SUBCHAPTER V OF CHAPTER 11 | JOINTLY ADMINISTERED | 2022–2025
Served as debtor’s counsel for two jointly administered Subchapter V Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California: a family real estate business trust (Case No. 22-30059) and a related real estate operating entity (Case No. 22-30058). Each case had over 4.5 million of secured debt, but both cases were eligible to proceed under Subchapter V under the CARES Act that had raised SubChapter V debt limitations to 7.5 million. (Please note that CARES Act debt limitations expired on April 1, 2025, such that as of April 1, 2025, the triennial § 104 adjustment reset the SubChapter V debt limit to $3,424,000 from the original pre-CARES act limit of $2.725 million).
The business trust proceeding is itself noteworthy, as trusts ordinarily are not eligible debtors under 11 U.S.C. § 109 unless they qualify as a “business trust” under § 101(41) — a threshold that the trust client satisfied, permitting it to reorganize alongside its related operating entity.
The firm negotiated a consensual Chapter 11 plan for the jointly admininistered cases that was confirmed as amended on July 25, 2025 under 11 U.S.C. § 1191(a). The plan allowed the debtors to restructure, protect, and retain title to every real property in their portfolio — and to pay a 100% dividend to all creditors. Because the plan was confirmed consensually under § 1191(a), rather than by cramdown, the Subchapter V debtors received an immediate discharge order upon entry of the confirmation order.
Result: Consensual Sub V plan confirmed (July 25, 2025); 100% dividend to all creditors; all real properties retained; immediate discharge on confirmation
