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Mid-Atlantic Region
In In re Ho Wan Kwok, No. 22-50073 (Bankr. D. Conn. Feb. 15, 2022), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Connecticut appointed a chapter 11 trustee over the estate of the debtor, a Chinese “self-declared multi-billionaire” living in the United States, due, in part, to the complexity of the debtor’s financial affairs. In April, 2025, the court approved the trustee’s motion to increase the previously approved expenses for the debtor’s 21-bedroom, 50,000-square-foot mansion from $1,000,000 to $1,600,000, agreeing that the increase was “in the best interests of the debtor’s estate and creditors.” Click here for a full summary of the case.
In 20230930-DK-Butterfly-1 Inc. v. Cohen, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York denied the defendants’ motion to dismiss allegations of insider trading. The court reasoned that, after publicly announced large stock buybacks by Bed Bath & Beyond, the defendants should have known that they held sufficient shares to constitute more than 10% beneficial ownership of the company and, therefore, the defendants could be subject to liability under Section 16(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The court, however, was unwilling to retroactively apply a recent Supreme Court decision to the time at which the defendants made the relevant stock purchases in March 2022, and therefore found that the defendants could not be considered directors at the time of the trade. Click here for a full summary of the case.
In In re Urban Commons 2 West LLC, et al., the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York rejected a narrow interpretation of Section 363(f)(5) of the Bankruptcy Code and instead applied a “realistic possibility” standard to determine that Section 363(f)(5) permits a sale of assets free and clear of liens if a practical state law alternative, such as a foreclosure or UCC sale, would extinguish a junior lienholder’s interests. Click here for a full summary of the case.
Rocky Mountain and Western Region
In Marshack v. JGW Solutions LLC (In re Litigation Practice Group PC), the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California recently held that a chapter 11 trustee could recover fraudulent transfers and preferences made to a third-party marketing firm under sections 544 and 548 of the Bankruptcy Code and under the California Uniform Voidable Transactions Act. The court further held that the defendant could not assert an in pari delicto defense against the trustee, as the trustee was acting on behalf of creditors and not the debtor. Click here for a full summary of the case.
In In re Murie Graphic Design Inc., the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Idaho held that a corporate debtor’s chapter 7 bankruptcy petition was properly authorized by its president and director and did not require additional shareholder approval under Idaho corporate law. In rejecting the sole shareholder’s motion to dismiss, the court found that the Idaho Business Corporation Act does not require shareholder authorization to file a bankruptcy petition, even if the liquidation of the corporation is anticipated. Click here for a full summary of the case.
In Travelers Casualty & Surety Company of America v. Decker, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington dismissed third-party claims brought by indemnitors of Elcon Corporation against Elcon’s lender, KeyBank, holding that the lender’s issuance of notices under UCC Section 9-607 – directing receivables from the defaulting borrower’s subcontractors to be paid to the lender – was in accordance with the terms of its loan agreement and undertaken in good faith. The court concluded that the lender’s actions did not constitute tortious interference under Washington law and dismissed the indemnitors’ equitable subrogation and equitable indemnity claims as inadequately pled. Click here for a full summary of the case.
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