On September 19, 2024, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued a summary order in which it held that the “safe harbor” provision of Section 546(e) of the Bankruptcy Code preempted a bankruptcy trustee’s state...more
Joining the Eighth and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that a debtor or trustee can sell its avoidance actions to third-party, non-estate representatives. See Briar Capital...more
We have noodled on the impact that the Supreme Court’s decision in Merit Management Group, LP v. FTI Consulting, Inc., which held that the safe harbor provided in Section 546(e) of the Bankruptcy Code does not apply when the...more
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals recently held in In re Tribune Company Fraudulent Conveyance Litigation, No. 13-3992-cv (L) (2d Cir., Dec. 19, 2019) that Bankruptcy Code Section 546(e) barred claims seeking to avoid...more
In In re Tribune Co. Fraudulent Conveyance Litig., 2019 WL 1771786 (S.D.N.Y. Apr. 23, 2019), the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York denied a litigation trustee’s motion to amend a complaint seeking to...more
A recent decision from the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York has breathed new life into the Bankruptcy Code Section 546(e)’s securities transaction safe harbor for fraudulent conveyance actions. Judge...more
In its ruling in FTI Consulting, Inc. v. Sweeney (In re Centaur, LLC), the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware addressed the Supreme Court’s recent clarification of the scope of Bankruptcy Code Section...more
On April 3, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an order that, in light of its recent ruling in Merit Management Group LP v. FTI Consulting Inc., 138 S. Ct. 883, No. 16-784 (Feb. 27, 2018), the Court would defer consideration...more
The Supreme Court recently addressed two bankruptcy issues. In its Merit Management opinion, the Court resolved a circuit split regarding the breadth of the safe harbor provision which protects certain transfers by financial...more
In a unanimous decision in Merit Mgmt. Grp., LP v. FTI Consulting, Inc., the U.S. Supreme Court addressed the scope of a Bankruptcy Code exception to the “avoiding powers” of a bankruptcy trustee or Chapter 11...more
The Supreme Court’s recent decision in Merit Management Group, LP v. FTI Consulting, Inc. has appropriately drawn significant attention. The Court, by narrowing the “safe harbor” provision of Section 546(e) of the Bankruptcy...more
The Bankruptcy Code gives a bankruptcy trustee, or the debtor in possession, the power to “avoid” certain transfers made by the debtor at various times before filing for bankruptcy relief. Congress provided a number of...more
On February 27, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a highly anticipated ruling resolving a long-standing circuit split over the scope of the Bankruptcy Code’s "safe harbor" provision exempting certain securities transaction...more
Possible application of Section 101(22)(A) to safe harbor’s covered entity requirement raises important questions for future transferee defendants. Key Points: ..Merit Management raises the possibility that customers of...more
On February 27, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court resolved a circuit split under the Bankruptcy Code and determined that where funds passed through financial institutions acting as payment conduits, where the ultimate transfer...more
In a case that could have significant, long-term ramifications for the holders of stock and other securities, the U.S. Supreme Court vastly limited the scope of a Bankruptcy Code “safe harbor” that shields certain transfers...more
Recently, the United States Supreme Court decided Merit Management Group, LP v. FTI Consulting, Inc., a decision that has potentially far-reaching implications for a broad range of business transactions, particularly...more
Over the last twenty years, courts have increasingly insulated transactions from avoidance as fraudulent transfers by invoking the so-called “settlement payment” defense codified in section 546(e) of the Bankruptcy Code. The...more
The U.S. Supreme Court issued a highly anticipated ruling resolving a long-standing circuit split over the scope of the Bankruptcy Code's "safe harbor" provision exempting certain securities transaction payments from...more
Section 546(e) of the Bankruptcy Code shields certain transfers involving settlement payments and other payments in connection with securities contracts (for example, payment for stock) made to certain financial...more
• In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the petitioner in Merit Management Group, LP, Petitioner v. FTI Consulting, Inc., affirming the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. ...more
Last week, the unanimous Supreme Court clarified that the “clearing and settlement” exception to a bankruptcy trustee’s avoiding powers covers only payments “to,” not merely through, financial market participants....more
The Supreme Court’s recent decision in Merit Management Group, LP v. FTI Consulting, Inc. has the potential to dramatically change how the safe harbor contained in § 546(e) will be applied to avoidance actions brought under...more
The Bankruptcy Code allows trustees, as well as debtors-in-possession and in some circumstances creditors’ committees, to set aside and recover certain transfers for the benefit of the bankruptcy estate. The purpose of the...more
Title 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code contains provisions that allow some pre-bankruptcy transfers to be avoided, or "unwound," by a debtor in possession, trustee, or other party granted standing to do so. ...more