Professional Compensation/Fees

How will the Supreme Court’s decision in Baker Botts v. ASARCO affect professional fees? Will there be an increase in fee litigation in future chapter 11 cases? This panel will also explore the Tribune standard for payment of unsecured creditors’ post-petition professionals’ fees, fees awarded as part of global settlements (Lehman), and the recent use of fee examiners. The session could also include a discussion on when disclosure of “representations of parties in unrelated matters” is sufficient, whether conflicts be cured by the appointment of conflicts counsel, a recent Ninth Circuit decision on the potential implications of exceeding fee caps, when it is necessary to obtain a conflict waiver, current vs. recent vs. former clients, and directly adverse vs. positionally adverse.

A roundtable discussion with a select group of bankruptcy judges will focus on breaking issues and best practices for professionals.

Beware of the Traps: Ethical and Fiduciary Issues for Committee Members and Professionals

Join in the fun with ABI’s rendition of the American classic game show “Hollywood Squares,” where some of your favorite celebrity bankruptcy judges serve up a smorgasbord of dubious and comical answers to help contestants forge a winning tic-tac-toe. And you will learn something about bankruptcy law, too!

You have worked hard, and you are certain that you have brought benefit to your client. Now you need to convince the fee examiner of that. This panel, which features leading fee examiners from throughout the country, will discuss the ins and outs of fee examiner interactions.

A discussion of the ethics landscape from the retention application and disclosure requirements, to the decision-making process in undertaking work, recording the time, and contesting/defending the fee application.

This panel will focus on recent Supreme Court decisions impacting the consumer world, the unbundling of attorney services, and attorney compensation issues. Supreme Court decisions to be discussed include Wellness, Harris v. Viegelahn, Bank of America v. Caulkett, Baker Botts and Oglethorpe.

Professional fee issues are always important, both to those who represent estates and those who do not (but sometimes object to the fees of those who do). This panel will discuss the implications of the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Baker Botts v. ASARCO, in which the Court answered an intriguing question some bankruptcy lawyers did not realize had been asked: whether counsel for an estate party may recover fees incurred in defending a fee application. The panel will also address continuing issues related to professional fees, including U.S. Trustee Fee Guidelines, big case fee guidelines, and the approval of national billing rates in jurisdictions where local rates are much lower.

From issues of consent and matters of constitutional authority, to the all-important topic of professionals’ fees, the Supreme Court considered a number of issues critical to restructuring attorneys and advisors in 2015. Our panel of Supreme Court advocates and bankruptcy scholars will weigh in on the Court’s most recent term and provide expert analysis of the Court’s opinions and their applicability to everyday practice.