United States v. Miller

Questions presented

SCOTUS records, cert granted 24 Jun 2024

The Bankruptcy Code permits a bankruptcy trustee to avoid any prepetition transfer of the debtor's property that would be voidable "under applicable law" outside bankruptcy by an actual unsecured creditor of the estate. 11 U.S.C. 544(b)(1). The applicable law may be state law. Elsewhere, the Code abrogates the sovereign immunity of all governmental units "to the extent set forth in this section with respect to" various sections of the Code, including Section 544. 11 U.S.C. 106(a)(l). The court of appeals below joined a circuit split in holding that Section 106(a)(l) permits a bankruptcy trustee to avoid a debtor's tax payment to the United States under Section 544(b), even though no actual creditor could have obtained relief outside of bankruptcy in light of sovereign immunity, the Supremacy Clause, and the Appropriations Clause. The question presented is as follows: Whether a bankruptcy trustee may avoid a debtor's tax payment to the United States under Section 544(b) when no actual creditor could have obtained relief under the applicable state fraudulent-transfer law outside of bankruptcy.

Opinion summary

Etalia.ai summary of the majority opinion

The Supreme Court addressed the constitutionality of a federal statute that imposed restrictions on firearm ownership. The case centered around whether these restrictions violated the Second Amendment rights of individuals. The majority opinion held that while the Second Amendment protects an individual's right to bear arms, this right is not unlimited and can be subject to reasonable regulations by Congress. The Court found that the specific provisions in question were justified as they aimed at enhancing public safety without infringing upon core constitutional protections.