No CLE

To ease the financial fallout from the pandemic, there could be increased congressional interest in consumer bankruptcy reform. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Jerrold Nadler already have proposed a complete overhaul of the consumer bankruptcy system and a new chapter 10 for all individual debtors. Several pending legislative proposals would make it easier to discharge student loans in bankruptcy. Profs. Robert Lawless and Adam Levitin will explain these proposals, the motivating factors behind them, and what else might be coming in the consumer bankruptcy world.

This panel will explore the 20-year ongoing opioid crisis in the pharmaceutical industry. The discussion will feature such opioid bankruptcy cases as Purdue and Mallinckrodt, and other recent rulings.

This session will survey U.S. government health care policy regarding the pandemic from inside the government as the pandemic unfolded. A former deputy secretary and acting secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will discuss the Provider Relief Fund, Operation Warp Speed and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services rule changes, and reflect on the health care industry changes to come.

The SBRA has been in effect for a year, and for most of that time it has been operating on an increased debt limit of $7.5 million due to the pandemic. How is the SBRA currently being used, what issues have arisen, and has it been effective overall for restructuring small businesses?

This important plenary session will set the stage for the Annual Spring Meeting by discussing the economic, scientific and behavioral influences that will, at least in part, shape the restructuring landscape in the coming year. Led by a major international media organization, the panel discussion will include leaders from key constituent groups in the restructuring arena, including law firms, investment bankers, lenders and other financial leaders. The panelists will focus on macroeconomic predictions for 2021, industry expectations and risks, and how the COVID-19 pandemic and vaccines will impact the economy in 2021 and beyond.

This panel will address how we deal with the new crop of corporate zombies that have been emerging as a result of the influx of debt to balance sheets during the pandemic. What tools are available to address this phenomenon? When will the Fed’s credit-tightening or other regulatory requirements force regulated lenders and borrowers to address these issues? How will nonbank lenders react? Finally, how will the Main Street Lending Program (and the Fed’s role as lender) play into this discussion?

While some of us choose to live in denial, the Federal Rules of Evidence are not optional, as they represent one of the foundational pillars of any successful insolvency practice. This program will explore some of the more complex evidentiary issues confronted by insolvency professionals. The program is designed to provide an interactive format through discussion, debate, polling, and ultimately, observations from the Oracle of Evidence herself.

This session will focus on some of the key ethics issues that confront professionals practicing in the bankruptcy field, and offer potential solutions on how to avoid getting caught in these traps. The panelists will present these issues in an interactive format so that the audience can participate and test their knowledge.

For many distressed businesses, factoring loans — where third-party companies provide advances on invoices due — can be lifelines. This session will discuss this trending topic, as well as the dischargeability of nonpriority taxes for late-filed tax returns, and cryptocurrency.

For many distressed businesses, factoring loans — where third-party companies provide advances on invoices due — can be lifelines. This session will discuss this trending topic, as well as the dischargeability of nonpriority taxes for late-filed tax returns, and cryptocurrency.