTY OF THE ESTATE: DEMYSTIFYING EQUITABLE INTERESTS

In this 90-minute seminar, Profs. Andrew Kull of Boston University School of Law and Scott Pryor of Regent University School of Law provide an in-depth analysis of a legal principle that has become, in their words, "a long-lost area of the law": § 541 of the Bankruptcy Code. Seeking to demystify what is meant by "property of the estate" and, in particular, the distinction between legal or equitable interests of the debtor in property, Kull and Pryor describe the legal entanglements that ensue when legal title belongs to one person but the equitable title belongs to someone else. The cost of the seminar, which includes written materials and qualifies for 1.5 hours of CLE, is $95. To order or to learn more, click here.

ASSOCIATES: ABI'S NUTS & BOLTS ONLINE PROGRAMS HELP YOU HONE YOUR SKILLS WHILE SAVING ON CLE!

Associates looking to sharpen their bankruptcy knowledge should take advantage of ABI's special offer of combining general, business or consumer Nuts & Bolts online programs. Each program features an outstanding faculty of judges and practitioners explaining the fundamentals of bankruptcy, offering procedures and strategies tailored for both consumer and business attorneys. Click here to get the CLE you need at a great low price!

NEW CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: PERRY V. KEY AUTO RECOVERY (IN RE PERRY; 9TH CIR.)

Summarized by Hilda Montes de Oca of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California

Affirming the bankruptcy court, the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel (BAP) held that the bankruptcy court did not abuse its discretion when it declined the debtor’s request for a hearing on his second motion for reconsideration and instead entered an order denying the second motion for reconsideration because the debtor did not set the second motion for reconsideration for hearing as required under the Local Bankruptcy Rules for the Central District of California. The BAP also held that the bankruptcy court did not abuse its discretion when it declined to consider the “new evidence” presented by the debtor in support of his second motion for reconsideration because the debtor could have submitted the “new evidence” from 2004 earlier to the bankruptcy court.

There are more than 900 appellate opinions summarized on Volo, and summaries typically appear within 24 hours of the ruling. Click here regularly to view the latest case summaries on ABI’s Volo website.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: CORKER-WARNER BILL: A GREAT STARTING POINT IN THE GSE REFORM DEBATE

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent blog post discusses how the Corker-Warner legislation may be a bridge between the advocates of a purely private market and those who favor some role for the federal government in housing.

ABI Quick Poll

When will the dowward trend of consumer bankruptcy filings turn around?

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

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NEXT WEEK:

abiLIVE WEBINAR:

COMING UP

abiLIVE WEBINAR:

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

2013

July
- Northeast Bankruptcy Conference and Northeast Consumer Forum
     July 11-14, 2013 | Newport, R.I.
- abiLIVE Webinar: § 1111(b) Election, Plan Feasibility and Cramdown Issues
     July 15, 2013
- Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop
     July 18-21, 2013 | Amelia Island, Fla.

August
- Mid-Atlantic Bankruptcy Workshop
    August 8-10, 2013 | Hershey, Pa.
- abiLIVE Webinar: How Will the New U.S. Trustee Fee Guidelines Impact You?
     August 20, 2013
- Southwest Bankruptcy Conference
    August 22-24, 2013 | Incline Village, Nev.

September
- ABI Endowment Golf & Tennis Outing
    Sept. 10, 2013 | Maplewood, N.J.
- ABI Endowment Baseball Game
    Sept. 12, 2013 | Baltimore, Md.
- Lawrence P. King and Charles Seligson Workshop on Bankruptcy & Business Reorganization
    Sept. 18-19, 2013 | New York
- abiLIVE Webinar: Complex Requirements and Ethical Duties of Representing Consumer Debtors
     Sept. 24, 2013
- Bankruptcy 2013: Views from the Bench
    Sept. 27, 2013 | Washington, D.C.

October
- Midwestern Bankruptcy Institute Program and Midwestern Consumer Forum
    Oct. 4, 2013 | Kansas City, Mo.
- ABI Endowment Football Game
    Oct. 6, 2013 | Miami, Fla.
- Professional Development Program
    Oct. 11, 2013 | New York, N.Y.
- Chicago Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
    Oct. 14, 2013 | Chicago, Ill.

November
- Austin Advanced Consumer Bankruptcy Practice Institute
Nov. 10-12, 2013 | Austin, Texas
- Detroit Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
Nov. 11, 2013 | Detroit, Mich.

December
- ABI/St. John’s Bankruptcy Mediation Training
Dec. 8-12, 2013 | New York

Read more about Senate Poised to End Filibuster on Nominees

PBGC Says Pension Deficit Widened to Record 34 Billion

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | November 20 2012

November 20, 2012

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

PBGC SAYS PENSION DEFICIT WIDENS TO RECORD $34 BILLION

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) said that its deficit increased to $34 billion by the end of the most recent fiscal year, its largest ever, Dow Jones Daily Bankruptcy Review reported yesterday. As a result of plan failures, the PBGC said last week that its obligations totaled $119 billion by the end of fiscal 2012, while it has $85 billion in assets on hand to cover them. PBGC Director Joshua Gotbaum said that the agency continues its work to preserve pensions but "continuing financial deficits will ultimately threaten its ability to pay benefits." Read more. (Subscription required.)

BANKS SAY THEY HAVE GIVEN $26 BILLION IN HOMEOWNER RELIEF TO DATE

The nation's biggest banks provided more than $26 billion in relief to struggling homeowners between March 1 and Sept. 30, as part of a settlement earlier this year with state and federal officials over widespread foreclosure abuses, the Washington Post reported today. Joseph A. Smith Jr., the former North Carolina banking commissioner hired by the government to ensure the banks follow through on their promises, reported that more than 300,000 homeowners have benefitted so far, for an average of roughly $84,385 per borrower. The aid undertaken by the five banks involved in the settlement — Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Ally Financial and Citigroup — has taken various forms, from lowering loan balances to completing growing numbers of short sales to helping refinance many homeowners into mortgages with much lower interest rates. Each bank is responsible for providing a set amount of aid under the terms of the settlement, but different kinds of relief receive different amounts of credit. In general, banks received more credit for providing aid during the first year of the settlement and for activities such as reducing principal on loans and refinancing mortgages. Read more.

In related news, big banks are giving billions of dollars to distressed California homeowners through a landmark mortgage settlement — but mostly to get people out of their homes rather than help them stay, the Los Angeles Times reported today. Short sales should be reserved for homeowners who couldn't afford to live in a home even with a lower principal or for people who need to move, said UC Irvine law professor Katherine Porter, who was appointed by the state attorney general's office to monitor the deal. The preponderance of short sales in California may change, Porter said, as banks begin delivering other types of mandated relief, namely principal reduction. In California, the three biggest mortgage servicers — Wells Fargo & Co., Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. — promised to contribute $12 billion worth of homeowner aid. Bank of America is on the hook for the biggest portion of that agreement, $8 billion. Read more.

COMMENTARY: WHEN WILL FANNIE AND FREDDIE PAY TAXPAYERS BACK?

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac owe American taxpayers nearly $140 billion — and there seems to be no plan on any front to pay it back, according to a commentary in yesterday's New York Times. In the midst of the housing crisis and the Great Recession in 2008, Congress agreed to spend $600 billion in public money to rescue major American banks, insurers, automakers and, yes, the GSE's — fearing an even deeper and longer recession if these companies failed. Since then, most of these bailed-out firms have paid taxpayers back, but not Fannie or Freddie. Even more remarkable than their $140 billion public debt (the money lent to the agencies minus dividends paid) is that there seems to be no active plan to reimburse taxpayers. Read more.

SHADOW BANKING GROWS TO $67 TRILLION INDUSTRY, REGULATORS SAY

The shadow banking industry has grown to about $67 trillion, $6 trillion bigger than previously thought, leading global regulators to seek more oversight of financial transactions that fall outside traditional oversight, Bloomberg news reported on Sunday. The size of the shadow banking system, which includes the activities of money market funds, monoline insurers and off-balance sheet investment vehicles, "can create systemic risks" and "amplify market reactions when market liquidity is scarce," the Financial Stability Board said in a report, which utilized more data than last year’s probe into the sector. While watchdogs have reined in excessive risk-taking by banks in the wake of the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. in 2008, they are concerned that lenders might use shadow banking to evade the clampdown. Read more.

ANALYSIS: MIXED RESULTS FOR SEC IN FINANCIAL CRISIS CASES

Last week was a study in contrasts in how the Securities and Exchange Commission has been able to pursue cases from the financial crisis, according to an analysis yesterday in the New York Times DealBook blog. The regulator has been successful in extracting large settlements from banks that were at the heart of the meltdown in the mortgage market, but it has not done as well in proving any significant wrongdoing by individuals. The SEC announced settlements on Friday with JPMorgan Chase and Credit Suisse over their dealings in residential mortgage-backed securities. JPMorgan will pay $296.9 million and Credit Suisse $120 million in disgorgement and penalties. But it had a much worse week in dealing with individuals accused of securities fraud as a federal jury in New York on Nov.12 largely absolved Bruce Bent Sr. and his son, Bruce Bent II, for statements they made about the money market fund they oversaw, the Reserve Primary Fund. That collapsed at the height of the financial crisis in September 2008. Read more.

LATEST ABI PODCAST EXAMINES BANKRUPTCY'S EFFECTS ON MANUFACTURING SUPPLY CHAINS

ABI’s latest podcast features ABI Resident Scholar Prof. Susan Hauser speaking with the authors of Interrupted! Understanding Bankruptcy's Effects on Manufacturing Supply Chains. John T. Gregg, Deborah L. Thorne and Patrick E. Mears of Barnes & Thornburg LLP discuss the book and the issues that arise when suppliers are unable to make deliveries of promised parts due to financial problems. Click here to listen to the podcast.

To purchase Interrupted! Understanding Bankruptcy's Effects on Manufacturing Supply Chains, please make sure to visit the ABI Book Store at http://bookstore.abi.org.

RICHMOND BAR CALLING FOR NOMINATIONS TO FILL JUDICIAL VACANCY; SUBMISSIONS MUST BE RECEIVED BY DEC. 13

The Judiciary Committee of the Richmond (Va.) Bar Association invites ABI members to submit nominations to fill a judicial vacancy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. The court is looking to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Bankruptcy Judge Douglas O. Tice, Jr.

Suggestions must be in writing and should be mailed to Virginia H. Grigg, Esq., c/o Richmond Bar Association, P.O. Box 1213, Richmond, Virginia 23218 or hand-delivered to her at the Bar office located at 707 E. Main Street, Suite 1620, Richmond, VA 23219. Nominations must be received by 4:00 p.m. ET on Thursday, December 13, 2012, in order to be considered.

ABI IN-DEPTH

LATEST CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: HAWKS HOLDINGS LLC V. KALINOWSKI (IN RE KALINOWSKI; 10TH CIR.)

Summarized by Steven T. Mulligan of Bieging Shapiro & Barber LLP

The 10th Circuit ruled that since debtor was the de facto manager of an LLC, he stood in a fiduciary relationship to the creditor of that LLC under a New Mexico statute that created a technical trust. Since the debtor’s participation in the mismanagement of funds paid to the LLC for the construction of homes constituted defalcation, the debt was thus excepted from discharge.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: NINTH CIRCUIT RULES POST-PETITION PAYMENTS RECEIVED BY DEBTOR ARE NOT PROCEEDS OF "PAYMENTS TO BECOME DUE"

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent post examines a recent decision by the Ninth Circuit in LID Acquisition LLC v. Lake at Las Vegas Joint Venture, LLC (In re Lake at Las Vegas Joint Venture, LLC) affirmed the lower courts' rulings that, pursuant to §552(a) of the Bankruptcy Code, a pre-petition security agreement that gives a lender a security interest in "payments" or "future payments" does not give a lender a security interest in post-petition payments.

ABI Quick Poll

Despite the "free and clear" language of Sect. 363(f), purchasers of assets in 363 sales may still be liable for injuries to unidentifiable future claimants. (In re Grumman Olson Indus, S.D.N.Y.).

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

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NEXT EVENT:

Nov. 29 - Dec. 1, 2012
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COMING UP:

Dec. 4-8, 2012
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Jan. 21, 2013
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Jan. 24-25, 2013
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Feb. 7-9, 2013
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Feb. 17-19, 2013
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Feb. 20-22, 2013
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

November
- Winter Leadership Conference
November 29 - December 1, 2012 | Tucson, Ariz.

December
- Forty-Hour Bankruptcy Mediation Training
December 4-8, 2012 | New York, N.Y.

2013

January
- Western Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
January 21, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.
- Rocky Mountain Bankruptcy Conference
January 24-25, 2013 | Denver, Colo.

Read more about PBGC Says Pension Deficit Widened to Record 34 Billion

October Bankruptcy Filings Increase 16 Percent over Previous Month Commercial Filings Up 19 Percent

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | November 6 2012

November 6, 2012

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

OCTOBER BANKRUPTCY FILINGS INCREASE 16 PERCENT OVER PREVIOUS MONTH, COMMERCIAL FILINGS UP 19 PERCENT

Total bankruptcy filings in the United States for the month of October increased 16 percent compared to September, according to data provided by Epiq Systems, Inc. October bankruptcy filings totaled 101,278, up from the 87,522 filings registered in September 2012. The 96,498 total noncommercial filings for October represented a 16 percent increase from the September noncommercial filing total of 83,493. Total commercial filings for October 2012 were 4,780, representing a 19 percent increase from the 4,029 filings in September. Commercial chapter 11 filings also increased in October as the 704 filings represented a 3 percent increase over the 681 filings in September. Read the full release.

ANALYSIS: ELECTION UNLIKELY TO AFFECT HOUSING REBOUND

Regardless of the outcome of today's elections, experts expect the housing market to continue its rebound, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Home prices continue to rise, as shown by the latest S&P/Case-Shiller data, and sales activity is strengthening, while delinquency trends are improving. Experts point out that the government still backs more than 90 percent of new mortgages, however, and there has been little progress made in devising new structures to encourage private capital to again take on residential-housing risk. Read more. (Subscription required.)

BONUSES ON WALL STREET EXPECTED TO EDGE UP SLIGHTLY IN 2012

Wall Street employees, whose paychecks have often been cut in recent years, are likely to get a slight bump in their bonuses this year, the New York Times DealBook blog reported today. Year-end incentives, which include cash bonuses and stock awards, will be flat to up to 10 percent higher when compared with last year, according to a survey released by Johnson Associates yesterday. The same firms in 2011 drastically cut costs, employment and pay. Johnson Associates, based in New York, surveyed 10 public asset management firms, eight major banks and more than a dozen other financial institutions. Business on Wall Street has picked up somewhat in 2012, but firms are still cutting both compensation and other expenses to save money and improve their profits. Read more.

Read the full Johnson Associates survey.

ANALYSIS: COMPANIES LOOK TO LIGHTEN THE PENSION LOAD

More companies are considering so-called annuity settlements as a way to pare down their burgeoning pension liabilities, even though historically low interest rates make the strategy significantly more expensive, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Last month Verizon Communications Inc. bought an annuity that transferred $7.5 billion of pension obligations, about a quarter of the phone giant’s total pension obligations, to Prudential Financial Inc. Over the summer General Motors Co. shifted roughly $25 billion of its pension obligations—or about 20 percent of its global total—to Prudential also through an annuity deal. The approach works like this: A company transfers pension obligations to an insurer by buying a group annuity for its employees at a price that includes a premium. The insurer agrees to use the funds it gets from the company’s pension plan to make regular payments to company retirees for as long as they live. Read more. (Subscription required.)

ABI IN-DEPTH

LATEST CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: IN RE MICHAEL (3D CIR.)

Summarized by Michael Nestor of Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that if, upon conversion of a chapter 13 case to a case under chapter 7, the chapter 13 trustee is holding funds acquired post-petition by the debtor for eventual distribution to creditors under a confirmed chapter 13 reorganization plan, the trustee must return those funds to the debtor rather than distribute them to creditors under the plan.

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: NATIONAL MORTGAGE DATABASE FACES CHALLENGES IN BECOMING GO-TO RISK TOOL

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks 35 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent blog post examines how the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Federal Housing Finance Agency's effort to build a comprehensive data repository and identify emerging mortgage lending risks will depend on how regulators handle four areas: collaboration, scope, privacy and the regulatory burden.

ABI Quick Poll

Despite the "free and clear" language of Sect. 363(f), purchasers of assets in 363 sales may still be liable for injuries to unidentifiable future claimants. (In re Grumman Olson Indus, SDNY).

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

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THIS WEEK:

Nov. 7, 2012
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4TH ANNUAL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM
Nov. 9, 2012
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COMING UP:

Nov. 12, 2012
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Nov. 29 - Dec. 1, 2012
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Dec. 4-8, 2012
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Jan. 21, 2013
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Jan. 24-25, 2013
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Feb. 7-9, 2013
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Feb. 17-19, 2013
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Feb. 20-22, 2013
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS

December
- Forty-Hour Bankruptcy Mediation Training
December 4-8, 2012 | New York, N.Y.

2013

January
- Western Consumer Bankruptcy Conference
January 21, 2013 | Las Vegas, Nev.
- Rocky Mountain Bankruptcy Conference
January 24-25, 2013 | Denver, Colo.

Read more about October Bankruptcy Filings Increase 16 Percent over Previous Month Commercial Filings Up 19 Percent

Bankruptcy Cases to Be Considered by Supreme Court Previewed in New Bankruptcy in Depth Video

ABI Bankruptcy Brief | October 17, 2013

October 17, 2013

NEWS AND ANALYSIS

BANKRUPTCY CASES TO BE CONSIDERED BY SUPREME COURT PREVIEWED IN NEW "BANKRUPTCY IN DEPTH" VIDEO

ABI's next "Bankruptcy In Depth" video features ABI Resident Scholar Kara Bruce talking with Eric Brunstad of Dechert LLP (Hartford, Conn.) to preview the bankruptcy cases that the Supreme Court will consider during its 2013 term. Brunstad, who has argued many cases before the Court and is an expert in bankruptcy appellate practice, discusses in depth Law v. Siegel, which questions whether the court may use its general equitable authority under §105 of the Bankruptcy Code to surcharge a debtor's exempt assets, and Executive Benefits Insurance Agency v. Arkison (In re Bellingham), which will address the bankruptcy court's authority to adjudicate Article III matters. He also provides a candid view of what it is like to argue a case before the Court and an in-depth analysis of the issues involved with the upcoming cases. Click here to watch a preview of the forthcoming ABI "Bankruptcy In Depth" video.

FEDERAL JUDICIARY BUDGET INCREASES IN LAST-MINUTE BUDGET DEAL

The budget deal Congress approved yesterday to reopen the government and raise the debt ceiling provides $51 million in additional funding to the judiciary and to federal defenders, the Legal Times reported today. Federal court officials and members of the Senate Judiciary Committee greeted the increase as good news, although it is small when compared to $350 million in budget cuts earlier this year as part of sequestration. The extra funding would primarily go to pay the backlog of attorney fees under the Criminal Justice Act, which funds court-appointed private counsel. Payments were suspended in mid-September, when funding ran out two weeks before the end of the fiscal year. The bill also includes $4.8 billion for judiciary salaries and expenses. That amounts to a $25 million annual increase over FY2013, court officials said. The legislation gives judiciary officials the ability to float those funds among accounts to respond to the most urgent budget needs as they arise. Overall, the judiciary budget would rise from about $6.65 billion to about $6.7 billion. Read more.

PROPERTY TAXES, SKIPPED PENSION PAYMENTS BOOST DETROIT'S CASHFLOW

A report released yesterday showed that Detroit's revenue dropped by 9 percent in the first quarter of fiscal 2014 compared with the same period in fiscal 2013, but an influx of property taxes and skipped pension contributions boosted the city's cashflow, Reuters reported yesterday. In his quarterly report to Michigan officials, Kevyn Orr, Detroit's state-appointed emergency manager, said the city ended the quarter on Sept. 30 with a cash balance of $128.5 million that exceeded projections by $56.7 million. However, Orr said that Detroit's financial condition "continues to be dire" as it works its way through bankruptcy court, where its eligibility to remain there will be the subject of a trial next week. City revenue for the quarter, including property, income and gambling taxes, totaled $220.2 million, a drop of about $22 million from fiscal 2013's first quarter. Expenses also fell by about $11 million as the city's headcount dropped to approximately 9,322 workers at the quarter's end from 10,325 in the same period last year, according to the report. Read more.

LATEST SETTLEMENT REPORT FINDS BANKS GIVING TIMELY MORTGAGE RELIEF

The $25 billion national mortgage settlement, intended to help homeowners affected by the housing crisis, appears to be running ahead of schedule, according to a new report by the monitor of the program, the New York Times reported today. However, the number of households helped by the settlement has fallen short of the original predictions, and critics complained that too much relief was given to people who gave up their homes in short sales and not enough to help people retain their homes. Early last year, five banks signed on to the settlement over their use of mass-produced, faulty documents to evict homeowners. As of Dec. 31, they had provided $38.7 billion in relief in raw dollar terms, the report said. But because not every type of relief is counted the same way under the settlement's terms, they had fulfilled only about 80 percent of their total obligation. Prior to yesterday, banks had self-reported their progress in raw dollar terms. The new report is the first in which the monitor, Joseph A. Smith Jr., has disclosed the amount of credit they have earned toward the settlement obligation. The report credited them $4.1 billion for principal reduction on primary mortgages, $2.2 billion for principal reductions in second mortgages, and $5.4 billion in short sales or deeds in lieu of foreclosure, in which the homeowner is allowed to sell the house for less than what is owed or simply hand it over to the bank. It also credited $2.6 billion for allowing people who owed more on their mortgage than their home was worth to refinance at lower interest rates. Read more.

FANNIE MAE SURVIVAL IS BACK ON THE TABLE FOR POLICYMAKERS

The consensus in Washington, D.C., that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac should be dismantled is weakening amid opposition from hedge funds, regional banks and others who could benefit if the companies survive in some form, Bloomberg News reported yesterday. President Barack Obama and lawmakers from both parties have called for the two mortgage-finance companies to be replaced by a new U.S. housing system. While the official position hasn't changed, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators writing legislation is grappling with how to ensure that changes to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac don't disrupt the recovering housing market. Some Democrats said that they are leery of engineering a switch that would liquidate the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs), leaving it to private entities to risk their own capital on home loans. Since they nearly collapsed during the 2008 credit crisis, the two companies have drawn $187.5 billion from taxpayers and have been considered too politically toxic to be preserved. While the U.S. holds controlling stakes, the outcome will affect private investors including hedge funds Perry Capital and Paulson and Co., which have accumulated preferred shares and have spent months lobbying for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to be recapitalized. The hedge funds gained little traction in early meetings with senators such as Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), who publicly rejected their pleas in the spring. As the legislative process advances and involves a wider group of lawmakers, some are listening to the argument that an entirely new system could risk instability in the market. Read more.

FED WEIGHS SURCHARGE ON BANKS' PHYSICAL COMMODITY BUSINESSES

Federal Reserve officials are considering imposing a new capital surcharge on Wall Street banks that own oil pipelines, metals warehouses and other lucrative physical-commodities assets, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Such an approach could encourage banks to pare back their involvement in physical commodities, which has increasingly raised concerns among regulators and lawmakers. While no decision has been made, imposing a surcharge would allow the Fed to sidestep a legal jam caused by existing laws that set Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley apart from peers and give the former investment banks broad leeway to own commodities. The Fed has been considering scaling back the ability of banks to own such assets amid concerns that commodities ownership has expanded beyond what regulators originally envisioned. To avoid a regulatory situation where only some banks can own commodities, the Fed is considering a surcharge that would ensure that all banks hold more capital to account for potential risks posed by the assets they own or lease. Read more. (Subscription required.)

ABI LAUNCHES SIXTH ANNUAL WRITING COMPETITION FOR LAW STUDENTS

Law school students are invited to submit a paper between now and March 4, 2014 for ABI's Sixth Annual Bankruptcy Law Student Writing Competition. ABI will extend a complimentary one-year membership to all students who participate in this year's competition. Eligible submissions should focus on current issues regarding bankruptcy jurisdiction, bankruptcy litigation, or evidence issues in bankruptcy cases or proceedings. The first-place winner, sponsored by Invotex Group, Inc., will receive a cash prize of $2,000 and publication of his or her paper in the ABI Journal. The second-place winner, sponsored by Jenner & Block LLP, will receive a cash prize of $1,250 and publication of his or her paper in an ABI committee newsletter. The third-place winner, sponsored by Thompson & Knight LLP, will receive a cash prize of $750 plus publication of his or her paper in an ABI committee newsletter. For competition participation and submission guidelines, please visit http://papers.abi.org.

RISKY TIMES FOR SECURED LENDERS AND SERVICERS TO BE FOCUS OF FIRST ABI WORKSHOP PROGRAM- ATTEND IN PERSON OR VIA LIVE WEBSTREAM!

You will not want to miss the abiWorkshops series' inaugural program, "Risky Times for Secured Lenders and Servicers." The program is cosponsored by TMA (Chesapeake), IWIRC (D.C./Greater Maryland) and RMA (Potomac), and will be held on Nov. 6 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET in the ABI Headquarters Conference Center in Alexandria, Va. The abiWorkshops series provides attendees two great ways of participating: You can register to attend in person at the ABI Conference Center, or you can participate via a live webstream! Topics that will be covered on the Nov. 6 program include:

- Living with the New CFPB Mortgage Servicing Rules
- Business Lending: Navigating What Lies Ahead
- Business Lending: Recent Legal Developments

For more information or to register for the "Risky Times for Secured Lenders and Servicers" abiWorkshop on Nov. 6, please click here.

EXPERTS TO EXAMINE STUDENT LENDING AND BANKRUPTCY AT ABI WORKSHOP PROGRAM ON NOV. 15

Experts will tackle the hot topic of student lending issues in bankruptcy on the abiWorkshops series' new program, "You Can't Discharge Student Loans in Bankruptcy - Or Can You?" The program will be held on Nov. 15 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET in the ABI Headquarters Conference Center in Alexandria, Va. The abiWorkshops series provides attendees two great ways of participating: You can register to attend in person at the ABI Conference Center, or you can participate via a live webstream! Topics that will be covered on the Nov. 15 program include:

- Student Lending Today: Who Borrows, How Much, Delinquency & Default Trends
- Repayment Options: Income Based Repayment and New Lender/Servicer Programs
- Litigation under Sect. 523(a)(8): What Proofs Are Needed? Evidence Demonstration

For more information or to register for the "You Can't Discharge Student Loans in Bankruptcy - Or Can You?" abiWorkshop on Nov. 15, please click here.

ABI GOLF TOUR UNDERWAY; LAST STOP FOR 2013 IS WINTER LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE IN DECEMBER

ABI IN-DEPTH

NEW CASE SUMMARY ON VOLO: UTNEHMER V. CRULL (IN RE UTNEHMER; 9TH CIR.)

Summarized by Hilda Montes de Oca of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California

Applying California partnership law, the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel reversed the bankruptcy court because it erred when it decided that a partnership existed between the debtor defendant and plaintiff creditor based upon the terms of a loan agreement. As there was no partnership, the debtor owed no fiduciary obligations to the creditor. The BAP further found that the bankruptcy court used the wrong mens rea standard for defalcation. As a result, the bankruptcy court erred in determining that debtor's debt to creditor was excepted from discharge as a defalcation by a fiduciary pursuant to § 523(a)(4).

NEW ON ABI’S BANKRUPTCY BLOG EXCHANGE: OCC'S COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE LENDING HANDBOOK MISSES THE MARK ON POTENTIAL LEGAL ISSUES

The Bankruptcy Blog Exchange is a free ABI service that tracks more than 80 bankruptcy-related blogs. A recent blog post finds the new version of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's (OCC) Commercial Real Estate Lending Handbook to be lacking in addressing potential legal issues associated with risks in commercial real estate lending.

The abiWorkshops series' inaugural program, "Risky Times for Secured Lenders and Servicers," on Nov. 6 will cover potential legal issues associated with commercial lending. Attend in person or via live webstream.

ABI Quick Poll

Does the bankruptcy court's Section 105 power enable it to surcharge the debtor's exempt property?

Click here to vote on this week's Quick Poll. Click here to view the results of previous Quick Polls.

INSOL INTERNATIONAL

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