In a decision with important implications for the bankruptcy system, the Second Circuit favorably commented on an amicus brief submitted by Professors Ralph Brubaker and Robert Lawless along with Professor Bruce Markell of Northwestern. In Anderson v. Credit One, the Second Circuit ruled a creditor could not invoke an arbitration clause against a debtor’s claim the creditor had tried to collect a debt in violation of the bankruptcy discharge. The ruling protects the ability of bankruptcy courts to interpret and enforce their own orders. The Second Circuit characterized the amicus brief as persuasively documenting the judicial and legislative history of the bankruptcy discharge. The court also adopted the brief’s position that violations of the discharge injunction are not “claims” subject to arbitration, a position the brief took from Professor Brubaker’s extensive scholarship on the topic.

Read the full opinion.