New Cases - Week of February 27, 2012

March 1, 2012
In re Appleseed's Intermediate Holdings, LLC (DBN)	DE	In an avoidance action seeking recovery of dividend funds paid by a debtor, the defendant's argument that the funds were not property of the debtor because: (i) the debtor was required by loan documents to pay the dividend (and thus lacked dominion and control) and (ii) the funds were paid directly to the defendant by the bank was unavailing. The court finds that the loan document requirement was a technicality and the lender would surely have issued the loan funds to the debtor (thus improving the lender's collateral base) even if the debtor had decided to breach the requirement to pay the dividend.

February 29, 2012
In re Coudert Brothers LLP (DBN)	2nd Cir.	Where Coudert Bros. former client's legal malpractice claim was already pending in an out-of-state court the bankruptcy court should have applied the choice of law rules of the state where the underlying prepetition claim was filed.
In re Amfin Financial Corporation (DBN)	Bankr. ND OH	In a substantial contribution case, the applicant's motive for its actions is a factor that may be considered, but the existence of a self-interest cannot in and of itself preclude reimbursement. § 503 specifically permits compensation to a creditor's counsel under certain circumstances, and that counsel is by definition always going to be acting in the creditor's best interest. The fact that a major creditor recognized early in the case that litigating would not preserve value, and so sensibly chose to focus on reaching a consensus is not sufficient to warrant a substantial contribution payment.

February 28, 2012
In re Loop 76, LLC (DBN)	9th Cir. BAP	A third-party source for recovery on a creditor's unsecured claim, such as a guarantor, is a factor the bankruptcy court may consider when determining whether claims are substantially similar under 11 U.S.C. § 1122(a).