Forbearance Agreement Wasn’t an Enforceable Waiver of the Automatic Stay
Bankruptcy Judge Laura Grandy (politely) faulted other federal courts for failing to follow the Illinois mortgage statute and decisions by the Illinois Supreme Court.
Benchnotes April 2025
Journal Issue:
In Lender-on-Lender Violence, an ‘Uptier’ Financing Bites the Dust, this Time in Houston
Fancy drafting by ‘brilliant financiers and lawyers,’ the judge said, didn’t validate an uptier transaction when the ‘effect’ was to release collateral without a two-thirds vote.
No Second Restructuring of the Same Debt in a Different Venue
Delaware judge wouldn’t allow a chapter 11 debtor to restructure the same secured debt a second time in a different venue.
Court:
A Disguised Loan Agreement Didn’t Create a ‘Fair Ground of Doubt’ Under Taggart
The Fifth Circuit undertook a legal analysis of a complex loan agreement to decide there was no ‘fair ground of doubt’ under Taggart that the lender was violating the discharge injunction.
Court:
Without Levy, a Recorded Judgment Lien Is Unperfected in Some States
In New Jersey, a trustee’s hypothetical judicial lien has priority over a judgment lien if the judgment lienholder has not made a levy on the property.
Court:
Companies Can Be ‘Bankruptcy Remote,’ if Properly Done
Bankruptcy Judge David Cleary wrote a manual on how a company can be ‘bankruptcy remote’ without violating public policy.