Large Cap
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May 09, 2025
Real Estate Recap: 'Preposterous' Rule, MoFo On Debt, Big 4
Catch up on this past week's key developments by state from Law360 Real Estate Authority — including attorney views of a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rule affecting real estate, one BigLaw leader's insights into new debt funds, and what the four largest brokerages said about 2025's first quarter.
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May 09, 2025
No Sanctions For Bankrupt Crypto Miner In Celsius Row
A Delaware bankruptcy judge declined Friday to impose sanctions on cryptocurrency mining company Mawson Infrastructure Group, saying she was unconvinced by Celsius Network's allegations that the involuntary debtor acted in bad faith.
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May 09, 2025
Del. Judge Allows Late Survivor Claim In Boy Scouts Ch. 11
A Delaware bankruptcy judge has ruled a former Boy Scout's claim of repressed memories of sexual abuse is a valid reason for missing a deadline to apply for damages from the trust established in the Boy Scouts of America's Chapter 11 case.
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May 09, 2025
What's Happening In Bankruptcy Court This Coming Week
Delaware bankruptcy judges will weigh the Chapter 11 plan disclosures of Forever 21 and telecom company Ligado Networks, a collection of asset sales proposed by bankrupt trucking company Yellow Corp., as well as Danimer Scientific Inc.'s stalking horse sale to a polymer supplier.
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May 09, 2025
Harvest Sherwood's $104M Ch. 11 DIP Rejected Over Rollup
A Texas bankruptcy judge vetoed Harvest Sherwood's $104 million Chapter 11 loan on Friday after creditors challenged the timing of and need for a $79 million rollup of prepetition debt early in the case as the defunct food distributor looks to wind down.
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May 09, 2025
Sandy Hook Families Want Alex Jones To Pay Up Amid Appeal
A Connecticut appeals court should not extend a stay on the enforcement of a $1.3 billion judgment against bankrupt Infowars host Alex Jones while he brings his case to the U.S. Supreme Court, the families of Sandy Hook shooting victims said in opposition to his pending motion, arguing that his newly raised constitutional claims are late and meritless.
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May 09, 2025
Meet The Attorneys Guiding WeightWatchers' Ch.11
A team of lawyers from Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor LLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP is leading the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case of WeightWatchers, as the company plans to cut its debt under a restructuring plan set for confirmation in June.
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May 09, 2025
Souter's Clerks Remember Him As Humble, Kind And Caring
Former clerks of retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice David H. Souter are heartbroken over the death of a man many of them remember more for his conscientiousness, humility, kindness and disdain for the spotlight than for his undeniable brilliance as a jurist.
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May 09, 2025
Hiker And 'Raconteur': Atty Recalls 50-Year Bond With Souter
Behind a towering legal legacy was a man who loved to hike mountains, could recall details of things he read decades ago and was always there for those he cared about, a New Hampshire attorney said as he reflected on a lifelong friendship with U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter.
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May 09, 2025
A Look At David Souter's Most Significant Opinions
The retired Justice David Souter defied simple definition, viewed as a staunch conservative until he co-wrote an opinion upholding abortion rights in 1992. He did not hew to partisan lines, but reshaped the civil litigation landscape and took an unexpected stand in an extraordinarily close presidential election.
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May 09, 2025
Justice Souter Was An Unexpected Force Of Moderation
Justice David Souter, who saw the high court as a moderating force apart from the messiness of politics, subverted the expectations of liberals and conservatives alike during his 19 years on the bench.
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May 09, 2025
Retired Supreme Court Justice David Souter Dies At 85
Retired Justice David H. Souter, who served on the U.S. Supreme Court from 1990 to 2009, has died at 85, the court announced Friday.
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May 08, 2025
Celsius Founder Gets 12 Years For Massive Crypto Fraud
The founder and former CEO of defunct Celsius Network on Thursday was sentenced to 12 years in prison for deceiving customers about the crypto lender's profitability and business practices, and falsely inflating the price of the platform's native token, CEL.
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May 08, 2025
Girardi's Mental Health Hearing Delayed Until June
A California federal judge on Thursday postponed a mental health evaluation hearing for Tom Girardi meant to aid the court in sentencing the disbarred attorney for his wire fraud conviction, finding that because Girardi is hospitalized and did not waive his right to be present at the proceedings, it should not go forward as scheduled.
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May 08, 2025
Under The Radar: Bankruptcy News You May Have Missed
Newly bankrupt Rite Aid was let off the hook for multidistrict litigation over a blood pressure medication, thanks to discharges from its previous, now-closed Chapter 11. Strawberry grower Driscoll's took exception to a vertical farmer's bid to sell one of its master services agreements. And trucking company Yellow Corp. asked to conduct yet another asset sale.
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May 08, 2025
WeightWatchers To Seek OK For Equity Swap Ch. 11 In June
WeightWatchers expects it will be able to set aside some equity in a reorganized company for existing stockholders while cutting $1.15 billion in debt under a Chapter 11 plan that is scheduled for a confirmation hearing in June, the debtor told a Delaware bankruptcy judge on Thursday.
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May 08, 2025
Hikma Cuts $50M Deal To End Antitrust Claims In Xyrem MDL
A certified class of Xyrem buyers in 36 states have asked a California federal judge to preliminarily approve Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC's $50 million deal to resolve antitrust claims accusing Hikma of colluding with rival Jazz Pharmaceuticals to block generic rivals from competing with Jazz's narcolepsy drug.
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May 08, 2025
Exela Can Seek Votes On $1.25B Debt Restructuring Plan
A Texas bankruptcy judge said Thursday the insolvent units of business automation group Exela Technologies Inc. can solicit votes on their Chapter 11 plan, which would restructure their $1.25 billion debt.
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May 08, 2025
Wife Of Former FTX Exec Says Charges Are Built On Deception
Attorney and cryptocurrency lobbyist Michelle Bond, the wife of jailed former FTX executive Ryan Salame, told a Manhattan federal judge that her campaign finance case should be tossed because prosecutors broke a promise that she wouldn't be charged if her husband pled guilty.
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May 08, 2025
Asbestos Spinoff Ch. 11 Could Upend US Law, 4th Circ. Told
Georgia-Pacific's asbestos unit Bestwall and injury claimants on Thursday accused each other of trying to fundamentally rewrite U.S. law as they argued before the Fourth Circuit on the claimant committee's attempt to have Bestwall's Chapter 11 case thrown out of court.
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May 08, 2025
Meet The Attorneys Aiding Rite Aid In Its Second Ch. 11
Drugstore chain Rite Aid Corp. has enlisted attorneys from Cole Schotz PC and Paul Weiss Rifkind Wharton & Garrison LLP to assist the debtor as it navigates the Chapter 11 process again, less than a year after its earlier reorganization plan was approved.
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May 07, 2025
Girardi Hospitalized Ahead Of Mental Evaluation Hearing
Disbarred attorney Tom Girardi was hospitalized Wednesday for a liver problem and is unable to attend a scheduled hearing Thursday before a California federal judge who is evaluating his mental health to determine if he should be sent to prison, according to a filing with the court by his attorneys.
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May 07, 2025
Celebs And YouTubers Nix Most FTX Investor Claims, For Now
A Florida federal judge Wednesday freed several high-profile celebrities and YouTubers from a majority of claims FTX investors lodged in a sprawling multidistrict litigation over the cryptocurrency exchange's collapse, slashing all but two of the investors' claims, including aiding and abetting.
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May 07, 2025
SF Diocese Creditors Want Parishes, Schools In Ch. 11
Creditors of the Archdiocese of San Francisco asked a California bankruptcy judge to include dozens of parishes, schools, cemeteries and other properties in the Chapter 11 cases of the archdiocese, saying it is a fiction that the hundreds of millions of dollars in assets held at these entities are not part of the debtor.
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May 07, 2025
Rite Aid Cleared For Quick Ch. 11 Sale Plans
A New Jersey bankruptcy judge on Wednesday approved retail pharmacy chain Rite Aid's plans to host a Chapter 11 auction next week for prescription files, drug inventory and other pharmacy assets during its second bankruptcy.
Expert Analysis
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Bankruptcy Courts Have Contempt Power, Del. Case Reminds
A Delaware bankruptcy court recently held Camshaft Capital and its principal in contempt, serving as a reminder to bankruptcy practitioners and anyone else that appears before a bankruptcy judge that there are serious consequences for failing to comply with court orders, say Daniel Lowenthal and Kimberly Black at Patterson Belknap.
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What Lies Behind Diverging US And UK Insolvency Trends
Contrasting U.K. and U.S. insolvency trends highlight the importance of policy interventions in shaping consumer financial outcomes and economic recovery, and while the U.K.'s approach seems to have mitigated issues, the U.S. faces challenges exacerbated by economic conditions and policy transitions, says Thomas Curran at Thomas H. Curran Associates.
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E-Discovery Quarterly: Recent Rulings On Text Message Data
Electronically stored information on cellphones, and in particular text messages, can present unique litigation challenges, and recent court decisions demonstrate that counsel must carefully balance what data should be preserved, collected, reviewed and produced, say attorneys at Sidley.
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How Banks Can Preserve Value Amid Corporate Default Surge
Amid a busy time for corporate bankruptcies, banks need a nuanced understanding of contractual rights, regulatory frameworks and evolving legal developments to protect and preserve their rights and interests, say attorneys at Phelps Dunbar.
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Key Priorities In FDIC Report On Resolving Big Bank Failures
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s report last month on the resolvability of large financial institutions contains little new information, but it does reiterate key policy priorities, including the agency's desire to enhance loss-absorbing capacity through long-term debt requirements and preference for single-point-of-entry resolution strategies, say attorneys at Freshfields.
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The Art Of Asking: Leveraging Your Contacts For Referrals
Though attorneys may hesitate to ask for referral recommendations to generate new business, research shows that people want to help others they know, like and trust, so consider who in your network you should approach and how to make the ask, says Rebecca Hnatowski at Edwards Advisory.
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Ch. 11 Case Shows Why Plan Acceptance Procedures Are Key
Sunland Medical's recent liquidation plan proposal is an important example of how top-notch judges and attorneys propose and analyze complex issues during the confirmation process, and the bankruptcy court was forward-thinking to consider the implications of such proposed treatment in the face of the Bankruptcy Code, says Kyle Arendsen at Squire Patton.
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Risks Of Rejecting Hotel Mgmt. Agreements Via Bankruptcy
In recent years, hotel owners have paid a high price when they attempted to use bankruptcy proceedings to prematurely terminate their hotel management agreements, highlighting that other options may be preferable, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.
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NC Rulings Show Bankruptcy Isn't Only For Insolvent Debtors
Two recent rulings from a North Carolina bankruptcy court show that lack of financial distress is not a requirement for bankruptcy protection, particularly in the Fourth Circuit, but these types of cases can still be dismissed for other reasons, say Stuart Gordon and Alexandria Vath at Rivkin Radler.
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What Bankruptcy Deadline Appeal May Mean For Claimants
If the Third Circuit reverses a recent appeal made in In re: Promise Healthcare, litigation claimants within the circuit will not be able to rely on the proof of claim process to preserve the claim — but if the court affirms, the U.S. Supreme Court may need to step in to resolve the circuit split on this issue, say attorneys at DLA Piper.
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Spartan Arbitration Tactics Against Well-Funded Opponents
Like the ancient Spartans who held off a numerically superior Persian army at the Battle of Thermopylae, trial attorneys and clients faced with arbitration against an opponent with a bigger war chest can take a strategic approach to create a pass to victory, say Kostas Katsiris and Benjamin Argyle at Venable.
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Wesco Ch. 11 Ruling Marks Shift In Uptier Claim Treatment
A Texas bankruptcy court’s recent decision in In re: Wesco Aircraft Holdings leaves nonparticipating creditors with a road map to litigate to judgment non-pro rata liability management transactions, and foreshadows that bankruptcy courts may no longer be a friendly forum for these types of claims, say attorneys at Ropes & Gray.
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Charting The Course For Digital Assets In 2024
Although 2023 was a tough year for the digital asset industry, upcoming court decisions, legislation and regulatory action will bring clarity, allowing the industry to expand and evolve, and the government will decide what innovation it will allow without challenge, says Joshua Smeltzer at Gray Reed.