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William — Tue, 05 May 2026 20:56:10 +0000

NHBR Amann Burnett Bridge Over Troubled Waters 2026

Whether you’re a business owner, creditor or third-party, you know that business financial problems are rarely as simple as they first appear. When a business faces financial distress, experienced attorneys are required to navigate far more than the bankruptcy filing alone. Pressing and time sensitive issues concerning assessment of restructuring options, protecting creditor rights, managing litigation risk, addressing and resolving cash flow pressures, evaluating claims and defenses and guiding clients through rapidly changing strategic and operational decisions are paramount in any business bankruptcy, no matter what size.

Recently, Amann Burnett Law filed a Chapter 11 reorganization in New Hampshire Bankruptcy Court on behalf of O’Brien Energy Corporation—a multi-state oil and natural gas exploration company operating complex joint ventures across seven (7) western states. The company’s structure involves private investors, partnership agreements, mineral leases, completion costs, tax allocations, and multi-state operations.

When financial strain affects a business built on layered agreements and investor relationships, the legal issues quickly can become complex—involving secured creditors, cash flow restrictions, partnership rights and strategic negotiations.

For business owners, situations like this raise critical questions:

How do you protect the core value of the company?
How do you manage creditor pressure without destroying operations?
How do you preserve investor relationships?
How do you restructure in a way that positions the business to move forward—not simply wind down?

Chapter 11 is not about failure. When used strategically, it can be a powerful tool for stabilization and recovery.

At Amann Burnett Law, we work with business owners and creditors facing serious financial pressures—whether due to market shifts, partnership disputes, unexpected liabilities, or cash flow challenges. Our focus is practical strategy, clear communication, and protecting long-term business value.

If your company has significant debt, or if there’s a company or customer that owes you or your institution money, it’s far better to explore your options early.

Free, Confidential Phone or Video consultations are available.

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Is your case strong enough to win?

William — Wed, 24 Jul 2024 03:49:30 +0000

While litigation is inherently unpredictable and often uncertain, before you file a lawsuit, make sure you have competent, experienced counsel. Just as importantly, ask questions. Before you authorize (and pay for) your attorney to file a Complaint, ask him/her to give you a solid analysis of each count and theory of your case. Put differently, a sage plaintiff will be sure to look before you leap and do your homework before filing a Complaint. Conducting thorough legal research is not a guarantee you’ll win your case. However, you’re better off finding out the probability of success before you file given the amount of time, money and resources required in bringing a lawsuit. The best way to do this is simple–hire an experienced, competent litigator who knows his/her stuff. A lawyer like that will undoubtedly do the hard work needed to lay a strong predicate before your case is filed. The case below illustrates how someone with plausible, viable claims lost their case before it started. A well-developed and detailed pre-filing analysis might have led to a very different result.

Demona Freeman secured a loan to purchase her home, which was assigned to the Bank of New York Mellon (BNY Mellon) and serviced by Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC. After falling behind on her mortgage payments, BNY Mellon initiated a foreclosure action. Freeman filed for bankruptcy and eventually cured her mortgage default through bankruptcy payments. Despite this, Ocwen inaccurately reported her loan as delinquent and began rejecting her monthly payments, leading BNY Mellon to file a second foreclosure action, which was later dismissed. Freeman sued Ocwen and BNY Mellon, alleging violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana dismissed Freeman’s FCRA claim and granted summary judgment against her, on her FDCPA claim, citing lack of standing. Freeman appealed both rulings. She argued that Ocwen failed to conduct a reasonable investigation after being notified by consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) of her dispute over the delinquent loan reporting. She also claimed that Ocwen’s erroneous reporting and collection practices caused her various injuries.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reviewed the case. The court affirmed the district court’s dismissal of the FCRA claim, finding that Freeman failed to specify which CRA she notified, thus not providing Ocwen fair notice of the claim. The court also upheld the summary judgment on the FDCPA claim, concluding that Freeman lacked standing. The court determined that Freeman did not provide sufficient evidence of concrete injuries, such as monetary harm or intangible injuries closely related to common law analogues like defamation or invasion of privacy. Consequently, the court affirmed the district court’s rulings.

Freeman v. Ocwen Loan Servicing, LLC

Court: US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

Docket: 23-2512

Opinion Date: July 12, 2024

Judge: KIRSCH

Areas of Law: Bankruptcy, Consumer Law, Real Estate & Property Law

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Litigation Archives | Amann Burnett Law

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Is your case strong enough to win?