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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.

How are cash-collateral orders and adequate-protection packages being fashioned in E&P bankruptcies, and what intercreditor issues can arise as a result? This panel will discuss questions relating to lender collateral that may surface in E&P cases, such as (1) the absence of blanket liens, liens on reserves and cash as security; (2) the impact of state law defining property rights in such assets as royalty streams and leasehold interests; and (3) contract interpretation issues involving prepayment agreements and other arrangements. The panel will also discuss E&P valuation issues and their relationship to the commodity pricing cycle, as well as environmental obligations and pension/OPEB issues (e.g., Peabody).