2025 Annual Spring Meeting

This panel focuses on the perspectives of large retail landlords and office building spaces, including issues stemming from natural disasters and insurance coverage.

In our adversarial system, about half of us will disagree with the judge’s ruling. Yet statistically speaking, only a couple of bankruptcy-related cases reach the Supreme Court in any given term. This panel focuses on the first level of appeals to district courts or bankruptcy appellate panels, including whether the party has standing, whether the appeal is ripe and/or interlocutory, and the hot-button issue of mootness. The panelists take a practical approach to addressing the many traps for the unwary so that all of us will feel more confident in filing — or receiving a notice of — an appeal in one of our cases.

This workshop builds on the success of a well-attended evidence 101 workshop format held during the 2024 Winter Leadership Conference, with this forum focused on judge/attorney participation. The panelists demonstrate a fun fact pattern through 3 vignettes — (1) argument on a motion in limine; (2) how to qualify an expert; and (3) voir dire/Daubert challenges — followed by small table breakouts.

This panel explores the ethical implications of AI in legal practice, focusing on fee issues and providing tips for crafting effective prompts. The panelists discuss how AI tools are reshaping billing practices and the standards for reasonable compensation, as well as practical strategies for integrating AI while maintaining ethical standards. Discover how to create powerful prompts that maximize AI's potential and ensure transparency with clients and courts. Don't miss this insightful conversation!

Roben Farzad is an acclaimed journalist, broadcaster and author known for his sharp insights into the intersection of business and culture. As the host of the popular public radio program "Full Disclosure," he dives into the forces shaping industries, innovation and society.

Join this accomplished panel of subchapter V trustees, financial advisors and one inquisitive judge as they discuss emerging trends related to the fair-and-equitable standard, including post-confirmation expenses (anticipated and otherwise), fluctuations in income, and other variables in the context of nonconsensual plans. This session emphasizes the critical role of financial advisers and subchapter V trustees with respect to a debtor's projected disposable income, as well as the creative financial alternatives that can be considered to fairly account for post-confirmation uncertainties.

This panel focuses on the critical role of strategic communications during large, high-profile bankruptcy cases. Using real-world examples, experts discuss the challenges of managing media narratives, stakeholder concerns and public perception in high-stakes scenarios. Topics include media relations, crisis communication strategies, and the importance of proactive storytelling to ensure a successful restructuring.

This panel will discuss the utility of Rule 2005 and sanctions.

In 2005, Congress enacted sweeping changes in the Bankruptcy Code in a law commonly known as BAPCPA (bap-SEE-puh).  Most insolvency professionals recognize BAPCPA’s changes to consumer bankruptcy, such as the means test, modifications to the discharge exceptions and new limits on homestead exemptions.  But BAPCPA affected business bankruptcy too, making chapter 12 permanent and creating the notion of a “small business case” in chapter 11. As BAPCPA turns 20, this panel reflects on its past two decades: what worked, what didn’t, and what might come next.

Domestic and foreign economic policies (and potentially laws and regulations) are undergoing a seismic shift, leading to increased uncertainties and greater market volatility. This panel considers the business impacts of tariffs, trade policies, tax reform, changes in the regulatory environment, and disruptions in both the public and private sectors. Given the rapid pace of proposed and actual changes, this discussion focuses on current events — with a healthy amount of prognostication — to explore areas of increased or potential financial distress.