San Marino Bankruptcy Attorney

TITLE 11 - BANKRUPTCY
CHAPTER 3 - CASE ADMINISTRATION
    SUBCHAPTER IV - ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS

-HEAD-
    Sec. 364. Obtaining credit

-STATUTE-
      (a) If the trustee is authorized to operate the business of the
    debtor under section 721, 1108, 1203, 1204, or 1304 of this title,
    unless the court orders otherwise, the trustee may obtain unsecured
    credit and incur unsecured debt in the ordinary course of business
    allowable under section 503(b)(1) of this title as an
    administrative expense.
      (b) The court, after notice and a hearing, may authorize the
    trustee to obtain unsecured credit or to incur unsecured debt other
    than under subsection (a) of this section, allowable under section
    503(b)(1) of this title as an administrative expense.
      (c) If the trustee is unable to obtain unsecured credit allowable
    under section 503(b)(1) of this title as an administrative expense,
    the court, after notice and a hearing, may authorize the obtaining
    of credit or the incurring of debt - 
        (1) with priority over any or all administrative expenses of
      the kind specified in section 503(b) or 507(b) of this title;
        (2) secured by a lien on property of the estate that is not
      otherwise subject to a lien; or
        (3) secured by a junior lien on property of the estate that is
      subject to a lien.

      (d)(1) The court, after notice and a hearing, may authorize the
    obtaining of credit or the incurring of debt secured by a senior or
    equal lien on property of the estate that is subject to a lien only
    if - 
        (A) the trustee is unable to obtain such credit otherwise; and
        (B) there is adequate protection of the interest of the holder
      of the lien on the property of the estate on which such senior or
      equal lien is proposed to be granted.

      (2) In any hearing under this subsection, the trustee has the
    burden of proof on the issue of adequate protection.
      (e) The reversal or modification on appeal of an authorization
    under this section to obtain credit or incur debt, or of a grant
    under this section of a priority or a lien, does not affect the
    validity of any debt so incurred, or any priority or lien so
    granted, to an entity that extended such credit in good faith,
    whether or not such entity knew of the pendency of the appeal,
    unless such authorization and the incurring of such debt, or the
    granting of such priority or lien, were stayed pending appeal.
      (f) Except with respect to an entity that is an underwriter as
    defined in section 1145(b) of this title, section 5 of the
    Securities Act of 1933, the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, and any
    State or local law requiring registration for offer or sale of a
    security or registration or licensing of an issuer of, underwriter
    of, or broker or dealer in, a security does not apply to the offer
    or sale under this section of a security that is not an equity
    security.

-SOURCE-
    (Pub. L. 95-598, Nov. 6, 1978, 92 Stat. 2574; Pub. L. 99-554, title
    II, Sec. 257(l), Oct. 27, 1986, 100 Stat. 3115; Pub. L. 103-394,
    title V, Sec. 501(d)(9), Oct. 22, 1994, 108 Stat. 4144.)


                       HISTORICAL AND REVISION NOTES                   

                          LEGISLATIVE STATEMENTS                      
      Section 364(f) of the House amendment is new. This provision
    continues the exemption found in section 3(a)(7) of the Securities
    Act of 1933 [15 U.S.C. 77c(a)(7)] for certificates of indebtedness
    issued by a trustee in bankruptcy. The exemption applies to any
    debt security issued under section 364 of title 11. The section
    does not intend to change present law which exempts such securities
    from the Trust Indenture Act, 15 U.S.C. 77aaa, et seq. (1976).

                         SENATE REPORT NO. 95-989                     
      This section is derived from provisions in current law governing
    certificates of indebtedness, but is much broader. It governs all
    obtaining of credit and incurring of debt by the estate.
      Subsection (a) authorizes the obtaining of unsecured credit and
    the incurring of unsecured debt in the ordinary course of business
    if the business of the debtor is authorized to be operated under
    section 721, 1108, or 1304. The debts so incurred are allowable as
    administrative expenses under section 503(b)(1). The court may
    limit the estate's ability to incur debt under this subsection.
      Subsection (b) permits the court to authorize the trustee to
    obtain unsecured credit and incur unsecured debts other than in the
    ordinary course of business, such as in order to wind up a
    liquidation case, or to obtain a substantial loan in an operating
    case. Debt incurred under this subsection is allowable as an
    administrative expense under section 503(b)(1).
      Subsection (c) is closer to the concept of certificates of
    indebtedness in current law. It authorizes the obtaining of credit
    and the incurring of debt with some special priority, if the
    trustee is unable to obtain unsecured credit under subsection (a)
    or (b). The various priorities are (1) with priority over any or
    all administrative expenses: (2) secured by a lien on unencumbered
    property of the estate; or (3) secured by a junior lien on
    encumbered property. The priorities granted under this subsection
    do not interfere with existing property rights.
      Subsection (d) grants the court the authority to authorize the
    obtaining of credit and the incurring of debt with a superiority,
    that is a lien on encumbered property that is senior or equal to
    the existing lien on the property. The court may authorize such a
    superpriority only if the trustee is otherwise unable to obtain
    credit, and if there is adequate protection of the original lien
    holder's interest. Again, the trustee has the burden of proof on
    the issue of adequate protection.
      Subsection (e) provides the same protection for credit extenders
    pending an appeal of an authorization to incur debt as is provided
    under section 363(l) for purchasers: the credit is not affected on
    appeal by reversal of the authorization and the incurring of the
    debt were stayed pending appeal. The protection runs to a good
    faith lender, whether or not he knew of the pendency of the appeal.
      A claim arising as a result of lending or borrowing under this
    section will be a priority claim, as defined in proposed section
    507(a)(1), even if the claim is granted a super-priority over
    administrative expenses and is to be paid in advance of other first
    priority claims.

-REFTEXT-
                            REFERENCES IN TEXT                        
      Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933, referred to in subsec.
    (f), is classified to section 77e of Title 15, Commerce and Trade.
      The Trust Indenture Act of 1939, referred to in subsec. (f), is
    title III of act May 27, 1933, ch. 38, as added Aug. 3, 1939, ch.
    411, 53 Stat. 1149, as amended, which is classified generally to
    subchapter III (Sec. 77aaa et seq.) of chapter 2A of Title 15. For
    complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 77aaa
    of Title 15 and Tables.


-MISC2-
                                AMENDMENTS                            
      1994 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 103-394, Sec. 501(d)(9)(A),
    substituted "1203, 1204, or 1304" for "1304, 1203, or 1204".
      Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 103-394, Sec. 501(d)(9)(B), struck out "(15
    U.S.C. 77e)" after "Act of 1933" and "(15 U.S.C. 77aaa et seq.)"
    after "Act of 1939".
      1986 - Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99-554 inserted reference to sections
    1203 and 1204 of this title.

                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1994 AMENDMENT                 
      Amendment by Pub. L. 103-394 effective Oct. 22, 1994, and not
    applicable with respect to cases commenced under this title before
    Oct. 22, 1994, see section 702 of Pub. L. 103-394, set out as a
    note under section 101 of this title.

                     EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1986 AMENDMENT                 
      Amendment by Pub. L. 99-554 effective 30 days after Oct. 27,
    1986, but not applicable to cases commenced under this title before
    that date, see section 302(a), (c)(1) of Pub. L. 99-554, set out as
    a note under section 581 of Title 28, Judiciary and Judicial
    Procedure.