News about the Business Law Program or news about faculty or students that relates to business law
A recent $2.5 billion bankruptcy settlement between the Boy Scouts of America and childhood sexual abuse survivors seemed to put a close to an awful chapter in the victims lives, until the settlement was halted by the U.S. Supreme Court due to concerns over the legality of mandatory releases of claims against nondebtor third parties. […]
The United States Bankruptcy Court Western District of North Carolina recently denied a motion to dismiss the bankruptcy of companies implicated in asbestos liability cases, citing and quoting from several articles by Professor Ralph Brubaker. The case involves Texas Two-Step mass-tort bankruptcy, a topic in which Brubaker has researched and published extensively. The decision cites […]
Professor Ralph Brubaker has received the Lawrence P. King Award for Excellence in the Field of Bankruptcy by the Commercial Law League of America. Below is the text of the press release announcing the award. Commercial Law League of America Announces 2024 Lawrence P. King Award Recipient Rolling Meadows, IL, February 29, 2024 – The […]
Judge Arthur Engoron dealt a significant legal and financial blow to former President Donald Trump’s business empire, including a staggering $355 million fine and temporary removal of Trump and his sons from business leadership roles. Professor Robert Lawless, speaking to ABC News, explained what may happen to Trump and his businesses if his appeal fails […]
Professor Nicola Sharpe is one of five individuals selected to be part of a screening committee whose task is to review and vet District Court candidates and advise regarding the candidates’ qualifications and fitness for the position. The committee was selected by U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and […]
Transfer rules and the changes to those rules have played an outsized role in college athletics in recent years. The federal government joining 10 states and the District of Columbia in a lawsuit against the NCAA that seeks to make permanent a temporary restraining order prohibiting the governing body from imposing penalties on student-athletes that […]
The strength of Professor Ralph Brubaker’s scholarship provided “considerable force” in the mind of Bankruptcy Judge J. Craig Whitley of Charlotte, N.C., and he cited Brubaker’s work extensively when denying a motion to dismiss a pair of “asbestos” chapter 11 cases where the family of companies could pay $250 million in current and future liability. […]
In late December 2023, U.S. bankruptcy court in North Carolina denied motions to dismiss the Texas Two-Step mass-tort bankruptcy cases of entities created to resolve the asbestos liability of the Trane companies. This type of maneuver involves splitting a company into two, moving the liabilities to one company, and then seek bankruptcy protections to absolve […]
In the pending U.S. Supreme Court case regarding Purdue Pharma’s litigation shield for the Sackler family, the decision of the Court could impact widely used non-debtor releases in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases. Professor Ralph Brubaker suggested to Bloomberg Law the ruling might affect cases involving mass torts, including cases involving the Catholic diocese, Boy Scouts, […]
Ruling in the case Nine West LBO Securities Litigation, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit cited Professor Ralph Brubaker’s work on safe harbor rules in the Tax Equity and Fiscal Responsibility Act of 1982. The case revolved around the leveraged buyout of an apparel and footwear company, including brands such as Nine West and Anne Klein, and […]