A few months ago, a ruling in the Chapter 11 case of Fisker Automotive narrowed a secured creditor’s right to credit bid its debt in connection with a sale of the debtor’s assets. The decision surprised many observers and resurrected
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Philadelphia Newspapers
Fisker Automotive Chapter 11 Case: a Two-Headed Stalking Horse and a New Credit Bidding Controversy
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
Fisker Automotive’s chapter 11 case began in what has become a depressingly familiar fashion – a fast-tracked sale to a secured lender. However, two rulings by Judge Kevin Gross of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware have …
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Does a Single “Or” Excommunicate Congressional Intent From the Bankruptcy Code? Supreme Court to Resolve Circuit Split on Credit Bidding
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
The U.S. Supreme Court will rule this term in RadLAX Gateway Hotel Inc. v. Amalgamated Bank on whether the Bankruptcy Code permits a debtor in a chapter 11 case to sell encumbered assets without providing the secured lender an opportunity
So This Is Why Judges Bother to Write Dissenting Opinions — Seventh Circuit Decision on Credit Bidding Vindicates Judge Ambro’s Philadelphia Newspapers Dissent
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
Take Me to the River (Road): The Seventh Circuit Prepares to Weigh In On Credit Bidding
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has taken under advisement the latest case involving the now contentious issue of credit bidding.
Judge Bruce Black of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois last
Credit Bidding After Philadelphia Newspapers: Dissent 1, Majority 0
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
Bankruptcy lawyers who are regularly involved in distressed m&a deals have been wondering for the past few months about the potential fallout from Philadelphia Newspapers. In that case, as previously described on this site, the Third Circuit Court of
Philadelphia Newspapers – Will The Lenders Make the Check Out to Themselves?
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
In the end, all of the maneuvering in the Philadelphia Newspapers chapter 11 case appears to have done nothing but leave behind some very bad case law and a great deal of future uncertainty.
As previously described on this site, the
“Plain Meaning” Trumps Long Standing Commercial Lender Expectations in Third Circuit Philadelphia Newspapers Decision
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
Some cases really should not be all that difficult. However, when judges choose to divorce statutory text completely from any reference to underlying legislative intent and long standing commercial practice, inexplicable results follow.
A few months ago, I wrote of a
Use of so-called “Plain Meaning” Rule of Interpretation Vexes Lenders in Philadephia Newspapers
By Ben Feder on
Posted in Distressed M&A
A recent decision regarding a secured lender’s right to credit bid its debt in the Philadelphia Newspapers chapter 11 case has raised significant concern among financial institutions and investment funds. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has