Supreme Court strikes down Puerto Rico debt restructuring law

[cal04]

Source: MarketWatch

The Supreme Court has struck down a Puerto Rican law that would have allowed the U.S. territory's public utilities to restructure their debt. The 5-2 ruling leaves management of the island's fiscal crisis to Congress. The House of Representatives passed a bill last week to help Puerto Rico manage its debt crisis. The Senate has not yet acted.

Read more: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/supreme-court-strikes-down-puerto-rico-debt-restructuring-law-2016-06-13

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http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/high-court-rules-puerto-rico-debt-case-39816249
Puerto Rico can't use a local law to restructure the debt of its financially ailing public utilities as it tries to overcome a decade-long economic crisis, the Supreme Court ruled Monday.

The 5-2 ruling said that federal bankruptcy law bars Puerto Rico from enacting its own law to restructure about $20 billion in debt. The decision means the U.S. territory must wait for Congress to pass debt-relief legislation that would address its fiscal woes.


(snip)
Writing for the court, Justice Clarence Thomas said the plain text of the law bars Puerto Rico from enacting its own municipal bankruptcy schemes. He said Congress "would have said so" if it didn't want the exclusion to apply to the island.

Justice Sonia Sotomayor filed a dissent, joined by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Thank you happyslug for the link to the ruling

http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/15pdf/15-233_i42j.pdf

[brooklynite]

1. Interesting split...

THOMAS, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which ROBERTS, C. J., and KENNEDY, BREYER, and KAGAN, JJ., joined. SOTOMAYOR, J., filed a dissenting opinion, in which GINSBURG, J., joined. ALITO, J., took no part in the consideration or decision of these cases.

[Igel]

2. Sometimes the law is just the law.

It would be really cool to reinterpret it to mean something different as needs arise, but then why have a legislature or write down the law?

If it needs changed, there are methods for doing this. If the methods are dysfunctional because the electorate's hired a bunch of dysfunctional employees, blame the electorate.

[happyslug]

3. Here is the actual opinion:

http://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/15pdf/15-233_i42j.pdf

[cal04]

6. Thank you happyslug

Added
😊

[Sunlei]

4. How did Congress let their responsibility get "20 billion in debt"?

[Historic NY]

7. Little more than that....

The SEC has settled at least one case involving Puerto Rico bonds. In September 2015, UBS Financial Services Inc. of Puerto Rico agreed to pay $15 million to settle charges from the SEC, which said the unit failed to supervise a broker who had customers invest borrowed money in bond funds. Including another fine and restitution, the unit paid about $34 million.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/puerto-rico-bill-would-allow-probe-into-sales-of-bonds-2016-05-25

They sold bonds to many unsuspecting people, companies, investors, etc .which they can't back up.

[rladdi]

5. What the hell does Clarence Thomas know, a known sex abuser, yet nominated for

the Supreme Court.