Driving The Wedge Deeper: Fifth And Ninth Circuits Unite In Refusing To Condemn 'Artificial Impairment' In Cramdown Chapter 11 Plans

One of the prerequisites to confirmation of a cramdown (nonconsensual) chapter 11 plan is that at least one "impaired" class of creditors must vote in favor of the plan. This requirement reflects the basic principle that a plan may not be imposed on a dissident body of stakeholders of which no class has given approval. However, it is sometimes an invitation to creative machinations designed to muster the requisite votes for confirmation of the plan. "Strategic" classification can entail, among other things, separately classifying similar, but arguably distinct, kinds of claims in an effort to create an accepting impaired class or to prevent a dissenting creditor from dominating a class because its claim is so substantial that the creditor can "block" the class's approval of a plan. This controversial practice, which most commonly arises in a single-asset real estate case involving an undersecured creditor holding a substantial deficiency claim, is sometimes referred to as class "gerrymandering" and has been held to be invalid by many courts, including the Fifth Circuit in Phoenix Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Greystone III Joint Venture (In re Greystone III Joint Venture), 995 F.2d 1274 (5th Cir. 1991), and the Fourth Circuit in Travellers Ins. Co. v. Bryson Props., XVIII (In re Bryson Props., XVIII), 961 F.2d 496 (4th Cir. 1992). Strategic classification can also take the form of "manufacturing" an impaired class even though impairment is unnecessary. For example, the plan could pay creditor claims nearly, but not entirely, in full or modify the rights of the creditors in the class in some incidental wayin either case, with such minimal effect that creditors are still willing to vote to accept the plan despite slight impairment of their claims. Sometimes referred to as "artificial impairment," this practice is also controversial. See In re Swartville, LLC, 2012 BL 211034, *2 (Bankr. E.D.N.C. Aug. 17, 2012) ("artificial impairment" refers to a scenario where a debtor "deliberately impairs a de minimis claim solely for the purpose of achieving a forced confirmation over the objection of a creditor"). So much so, in fact, that there is a split in the federal circuit courts of appeal concerning its legitimacy. That rift recently widened when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit handed down its ruling in Western Real Estate Equities, LLC v. Village at Camp Bowie I, LP (In re Village at Camp Bowie I, LP), 2013 BL 50530 (5th Cir. Feb. 26, 2013). In Camp Bowie, the Fifth Circuit joined the Ninth Circuit in holding that section 1129(a)(10) of the Bankruptcy Code, which contains the impaired-class acceptance requirement, "does not distinguish between discretionary and economically driven impairment." However, the court held that artificial impairment may be relevant in assessing whether a chapter 11 plan has been proposed in bad faith. Voting and Plan Confirmation in Chapter 11 Confirmation of a chapter 11 plan is possible under two circumstances: (i) the requisite majorities of creditors and equity interest holders in every "class" (explained below) vote in favor of the plan (or are deemed to have done so by reason of being "unimpaired"); or (ii) despite the absence of acceptance by all classes, the plan meets certain minimum standards spelled out in the nonconsensual confirmation, or "cramdown," provisions of the Bankruptcy Code. Voting in chapter 11 is tabulated by classes rather than individual creditors or shareholders. This means that a dissenting individual creditor or shareholder can be outvoted if the remaining class members hold enough of the claims or interests in the class to achieve the voting majorities specified in the Bankruptcy Code for class acceptance. As such, how a claim or interest is classified can have a significant impact on the debtor's prospects for confirming a chapter 11 plan. For example, as noted, a creditor whose claim is substantial enough to give it voting control of a class may be able to block confirmation. Confirmation is possible only if at least one "impaired" class of creditors or shareholders under the plan votes to accept it (without counting insider votes). This requirement, which appears in section 1129(a)(10) of the Bankruptcy Code, operates as one of several statutory gatekeepers to cramdown. Cramdown is a powerful remedyit imposes a binding reorganization (or liquidation) scheme upon a body of dissenting creditors and other stakeholders predicated upon sometimes complicated judicial determinations concerning asset and claim valuation, feasibility, and other important issues. Section 1129(a)(10) is premised on the policy that, before compelling stakeholders to bear the consequences associated with cramdown, at least one class whose members are not being paid in full (or whose claims or interests are otherwise "impaired") is willing to go along with the chapter 11 plan. Cramdown Requirements Section 1129(b) of the Bankruptcy Code sets forth the requirements that must be met before a bankruptcy court can confirm a chapter 11 plan...