Delaware State Approved Sessions

Join us for a robust discussion concerning Ethics in Healthcare Insolvencies, where the panel will explore a myriad of issues, including: ethical implications in the context of valuing healthcare companies or providers in the age of COVID-19 (where we were, where we are, where we may be going); the concomitant impact on valuation of healthcare companies or providers vis-à-vis increasing the minimum wage and providing the required level of care; capital allocation between patients’ medical needs and fiscal responsibility and management as healthcare companies or providers face restructuring or liquidity issues; steps directors and officers of healthcare companies or providers should consider when they are insolvent (e.g., deciding whether to restructure or file bankruptcy; to whom do the fiduciary duties flow (e.g., to creditors, still to patients, etc.); duty to transfer patients of closing healthcare business and restrictions on transfers; termination of provider agreements or assumption and assignment; and lender issues.

This panel will focus on the impact of government funding and other recovery programs on valuation in health care, life sciences and other industries. The panelists also will discuss how traditional methods of valuation are being challenged by the current situation, and the programs that have emerged to address the resulting distress.

This panel will focus on the impact of government funding and other recovery programs on valuation in health care, life sciences and other industries. The panelists also will discuss how traditional methods of valuation are being challenged by the current situation, and the programs that have emerged to address the resulting distress.

Short- and long-term governmental goals linked to zero-carbon electricity-generation have fostered the increased deployment of renewable energy sources and improved transmission and storage distribution. In turn, renewable and alternative energy sources — in tandem with systemic lower natural gas prices and lower electricity demand — have and will continue to cause distress in the merchant power sector, notwithstanding random black swan events like February’s storm in Texas. No doubt the road ahead will be ridden by complexity, not just in relation to market, environmental and economic dynamics, but because of the outsized role Federal law plays in the industry, including the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, the Energy Policy Act of 1992, the Federal Power Act and the Bankruptcy Code. This session’s panelists, all of whom have experience in the renewable energy and power sectors, will discuss valuation and other relevant issues in the context of expanding alternative and renewable energy sources, and the pressures this expansion will have on the merchant power sector.

Chesapeake Energy, an exploration and production company, filed for chapter 11 on June 28, 2020, in the Southern District of Texas and emerged from bankruptcy on Feb. 9, 2021. This session’s panelists, all of whom were involved in the bankruptcy court hearings, will contrast (in a non-advocating fashion) the different valuation methodologies used by the debtors’ and UCC’s valuation experts with the primary legal arguments raised by the debtors’ and UCC’s legal teams.

While COVID-19 has led to a substantial increase in the number of bankruptcy filings, its impact on valuation issues in the context of chapter 11 cases is less clear. Employing their differing perspectives, the panelists will explore how the uncertainty created by COVID-19 has affected the analysis of issues like plan feasibility, cost of capital, the pricing of risk, and the application of valuation methodologies in chapter 11 proceedings, with a particular emphasis on retail cases.

It's no secret that large-chain entertainment companies such as theaters and theme parks have been suffering through the pandemic. This panel will discuss restructuring options, hurdles and prospects for a broad array of these entities. The panelists will also discuss and debate the dynamics related to the fact that company projections and capital markets have priced in substantial recoveries for these entities in the second half of 2021.

This session will focus on the loan and debt-relief options that were created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) of 2020, and their impact on debtors and bankruptcy law and practice. The session will begin with a brief primer on the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) lending program and Main Street lending programs, then delve into the various bankruptcy issues that have since emerged related to these lending programs, including access to loans, priority and subordination of lender claims, and certifications regarding future bankruptcy filings.

This session will address how COVID-19 and stay-at-home orders prompted the rapid adoption of technology by the courts, the lessons learned along the way, and where technology can be used to further improve the efficiency, efficacy and safety of the bankruptcy process.

To make meaningful progress, legal professionals and the organizational cultures they inhabit must adopt a learning goal orientation and be willing to change. Join this keynote panel of legal professionals from across the nation for an active discussion on the business impacts of racial and gender diversity, equity, and inclusion within the legal industry. The panel will begin with a plenary session followed by breakout rooms.