Before getting to today's opinion, a brief programming note. Because the debtor in this case is Black Pearl Vision, I couldn't resist the obvious association with the legendary Black Pearl from the Pirates of the Caribbean films. So, with apologies to Captain Jack Sparrow, this is the first of three pirate-themed bankruptcy posts I'll be publishing this week. 

Summary:

A recent decision from the Western District of North Carolina serves as another reminder that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is ultimately about the accuracy of the information being reported—not whether the consumer believes the reporting is unfair, incomplete, or unsupported.

Summary:

In Golden Corral Corp. v. Illinois Union Insurance Co., the Fourth Circuit held that a subsequent change in state law—even one directly undermining a federal court's earlier prediction of that law—does not ordinarily constitute the "extraordinary circumstances" required to reopen a final judgment under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b)(6).

Summary:

A recent decision from the Western District of North Carolina approving the settlement in Williams & Dantzler v. PHH Mortgage Corp. is worth reading for anyone who litigates consumer class actions. While the court ultimately approved the settlement, it did so only after making unusually pointed observations about the modest value delivered to class members and substantially reducing the requested attorney's fee award.

Summary:

The Fourth Circuit has issued an unpublished opinion disposing of eight consolidated appeals arising from a contentious Chapter 11 bankruptcy filed by debtor Paul Schultz. While the opinion itself is brief, it reflects an important reality of bankruptcy litigation: there comes a point at which repeated motions, reconsideration requests, and duplicative appeals no longer advance the merits of a case.

The Case

Schultz filed a Chapter 11 case in the Eastern District of Virginia. During the case:

Available at: https://www.newyorkfed.org/medialibrary/interactives/householdcredit/data/pdf/HHDC_2026Q1

Hammond v. Bank of America: Can a Creditor Keep Reporting You as Liable Without Proof You Ever Agreed to the Debt?

A recent decision from the Western District of North Carolina provides an important reminder that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires more than simply checking a name and Social Security number when a consumer disputes responsibility for a debt.

Available at:  

https://www.journaloffreespeechlaw.org/hampson.pdf
http://blogs.law.ox.ac.uk/oblb/blog-post/2025/09/defamation-bankruptcy-pipeline-united-states-and-around-world

Available at: Post-Petition Wages and Attorneys' Fees in a Post-Harris World: Protecting Debtors' Counsel from Going Unpaid   (ABI membership required)

Available at: https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/nulr/vol120/iss5/6