Bankruptcy

Expert Analysis

• The Factors Courts Consider In Deposition Location Disputes

  

  In the absence of a federal rule governing deposition location, federal courts are frequently called on to resolve objections to out-of-state deposition notices. Recent decisions reveal what information is crucial to courts in making the determination, says Kevin O’Brien at Porter Wright.

• What To Consider Before Filing For A Rule 57 Speedy Hearing

  

  Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 57 and its state counterparts provide a method for expediting claims for declaratory judgment that warrants closer attention than it has historically received from litigants and courts, say attorneys at Gibson Dunn.

• Series

  Why I Became A Lawyer: Expanding The Meaning Of Diversity

  

  My conservative, Catholic parents never skipped a beat when accepting that I was gay, and encouraged me to follow my dreams wherever they might lead. But I did not expect they would lead to the law, until I met an inspiring college professor, says James Holmes of Clyde & Co.

• How The Wayback Machine Can Strengthen Your Case

  

  The Wayback Machine, which archives screenshots of websites at particular points in time, can be an invaluable tool in litigation, but attorneys need to follow a few simple steps early in the discovery process to increase the odds of being able to use materials obtained from the archive, says Timothy Freeman of Tanenbaum Keale.

• Opinion

  Draft Civil Procedure Jurisdictional Rule Needs A Tweak

  

  The Judicial Conference Advisory Committee’s proposed addition to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 7.1 needs to be amended slightly to prevent late-stage jurisdictional confusion in cases where the parties do not have attributed citizenship, says GianCarlo Canaparo at The Heritage Foundation.

• New Best Practices Under E-Discovery Spoliation Rule

  

  The amended Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 37(e) provides explicit criteria for imposing sanctions when electronically stored information has been lost during discovery, but courts are still not consistently applying the new rule, with some simply ignoring it in favor of inherent authority, say Matthew Hamilton and Donna Fisher at Pepper Hamilton.

• How Law Firms Can Create Content Decision Makers Will Read

  

  According to our recent survey, the one simple attribute that attracts both in-house counsel and C-suite executives to content is utility, but it’s also clear that both groups define utility differently and prefer different content types, says John Corey of Greentarget.

• Bankruptcy Courts' Turf War With FERC Escalates

  

  Recent Chapter 11 filings by Pacific Gas & Electric and FirstEnergy Solutions have reignited debate over whether U.S. bankruptcy courts can reject contracts regulated by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The crux of the problem lies in conflicting jurisdiction conferred by the Bankruptcy Code and the Federal Power Act, say Paul Green and Mark Douglas of Jones Day.

• 7th Circ. Misinterprets 'Active Resistance' In Ch. 13 Stays

  

  When Section 362 of the Bankruptcy Code is evaluated under accepted principles of statutory interpretation, there is good reason to doubt the Seventh Circuit’s rationale in Fulton, the latest case in a circuit split on an aspect of the bankruptcy automatic stay provision, say Frank DiCastri and Lindsey Greenawald of Husch Blackwell.

• Investment Company Act Circuit Split Exposes Mutual Funds

  

  The Second Circuit's opinion in Oxford University Bank v. Lansuppe Feeder that mutual fund investors can bring private actions to rescind contracts they allege violate the Investment Company Act creates an unconventional circuit split, and poses litigation risk for mutual funds, say attorneys at Goodwin.

• Post-Taggart, Debtors May Face Higher Pleading Standard

  

  As interpreted by an Alabama federal court in Moore v. Automotive Finance last month, the U.S. Supreme Court's June ruling in Taggart v. Lorenzen has heightened the pleading standard for debtors in cases of discharge injunction violations and provided creditors with a new defense to these claims, say Shane Ramsey and John Baxter of Nelson Mullins.

• Opinion

  Litigation Finance Can And Should Protect Its Reputation

  

  This month’s controversy surrounding alleged financial misrepresentations by Burford Capital underlines the need for litigation financiers to unite in educating the public about the value of litigation finance, lest opportunists use cases like this to disparage the industry as a whole, says Charles Agee at Westfleet Advisors.

• Crisis Messaging To Protect Law Firm Brand And Bottom Line

  

  When crises occur, such as data security incidents or gender bias suits, a well-prepared law firm has a thoroughly tested communications plan at the ready, which ensures the firm is the most proactive news source, prevents the crisis from escalating and notifies stakeholders about mitigation efforts, says Zach Olsen at Infinite Global.

• Calif. Justices Set Low Bar For Website Bias Claims

  

  The California Supreme Court’s recent opinion in White v. Square — that plaintiffs need only show they intended to use an online business’ services in order to sue for alleged discrimination — could have far-reaching consequences for e-commerce, initially in California and potentially nationwide, say Katherine Catlos and Aaron Cargain of Kaufman Dolowich.

• Perspectives

  What You Should Know About Courtroom Closures

  

  At attorney Greg Craig’s trial in D.C. federal court this week, the courtroom was cleared so prospective jurors could answer sensitive questions. Even seasoned litigators were left wondering about the nature of this subtle, yet significant, issue involving Sixth Amendment public trial rights, says Luke Cass at Quarles & Brady.