interest any property." This requirement means that if any class of creditors votes against a plan of reorganization, the bankruptcy court may not confirm the plan if any class of claims or interests junior to the dissenting class (e.g., subordinated creditors or shareholders) receives any distribution of the debtor's estate pursuant to the plan. In practice, the rule requires that debtors satisfy the claims of senior creditors in full before distributing any estate property to junior creditors or shareholders under the plan, although senior creditors will often consent to a de minimis recovery for junior stakeholders in exchange for their support for the plan. The Supreme Court has recognized an exception to the absolute priority rule known as the "new value" exception that allows junior stakeholders to recover property under a plan over the objection of senior creditors if the junior stakeholders provide "new value" to the restructured enterprise (typically defined as an upfront monetary contribution to the reorganized debtor that is commensurate with the property received or retained under the plan). The basis for the new value exception is that the holder of a junior claim or interest under such circumstances does not "receive or retain under the plan on account of such junior claim or interest any property" but rather receives or retains property under the plan on account of the new value contribution. 11 U.S.C. § 1129(b)(2)(B)(ii) (emphasis added). Executory contracts The bankruptcy trustee may reject certain executory contracts and unexpired leases. For bankruptcy purposes, a contract is generally considered executory when both parties to the contract have not yet fully performed a material obligation of the contract. If the Trustee (or debtor in possession, in many chapter 11 cases) rejects a contract, the debtor's bankruptcy estate is subject to ordinary breach of contract damages, but the damages amount is an obligation and is generally treated as an unsecured claim. Committees Under some chapters, notably chapters 7, 9 and 11, committees of various stakeholders are appointed by the bankruptcy court. In Chapter 11 and 9, these committees consist of entities that hold the seven largest claims of the kinds represented by the committee. Other committees may also be appointed by the court. Committees have regular communications with the debtor and the debtor's advisers and have access to a wide variety of documents as part of their functions and responsibilities. Exempt property Although in theory all property of