Peter Barrett, a partner in Kutak Rock’s Richmond office, and Brittany Habbart, a summer associate in the firm’s Scottsdale office, co-authored the article “Circuit Split May Force Tribal Nations into Bankruptcy Courts” in the August 2022 edition of the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal. 

The article reports on the 9th, 6th and 1st Circuit Courts of Appeal which are currently split on whether the Bankruptcy Code strips tribal nations of their tribal sovereign immunity in bankruptcy proceedings. The recent circuit court decisions have led to ongoing uncertainty, and the authors explain that for tribal nations to be compelled to participate in bankruptcy proceedings, courts will need to determine whether tribal sovereign immunity is abrogated in the Code. If this circuit split is not addressed by clarifying legislation, it could be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Peter Barrett represents unsecured and secured creditors, trustees, lessors, equity holders and corporate debtors in insolvency matters, including Chapter 11 reorganizations, business liquidations and loan workouts. 

Brittany Habbart has been a summer associate at Kutak Rock for the last two years. She is a third-year student at Arizona State University’s Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law and is a member of the Caddo Nation of Oklahoma.