Hon. Douglas L. Lutz

Hon. Douglas L. Lutz is Chief U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of Kentucky in Lexington, appointed on April 15, 2024. Prior to his appointment, his legal practice included all aspects of bankruptcy, reorganizations and insolvency. Judge Lutz joined Frost Brown Todd in 1995 and served as chair of the firm’s nationally recognized Bankruptcy & Restructuring practice group from 2009-15 and again from 2019 until his appointment. During his career with Frost Brown Todd, he was actively involved in some of the largest bankruptcy and restructuring cases not only in the region, but also throughout the U.S., including Horizon Natural Resources, Murray Energy, First Energy and Gordman Stores. He also served as the SIPC trustee in the liquidation of Donahue Securities, Inc. Judge Lutz has been recognized in the bankruptcy section of the 2007-24 editions of The Best Lawyers in America, including as 2023 Cincinnati “Lawyer of the Year” and 2019 Litigation-Bankruptcy “Lawyer of the Year”; by Chambers USA for Bankruptcy and Restructuring 2009-23 (Band 1); by Law and Politics Magazine Ohio Rising Stars® in 2005; and by Ohio Super Lawyers® from 2007-24. In 2021, he was inducted as a Fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy. Judge Lutz formerly served on ABI’s Executive Committee. Prior to joining the firm, he practiced law in Grand Rapids, Mich., and clerked for U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James D. Gregg (ret.) in the Western District of Michigan. Judge Lutz received his B.S. in 1987 from Miami University of Ohio and his J.D. in 1991 from the University of Toledo College of Law, where he served as managing editor of its law review.