6th Circuit

Aggressive Bankruptcy Planning Didn’t Result in the Loss of Discharge

Sixth Circuit held that preferring one creditor with a nondischargeable claim before bankruptcy isn’t intent to hinder, delay or defraud.
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A Bankruptcy Case on Rule 60(b) Could End Up in the Supreme Court Next Term

Deciding a bankruptcy appeal, the Sixth Circuit deepened an existing circuit split on time limitations for Rule 60(b)(4) motions.
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Circuit Split May Deepen on Assuming a Franchise over the Franchisor’s Objection

Ohio’s Bankruptcy Judge Nami Khorrami sides with the minority on a circuit split that the Supreme Court ducked in 2009.

Receivership Didn’t Prevent an LLC’s Manager from Filing Bankruptcy for the LLC

Judge Randal Mashburn described what a state court must do in appointing a receiver that would prevent an LLC’s manager from filing a bankruptcy petition.

Noncompete and Confidentiality Agreements Can’t Be Rejected as Executory Contracts

If a breach results only in a right to equitable relief, there is no ‘claim’ and thus no executory contract.

An ATV Is an Exempt ‘Motor Vehicle’ in Ohio, Judge Whipple Says

Judge Mary Ann Whipple declined to engraft a ‘use’ restriction onto the broad meaning of ‘motor vehicle’ in Ohio.

The ‘Ordinary Course’ Defense Is Satisfied by Showing One of the Two Tests, Not Both

Following the 2005 amendments, satisfying either the subject test or the objective test will prove the ‘ordinary course’ defense to a preference, Judge Hoffman says.

Evidence of Intent to ‘Hinder’ Wasn’t Sufficient to Deny Discharge, District Judge Says

The bankruptcy court’s inference of intent to hinder the trustee wasn’t supported by the evidence, the district judge says in reversing a denial discharge.

A Bankrupt Defendant Complicates Filing an Appeal Against Everyone Else

The Sixth Circuit explains how to appeal when the automatic stay prevents an order in a multi-defendant suit from becoming a final order.
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A Stipulated Dismissal Won’t Serve as the Basis for Res Judicata, a/k/a Claim Preclusion

A stipulated dismissal, even with prejudice, doesn’t mean that the claims were ‘actually litigated’ for the purpose of claim preclusion, the Sixth Circuit says.
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