Overview
Marcos Ramos is assistant general counsel of the firm.
Marcos is a litigator and bankruptcy professional who focuses his practice on proceedings in the Delaware bankruptcy and other courts. He also provides counsel to U.S. and non-U.S. clients in other matters arising under or related to Delaware law, practice, procedure, and courts.
Marcos is an active force in the American Bar Association, Delaware Hispanic Bar Association, and Hispanic National Bar Association. He formerly served as the chairman of the New Castle County Diversity Commission by appointment of the New Castle County Executive.
PRACTICES
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- Advanced Marketing Services, Inc.: Counsel to debtor in contested matters and adversary proceedings to recover alleged avoidable transfers and accounts receivable
- AMC Investors, LLC: Co-counsel to interested party in connection with contested bankruptcy proceedings and under order providing standing to interested party to pursue estate litigation
- APCO Liquidating Trust: Co-counsel to trust in contested claim proceedings
- Blitz U.S.A., Inc.: Counsel to debtors in various contested matters, including discovery, motions for relief from stay, and contested settlement motion
- CB Holding Corp. Liquidating Trust: Counsel to plaintiff in proceeding to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- Caesars Entertainment Operating Company, Inc.: Counsel to independent directors in connection with contested matters
- Carolina Fluid Handling Intermediate Holding Corp.: Counsel to defendant in adversary proceedings to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- Conex Holdings, Inc.: Counsel to defendants in adversary proceeding alleging fiduciary duty, fraudulent transfer, preference, and other claims
- Constellation Enterprises LLC: Co-counsel to debtors in connection with contested matters
- Corinthian Colleges, Inc.: Counsel to debtors in connection with contested and adversary proceeding matters
- Corinthian Distribution Trust: Counsel to trustee in connection with contested matters and trust and related issues
- Crucible Materials Corp.: Counsel to defendant in adversary proceeding to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- Cubic Energy, Inc.: Co-counsel to interested party in connection with contested plan and confirmation proceeding, and adversary proceeding for declaratory and injunctive relief
- Dura Automotive: Counsel for estates in proceedings to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- FTD Companies, Inc.: Counsel to debtors in connection with investigation and evaluation of potential litigation claims
- Hoop Liquidating Trust: Counsel to plaintiff in adversary proceedings to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- Imerys Talc America, Inc.: Co-counsel to debtors in connection with contested and adversary proceeding matters
- Innovative Building Systems, LLC: Counsel to defendant in adversary proceeding to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- Insys Therapeutics, Inc.: Co-counsel to debtors in connection with contested and other matters
- IT Corp.: Co-counsel to defendants in adversary proceedings alleging breach of fiduciary duty, waste, and claims for avoidable transfers
- LBI Media, Inc.: Counsel to independent director in connection with investigation and evaluation of potential litigation claims
- Meridian Automotive Systems, Inc.: Counsel to defendant in adversary proceeding to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- Midway Games: Counsel for estates in connection with contested administrative and other claims, and proceeding alleging breach of fiduciary duty and to recover alleged avoidable fraudulent and preferential transfers
- NewPage Corporation: Co-counsel to defendant in adversary proceeding to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- NextRe, Inc.: Counsel to defendants in action alleging fiduciary duty, fraudulent transfer, trust, and preference claims
- Teleglobe, Inc.: Counsel for estates in adversary proceedings to recover alleged avoidable transfers
- Three A’s Holdings, L.L.C.: Counsel for estates in proceedings to recover alleged avoidable transfers and disallowance of claims
- Old Ladder Co., Inc.: Counsel to defendant in adversary proceeding alleging claims for professional negligence, breach of contract, aiding and abetting fraud, and recovery of professional fees
- Washington Mutual, Inc.: Co-counsel to trust in connection with contested matters and trust and related issues
- University of Michigan Law School, J.D.
Michigan Law Review - Brown University, B.A.
Education
Publications
Lawyer Cannot Discharge Client’s Claim Based on Funds Stolen by Lawyer
ABA | June 10, 2015
In a recent decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a debtor-attorney could not use the unclean hands doctrine to render dischargeable a former client’s claim based on the lawyer’s misappropriation of funds entrusted to him by the former client. See Northbay Wellness Group, Inc. v. Beyries, No. 13-17381 (9th Cir. June 5, 2015).…
PA Bankruptcy Court Rules in In re Merritt
ABA | June 10, 2015
The Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (the Honorable Jean K. FitzSimon presiding) recently declined to decide whether a chapter 13 debtor can be granted standing to prosecute a fraudulent transfer claim on behalf of its estate under Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Cybergenics Corp. v. Chinery, 330 F.3d 548 (3d Cir. 2003)…
SCOTUS Rules in Bank of America v. Caulkett
ABA | June 3, 2015
In Bank of America v. Caulkett, the Supreme Court decided by unanimous decision on June 1 that a debtor in a Chapter 7 proceeding may not avoid a junior mortgage under section 506(d) of the Bankruptcy Code even where the debt owed on the senior mortgage exceeds the value of the debtor’s collateral. Section 506(d) provides…
Fifth Circuit Rules in Villegas v. Schmidt
ABA | May 29, 2015
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals recently decided (by decision entered on May 28, 2015) that the Barton doctrine (which requires a plaintiff that wants to sue a trustee to seek leave of the court that appointed such trustee) applies irrespective of whether the underlying claims at issue are claims over which the bankruptcy court…
ABA Bankruptcy & Insolvency Litigation Committee, Sound Advice Series | May 2015
Please click HERE to listen to an audio recording of this program from the Sound Advice Series of the ABA Bankruptcy & Insolvency Litigation Committee. …
Third Circuit Rules in In Re Allen
ABA | February 20, 2015
The Third Circuit Court of Appeals decided recently that a debtor does not need to actually possess property recovered under Section 550 for such property to constitute property of the debtor’s estate under Section 541(a)(3). See In re Allen, No. 13-3543 (3d Cir. Sept. 26, 2014). In Allen, the debtor commenced an adversary proceeding in the…
Delaware Bankruptcy Court Rules in Antecedent Debt Case
ABA | January 27, 2015
Can a plaintiff state a preference claim by generally alleging that one or more of the debtor entities made the transfer at issue on account of an antecedent debt? The Delaware Bankruptcy Court (the Honorable Mary F. Walrath, presiding) recently reminded plaintiffs that the answer is no. See Stanziale v. DMJ Gas-Marketing Consultants, LLC. In …
ABA | January 26, 2015
Does Bankruptcy Rule 9023 impose a time limit to file a motion to reconsider the denial of summary judgment? The Delaware Bankruptcy Court (the Honorable Christopher S. Sontchi, presiding) recently decided no. See Stanziale v. Southern Steel & Supply, L.L.C. In Southern Steel, the defendant moved the court to reconsider its denial of the defendant’s…
ABA | November 11, 2014
Under an opinion dated October 14, 2014, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court denied opposing motion for summary judgment in a proceeding initiated by the plaintiff-trustee to avoid and recover alleged preferential transfers. The defendant (a pre-petition creditor of the debtor) moved for summary judgment on the ordinary course of business defense, arguing that the payments to it…
Delaware Bankruptcy Court Denies Motion to Convert
ABA | November 11, 2014
Under a memorandum order dated October 23, 2014, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court denied a party’s request to have the debtors’ chapter 11 cases converted to chapter 7 cases. While sympathetic to the movant’s request, the court ultimately determined that the relevant parties were making some progress toward the goal of a plan of reorganization and therefore…
Third Circuit Rejects Estoppel Finding and Reverses Order Compelling Arbitration
ABA | October 22, 2014
On October 9, 2014, in Flintkote Co. v. Aviva PLC, No. 13-4055, the Third Circuit reversed an order holding on an estoppel theory that an insurer was required to arbitrate even though it had no written arbitration agreement with the debtor. The Third Circuit held that the debtor had not presented clear and convincing proof that…
ABA | October 7, 2014
On September 30, 2014, the United States District Court for the District of Delaware entered an order affirming the Delaware Bankruptcy Court’s grant of summary judgment to a defendant/appellee on a plaintiff/appellant’s claims to avoid and recover two equity distributions totaling $55 million as constructively fraudulent transfers. Whyte v. Ritchie SH Hldgs. LLC, et al (In…
Delaware Bankruptcy Court Denies Motion to Compel Production of Post-Sale Financial Information
ABA | September 11, 2014
Under an opinion dated August 6, 2014, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court denied a motion to compel the production of post-sale financial information. The plaintiff’s claims were for breach of fiduciary duty and aiding and abetting thereof arising from the debtor’s pre-petition sale of certain assets to the defendants. The defendants were the former officers of the…
Delaware Grants Motion for Contempt and Indicates that Incarceration Can Be Appropriate Sanction
ABA | September 3, 2014
In Burtch v. Masiz, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware granted the plaintiff-trustee’s motion for contempt as against a judgment-debtor who did not comply with the terms of a discovery-related order earlier entered by the court.
Bankruptcy Court’s Refusal to Appoint Financial Group as Estate Professional Is Not Misconduct
ABA | August 22, 2014
In In re Complaint of Judicial Misconduct, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected a complaint for judicial misconduct filed by the principal owner of a financial group against a sitting bankruptcy judge who refused to approve the appointment of the financial group based on the judge’s view that the financial group had disregarded the terms of retention orders entered by the judge in other cases.
Bankruptcy Court Can Compel Defendants to Convey Trust Interest in Extraterritorial Realty
ABA | August 22, 2014
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed the order of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California that required the defendants-appellants to return their beneficial interest in Mexican realty to debtor’s estate.
Puerto Rico Bankruptcy Court Denies Creditor’s Requests to Amend Proof of Claim
ABA | August 22, 2014
In In re Martinez, the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Puerto Rico held that a creditor was responsible for its own failure to accurately identify the secured and unsecured portions of its claim and the Chapter 13 trustee did not have to verify the accuracy of the claim as filed by the creditor.
ABA | August 22, 2014
In Stanziale v. Heico Hldgs., Inc., et al., the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware granted a motion to dismiss deepening insolvency and Texas statutory fiduciary duty claims with prejudice but granted the chapter 7 trustee 30 days to file an amended complaint sufficient to state a common law breach of fiduciary duty claim under Texas law.
When a Settlement No Longer Is Consensual
ABA | August 4, 2014
A quick review of Bankruptcy Rule 9019 makes clear that the settlement requires court approval. But does this mean that no settlement is binding until approved by the court, such that a party can unilaterally walk away before that point?
Fifth Circuit Affirms Fee Enhancement, Reverses Fees Incurred in Defending Fee Application
ABA | May 2, 2014
In In re Asarco, the Fifth Circuit held that 11 U.S.C. § 330 permits the bankruptcy court to enhance the fees of counsel but does not permit the bankruptcy court to award attorney fees incurred by counsel in defending its fee application. ASARCO was a copper mining, smelting and refining company. Two years before it commenced…
Delaware Bankruptcy Court: Mandatory Mediation Update
ABA | Spring 2013
Recently, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court published its amendments to the local rules effective as of February 1, 2013.
ABA | December 20, 2012
ABA inaugurates their Local Rules Corner series with a look at the Delaware Bankruptcy Court’s local rules.
Course of Business Defense Path to Preference Dismissal
ABA | November 19, 2012
In Gellert v. Coltec Indus., Inc., the Delaware Bankruptcy Court held that the ordinary course of business defense under 11 U.S.C. § 547(c)(2)(A) can be applied on a motion to dismiss, and that a transfer cannot be constructively fraudulent when payment of the transfer resulted in a dollar-for-dollar satisfaction of an antecedent debt.
Equitable Tolling Applied to Adversary Proceeding Limitation
ABA | November 13, 2012
In Liberty Brands, LLC v. Feit, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court denied the defendants’ motions to dismiss the plaintiff-trustee’s claims to recover unauthorized post-petition transfers under 11 U.S.C. § 549.
Delaware Court Denies Motion to Stay Order, Pending Appeal
ABA | September 25, 2012
Appellants must justify the need for staying a court’s decision on four criteria, and here, the Third Circuit found that the burden was not met for any of them.
Two-Year Look-Back Period Cannot Be Equitably Tolled
ABA | February 22, 2012
In Industrial Enters. of Am., Inc. v. Burtis, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court denied a motion to reconsider its holding that equitable tolling cannot enlarge the two-year look-back period under 11 U.S.C. § 548(a).
Lack of Oversight May Leave Operators Liable
ABA | November 29, 2011
In Lemington, the Third Circuit considered an appeal from the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania to enter summary judgment in favor of the directors and officers of a Pennsylvania nonprofit corporation on claims for breach of fiduciary duty and deepening insolvency.
Third Circuit Provides Guidance on Determining Value
ABA | November 15, 2011
In Am. Home Mortg., the Third Circuit addressed an issue of apparent first impression: whether the term “commercially reasonable determinants of value” under section 562(b) is limited to market or sale value.
Reliance on Client’s Automated Information System May Support Rule 9011 Liability
ABA | November 14, 2011
A recent decision of the Third Circuit, In re Taylor, a personal bankruptcy case, suggests that, in certain circumstances, counsel’s reliance on a client lender’s information systems can lead to the imposition of sanctions against not only the client, but also against counsel.
Court Awards Costs, Not Attorney Fees, Due to American Rule
ABA | 2011
In Claybrook v. Autozone Texas, L.P., the Delaware Bankruptcy Court awarded costs to the defendants based in part on the court’s finding that the plaintiff-trustee failed to demonstrate a viable basis for his claims against the defendants.
Insurers’ Tangible Disadvantage Is Sufficient Injury for Article III Standing
ABA | 2011
The Third Circuit held that two liability insurance carriers have standing to object to their insured’s plan of reorganization because “when a federal court gives its approval to a plan that allows a party to put its hands into other people’s pockets, the ones with the pockets are entitled to be fully heard and to have their legitimate objections addressed.”
Third Circuit Addresses Issue of First Impression
ABA | 2011
In Marcal, the Third Circuit addressed an issue of first impression under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act as amended by the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act: Can the portion of withdrawal liability attributable to post-petition services qualify as an administrative expense of the debtor’s estate?
Third Circuit Delivers Key Decision on Credit Bidding
ABA | 2010
On March 22, 2010, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit addressed whether pursuant to a plan of reorganization a debtor may sell assets free and clear of all liens at an auction at which the secured creditor is not permitted to credit bid.
Bankruptcy Court Rules on Aggregate Value and Constructive Fraud
ABA | 2010
The Honorable John J. Thomas of the Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania issued an opinion of apparent first impression under section 547(c)(9) of the Bankruptcy Code. Section 547(c)(9) provides that the trustee in a case filed by a debtor whose debts are not primarily consumer debts may not avoid a transfer under section 547 if “the aggregate value of all property that constitutes or is affected by such transfer is less than $5,475.”
Section 546(c) and Reclamation Rights after BAPCPA: A Response to Wilson and LeHane
American Bankruptcy Institute Journal | April 2007
The Delaware Bankruptcy Court may have the occasion to consider additional reclamation-related issues in the AMS case. The court recently approved the debtors’ request for certain uniform procedures for its consideration of all reclamation claims, pursuant to which the debtors are required to file a written report with the court proposing specific treatment for each…
Leadership
- Delaware Hispanic Bar Association, Co-Founder, and Past President and Board Member
- Hispanic National Bar Association, Region IV (Delaware and Pennsylvania), Past Deputy President
- American Bar Association, Section of Litigation, Participant, Diverse Leader Academy
- American Bar Association, Bankruptcy & Insolvency Litigation Committee, Past Website Editor
- New Castle County Diversity Commission, Past Chair
- New York City Bar, Committee on Bankruptcy and Corporate Reorganization
Recognition
- The Best Lawyers in America, 2024, 2023
- American Bar Foundation, Life Fellow
Bar Admissions
- Delaware
- New York
- California (Voluntarily Inactive)
- Maryland