Fla. Dep't of Revenue v. Piccadilly Cafeterias, Inc. (554 U.S. 33)
U.S. Supreme Court · decided June 16, 2008 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)
- Citation
- 554 U.S. 33 · 128 S. Ct. 2326
- Decided
- June 16, 2008
- Term
- October Term 2007
- Vote
- 7–2
- Majority author
- Justice Thomas
- Issue area
- Economic Activity
- Disposition
- Reversed and remanded
- Outcome
- Petitioning party won
- Ideological direction
- Conservative
Opinion excerpt
Justice Thomas delivered the opinion of the Court. The Bankruptcy Code provides a stamp-tax exemption for any asset transfer “under a plan confirmed under [Chapter 11]” of the Code. 11 U. S. C. § 1146(a) (2000 ed., Supp. V). Respondent Piccadilly Cafeterias, Inc., was granted an exemption for assets transferred after it had filed for bankruptcy but before its Chapter 11 plan was submitted to, and confirmed by, the Bankruptcy Court. Petitioner, the Florida Department of Revenue, seeks reversal of the decision of the Court of Appeals upholding the exemption for Piccadilly’s asset transfer. Because we hold that § 1146(a)’s stamp-tax exemption does not apply to transfers made before a plan is confirmed under Chapter 11, we reverse the judgment below. I Piccadilly was founded in 1944 and was one of the Nation’s most successful cafeteria chains until it began experiencing financial difficulties in the last decade. On October 29, 2003, Piccadilly declared bankruptcy under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code, § 1101 et seq. (2000 ed. and Supp. V), and requested court authorization to sell substantially all its assets outside the ordinary course of business pursuant to § 363(b)(1) (2000 ed., Supp. V). Piccadilly prepared to sell its assets as a going concern and sought an exemption from any stamp taxes on the eventual transfer under § 1146(a) of the Code. The Bankruptcy Court conducted…
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