The Bankruptcy Code divides intellectual property into distinct categories depending upon the particular type of intellectual property. Issues with respect to intellectual property can be of utmost importance in bankruptcy, as a debtor attempts to weave its way through its bankruptcy case by, perhaps, attempting to assume and assign agreements that may implicate a non-debtor’s rights in intellectual property, or through selling assets. In addition, issues concerning the perfection of security interests in intellectual property pop up in bankruptcy proceedings as the filing of a bankruptcy case arms either the debtor-in-possession or the trustee with the power to avoid certain unperfected interests. In the modern landscape of corporate bankruptcies, these basic aspects of the treatment of intellectual property often dictate how and where an IP-heavy debtor reorganizes...

Originally published at the 34th Annual Jay L. Westbrook Bankruptcy Conference - November 12-13, 2015.