By Addison F. Pierce, American University – Washington College of Law
The Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1978 is beginning to show its age in ways similar to the forty-year-old code it replaced. In addition to being ill-suited to address changes in the underlying credit market, the current code is confronting the development of an entirely new marketplace — a market in claims trading. While some praise the enhanced liquidity, others take issue with the strains placed on the efficacy of bankruptcy.
Rather than engaging in the normative debate, this Comment seeks to redress a clear drawback to the current system: the harm endured by passive creditors. Unlike those economically empowered to participate in the reorganization process, the passive creditor lacks the economic ability and incentive to play an active role. This position leaves the passive creditor’s ability to collect on its claim solely in the hands of another: the creditors’ committee. While this committee may have provided adequate protection in 1978, the credit market and its participants are very different today. Some argue that this issue is systemic and can only be addressed by replacing the current code; however, this Comment argues that something can be done short of this massive task. The challenge is as follows: if too little is done, passive creditors will continue to be exploited and if too much is done the whole market could be damaged. Recognizing this challenge, this Comment proposes that passive creditors can be afforded adequate protection by leveraging the oversight power of the US Trustee to ensure the proper functioning of creditors’ committees. Moreover, the recommendation of this Comment would enhance protection for passive creditor while remaining market neutral.
For the full article, see 4 Am. U. Bus. L. Rev. 95 (2015), available here.