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Chilled Credit Bidding and the Section 363 Sale Section 363(k) of the Bankruptcy Code (the “Code”) allows a secured creditor to bid at a section 363 sale and use the amount of their claim to offset the purchase price at the sale, called “credit bidding.” A court may limit this right “for cause.” The “for cause” standard is not defined in the Code, and disagreement exists as to what constitutes “for cause.” Traditional bases for limiting credit bidding include challenges related to the lien itself, failure to correctly assert the […]
Section 1111(b) Election: A Countermeasure for Undersecured, Secured Creditors Mathew 5:29 – And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. In a previous article about cram downs, in which a debtor can take steps to confirm a Chapter 11 plan despite rejection from creditors, I referred briefly to an undersecured, secured creditor’s countermeasure: the section 1111(b)(2) election. By […]
The ABCs of ABCs, Business Bankruptcy, & Corporate Restructuring/Insolvency This installment of our series is required reading for the next, which attempts the audacious task of describing a “typical” chapter 11. And if you didn’t get it, the title of this installment, “Chapter 11—If You’ve Seen One, You’ve Seen Them All,” is intended to be sarcastic. That said… The Predictability of Chapter 11 and Likely Outcomes When a company files chapter 11, its experience will bear some resemblance to every chapter 11 that came before. We’re not saying anything momentous […]
The Complexity of Student Loan Debt in Bankruptcy… Demystified Student loan debt has hit a record $1.6 trillion. This number is staggering on its own, but as millions of Americans lose their jobs and source of income during the COVID-19 pandemic, student loan borrowers have to look at their options for repayment. The U.S. government is allowing borrowers to suspend all federal loan principal and interest payments until September 30, 2020, but this still leaves many private loan borrowers at the hands of their lenders. For those experiencing extreme financial […]
The market has changed a lot since our last look at convertible bonds about six months ago. Not only has the stock market been shaken by the potential fall-out from the Covid-19 stay-at-home orders, but also interest rates have fallen sharply. The market has shown resilience, but risks clearly remain as the economic recovery may not happen as quickly as investors expect. Convertible bonds and convertible preferred stocks can provide investors with possible participation in future gains in the underlying common stock, along with attractive yields, while providing some measure […]
With the sharp slowdown in the economy, bank stocks have declined significantly, and, unlike the broad S&P 500 Index, have not recovered much of their lost value. Year-to-date, our universe of 180 bank stocks has declined 31%, compared to the 6% decline in the broad market. Driving the weak shares are concerns over higher credit losses, particularly in commercial real estate and small/medium business loans. Banks have begun to increase their reserves, but the extent of further losses is not fully known. A new accounting rule (Current Expected Credit Losses, […]
Pacifying a Hostile Lender with a Motion to Substitute Collateral Can a Chapter 11 debtor confirm a plan that gives a hostile secured creditor a lien on an orange as a substitute, in essence, for the secured creditor’s lien on an apple that the debtor wants to keep and use?1 Yes, a motion to substitute collateral is valid if the value of the new lien meets the “indubitable equivalent” test with the value of the original lien. Substitute Collateral in Apples and Oranges Assume that the land-rich but cash-poor Chapter […]
The SBA’s Views, Court Rulings and Options for Your Company You need to restructure your debt and/or deal as soon as possible with assertive creditors. You want to preserve your company, and you would benefit (or already have benefited) from Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funds as a bridge. What do you do? Can you risk Chapter 11? Are PPP loans for Chapter 11 debtors available? If not, what are your options? The CARES Act – which has led to two rounds of funding thus far – has proven to be […]
When is Your Company’s Attorney-Client Communication No Longer a Secret? Imagine if every secret and strategy that you had ever shared with your attorney were laid open for the world to see. A trustee in a business bankruptcy case may well have the power to review, publish, and wield all of the debtor’s attorney-client communication, including those communications that the debtor’s principals reasonably believed were permanently encased in a fortress of secrecy. The trustee can thus gain major ammunition for claims against insiders, business partners, vendors, attorneys, accountants, advisors, […]
Considerations for Distressed Private Equity You are a PE fund manager. Your fund employs a loan-to-own strategy (also referred to as distressed private equity) to effect take-overs of target companies. You are accustomed to exerting powerful leverage in chapter 11 cases, particularly when you buy enough claims to confirm a plan or to block confirmation of a plan by other parties. For a plan to be approved consensually, each class of claims or interests must approve it. Approval by a class of claims requires a “yes” vote by a […]