Florida State Approved Sessions

A Preview of upcoming Supreme Court bankruptcy cases, featuring ABI Resident Scholar Kara Bruce talking with Eric Brunstad of Dechert LLP (Hartford, Conn.) to preview the bankruptcy cases that the Supreme Court will consider during its 2013 term. Brunstad, who has argued many cases before the Court and is an expert in bankruptcy appellate practice, discusses in depth Law v. Siegel, which questions whether the court may use its general equitable authority under §105 of the Bankruptcy Code to surcharge a debtor's exempt assets, and Executive Benefits Insurance Agency v. Arkison (In re Bellingham), which will address the bankruptcy court's authority to adjudicate Article III matters. He also provides a candid view of what it is like to argue a case before the Court and an in-depth analysis of the issues involved with the upcoming cases. Here is a short preview:

Consumer

The issue of "double-dipping", wherein a creditor is able to increase its recovery by multiplying its allowed claim against a particular entity or asserting claims against multiple entities, has been prevalent in a number of recent restructurings, including American Airlines, Lehman Brothers, CIT Group Inc., Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. and AbitibiBowater Inc. This panel will address the concept of "double-dipping", the scenarios under which it arises and their experience in dealing with the issue in various cases.

Are any financial institutions “too big to fail”? Since the financial crisis of 2008, governments, financial institutions, practitioners and academics have debated, proposed and in some instances implemented provisions to reduce the likelihood that a failure by a systemically important financial institution would cause systemic risk. This panel will discuss the failures of U.S. financial institutions and the current and prospective measures to facilitate the resolution of these institutions without transmitting risk to the U.S. financial system.

Careers in professional restructuring services are both challenging and rewarding, and evaluating strategic career moves can be equally as taxing. The panelists will provide their diverse perspectives on career paths in the restructuring world, offer practical advice for assessing potential opportunities in today’s restructuring market, and share their reflections on their own decisions to stay the course or to take on new challenges in their restructuring careers.

The recent liquidations of Lehman, MF Global and Madoff under the Securities Investor Protection Act of 1970 (SIPA) are unprecedented in their size and complexity, and have changed the landscape of broker/dealer liquidations. This panel will discuss the nuts and bolts of liquidations under SIPA, the ways in which they differ from chapter 11 cases, and the impact of recent decisions in this area.

Real Estate Short Sales and Carve-Outs

"Past President's Debate: Resolved: The chapter 11 model is no longer viable for middle-market businesses. Consumer Debate: Resolved: Section 523(a)(8) should be repealed or amended to allow for the discharge of all student loan debts. Judicial Debate: Resolved: Section 546(e) does not apply to each and every link in a chain of transactions resulting in a ""settlement payment"" that is protected by the safe harbor provisions."

This first session of a new “skills” seminar series will examine documents that are often used to restructure debt outside of bankruptcy. Learn the purpose and legal underpinnings of the various component parts of frequently used workout documents such as forbearance agreements, intercreditor agreements and restructuring/override agreements. The panel will focus on real-world examples of good and bad provisions of workout documents and will provide drafting tips.