The Singapore-based Asian Business Law Institute (ABLI) recently released its Guide on the Treatment of Insolvent Micro and Small Enterprises in Asia in conjunction with the International Insolvency Institute.
Committees
A chapter 13 bankruptcy allows a defaulted homeowner the unique benefit of saving real property, along with other secured debt. Given the benefits of chapter 13, this particular type of bankruptcy has the ability to help a large mass of people, and as such requires an orderly administration.
From its inception, the National Ethics Task Force [1] was charged with answering the question of whether there is a need for national ethics rules, standards and general practice guidance in the bankruptcy context.
The Ethics and Professional Compensation Committee had an active 2021, and we are excited to carry that energy into 2022.
Bankruptcy courts have not always favored post-petition retainers to debtor’s counsel. [1] But does the Bankruptcy Code prohibit them? That is exactly the question Judge David D. Cleary answered in In re Golden Fleece Beverages Inc., in which he held that the Code indeed supports post-petition retainers.
On January 14, 2022, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit in In the Matter of Sharon Sylvester (Sylvester vs Chaffe McCall LLP) held that a trustee’s attorney is entitled to compensation under Bankruptcy Code § 330(a) “only for services requiring legal expertise that a trustee would not generally be expected to perform without an attorney’s assistance.”
Section 547(c)(2)(A) of the Bankruptcy Code, often referred to as the “subjective OCB defense,” provides a defense to a preference suit if the defendant can show that the challenged payments made during the 90-day preference period are sufficiently consistent with the historical payments made by the debtor to the defendant.
Trade creditors will undoubtedly want to take steps to protect themselves when dealing with financially distressed customers that are potentially heading toward bankruptcy — such as by decreasing credit limits, tightening payment terms or otherwise ramping up collection efforts.
EI&T Committee Member Spotlight
The committee is pleased to introduce its Committee Member Spotlight, a new newsletter feature that highlights members and their favorite things about ABI! Join us this quarter for our first installment featuring Rebecca F. Redwine, a partner at Hendren, Redwine & Malone, PLLC and the committee’s Education Director.