Aaron Hammer and Nathan Delman speak to Chicago Bar Association on Equitable Mootness

After decades of sidestepping the issue, the Eighth Circuit finally created its own equitable mootness standard, requiring lower appellate courts to fully examine the underlying merits of a bankruptcy appeal rather than relying on equitable mootness for a swift dismissal. If lower courts do not follow suit, the Eighth Circuit believed it will prime the U.S. Supreme Court to potentially abolish its use. You can read the full opinion here.  In this program, Aaron Hammer and Nathan Delman explore the past, present and potential futures of the so-called “equitable mootness” doctrine, which limits a litigant’s right to appeal bankruptcy court orders with members of the Chicago Bar Association's Bankruptcy and Reorganization Committee. They discuss this doctrine through the lens of their involvement in the Eighth Circuit FishDish case, where the panelists represented equity holders and successfully advocated against the doctrine, leading the Court to nearly abolish the doctrine from its jurisdiction.