Consumer

This panel will review contemporary decisions interpreting Dewsnup v. Timm and Nobelman v. American Savings Bank, such as the Wachovia Mortg. v. Smoot, 478 B.R. 555 (E.D.N.Y. 2012), which precludes lien-stripping. The discussion will also focus on §§ 1123(b)(5) and 1322(b)(2), including conflicting decisions involving the date that is relevant for deciding whether a particular property functions as the debtor’s principal residence (see In re Proctor, 494 B.R. 833 (Bankr. E.D.N.C. 2013)). The panel might also discuss lien-stripping as it involves properties outside the principal residence’s safe harbor.

This panel will discuss the complexities of recovering assets in China, Mexico and Canada, including attachment, perfection and priority issues that are unique in each jurisdiction, and the interplay of foreign registration systems and the Uniform Commercial Code. The panel discussion might include some of the complications involved in owning or being secured by foreign assets, including foreign exchange and other currency restrictions.

In a series of vignettes, two litigants will argue motions to compel before the bankruptcy court that are designed to explore the various types of evidentiary privileges that arise in bankruptcy practice — including attorney/client privilege, joint-defense/common interest privilege, Fifth Amendment and spousal privilege — and how such privileges may be inadvertently waived.

Chapter 9 poses difficult challenges, in no small part because the relatively limited body of case law provides courts and litigants with insufficient guidance. The panelists will draw upon their insight and experience to discuss some of the most interesting current issues, including the use of chapter 9 eligibility litigation for tactical objectives, the adjudication of plan confirmation issues, the challenges of pension fund restructuring, and the role of mediation in municipality cases.

This panel discussion will include what you need to know about the National Plan Form, what’s new and different from the current EDMI plan form, and what you should watch out for.

This panel is for participants who are either solo or small-firm practitioners and will include such topics as paperless offices, trust funds and accounting, managing workflow, and the implications on the office in the event of a natural disaster.

This session will include a discussion on the effect of prior state and federal court litigation, full faith and credit, res judicata, collateral estoppel, Rooker-Feldman and abstention.

This special session will include from three to four problems/dilemmas in the context of consumer cases (not chapter-specific).