On June 27, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 to reject the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy settlement that would have provided the Sackler family immunity from future opioid-related lawsuits in exchange for paying up to $6 billion. Justice Neil Gorsuch’s majority opinion held that “the …
U.S. Supreme CourtNeil GorsuchKetanji Brown JacksonBrett KavanaughSackler Family+1 moreopioid-crisissupreme-courtbankruptcy-lawaccountabilitylegal-precedent
On May 30, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon’s December 2021 ruling, holding that bankruptcy courts do have authority to approve non-consensual third-party releases. The divided 2-1 decision reinstated the Purdue Pharma …
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second CircuitSackler FamilyPurdue PharmaU.S. Department of Justiceopioid-crisisbankruptcy-lawappeals-processaccountability-failurejudicial-disagreement
On December 16, 2021, U.S. District Court Judge Colleen McMahon overturned the controversial bankruptcy settlement that would have granted the Sackler family immunity from opioid-related lawsuits in exchange for $4.5 billion. Judge McMahon ruled that bankruptcy courts do not have the authority to …
Colleen McMahonSackler FamilyPurdue PharmaU.S. Department of Justiceopioid-crisisbankruptcy-lawjudicial-oversightaccountabilitylegal-precedent
Corinthian Colleges abruptly shut down all 28 of its remaining campuses on April 26, 2015, stranding 16,000 students mid-semester, and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on May 4, 2015, after months of federal and state investigations exposed systematic fraud affecting over 72,000 students. …
Between 2005 and 2024, the United States operated a two-tiered bankruptcy system that weaponized debt against students and working Americans while preserving bankruptcy as a strategic wealth-preservation tool for corporations and the wealthy—a defining example of 21st century American kleptocracy. …
Corinthian CollegesITT TechUniversity of PhoenixPurdue PharmaSackler Family+2 morebankruptcy-lawstudent-debtcorporate-fraudinequalitykleptocracy
President George W. Bush signed the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act (BAPCPA) on April 20, 2005, fundamentally weaponizing bankruptcy law against student borrowers while preserving corporate bankruptcy as a strategic tool. The law amended Section 523(a)(8) to make private …
George W. BushMBNASallie Maebankruptcy-lawstudent-debtregulatory-capturefinancial-fraud