21
BANKRUPTCY CODE
Who May Vote? Bankruptcy Code Trumps Loan
Syndication Agreement’s Terms
By David A. Wender and John Spears
In
In re Meridian Sunrise Village
, the bankruptcy court for the Western District of Washington held
that each lender in a syndicated loan has a right to vote its proportionate share of the loan in the
context of plan confirmation, despite language in the loan agreement giving an agent of the syn-
dicate the exclusive right to file a “joint proof of claim”on behalf of the syndicate.
See, In re Meridian
Sunrise Village
, No. 13-40342, 2013 WL 4447010 (Bankr. W.D. Wash. Aug. 16, 2013).
In this case, the debtor owned and operated a shopping mall that secured a loan to the debtor
initiated by U.S. Bank National Association (“U.S. Bank”). Although U.S. Bank assigned two-thirds
of the loan to other lenders, it remained the “Agent” under the loan documents. As Agent, U.S.
