Michael Shepard’s insights were featured in the Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly article, “Attorney: Phrase in Supreme Court opinion suggests end near for ‘Texas two-step’.”
“If you can’t protect the ‘good’ company — the company with all the assets that’s not in bankruptcy — then there’s no purpose in doing the Texas two-step,” Shepard says.
However, if the Supreme Court allows the Sacklers to get relief from future liability by virtue of their contribution to the bankruptcy plan, that would still not be the equivalent of the Supreme Court giving the Texas two-step its blessing, Shepard adds.
“All it means is this issue of a preliminary injunction or a permanent injunction against claims being extended to a non-debtor entity is something that’s permissible, and therefore one aspect of the Texas two-step would be allowed,” he says.
