Foreign Debtor With U.S. Dollar-Denominated Debt Eligible For Chapter 15

In December 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit held as a matter of first impression in Drawbridge Special Opportunities Fund LP v. Barnet (In re Barnet), 737 F.3d 238 (2d Cir. 2013), that section 109(a) of the Bankruptcy Code, which requires a debtor "under this title" to have a domicile, a place of business, or property in the U.S., applies in cases under chapter 15 of the Bankruptcy Code. The Second Circuit accordingly vacated a bankruptcy court order granting recognition under chapter 15 to a debtor's Australian liquidation proceeding, concluding that the bankruptcy court erred in ruling that section 109(a) does not apply in chapter 15 cases and that it improperly recognized the debtor's Australian liquidation proceeding in the absence of any evidence that the debtor had a domicile, a place of business, or property in the U.S.