Michigan State Approved Sessions

Presented by ABI's Labor and Employment Committee, this webinar will address current employee- and labor-related issues in chapter 11 and out-of-court restructurings, including: (a) whether private-equity sponsors may be subject to pension fund withdrawal liability under ERISA in light of the First Circuit’s Sun Capital decision; (b) whether pension plan withdrawal liability is entitled to administrative claim status; and (c) the status of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation’s moratorium on 4062(e) enforcement. Attorneys and other restructuring professionals who deal with the PBGC will learn about current developments in this dynamic and changing area of law, which plays an important role in many reorganizations today.

This panel will focus on developments related to the use of liquidating trusts from both the legal and financial reporting perspectives. Expected topics will include the use of liquidating trusts in the prosecution of actions on behalf of, and for the benefit, of creditors (and the financial concerns, timing, and fiduciary concerns that accompany the prosecution of the same), and the application of recent accounting pronouncements related to liquidation accounting and the accompanying valuation considerations.

Issues surrounding the assessment and quantification of long-term, unliquidated obligations; such as pensions, environmental remediation, and perpetual care of cemeteries, are complex and divisive. This panel will explore the issues, as well as methods and techniques, to be considered when assessing and quantifying such debt in the context of financial distress and bankruptcy.

Valuation is a critical, and often hotly disputed, issue in most bankruptcy cases. Enterprise valuations drive creditor recoveries, and solvency valuations are often outcome-determinative for the success (or failure) of fraudulent transfer and other bankruptcy-related litigation. As a result, valuation disputes often become mini-battles of the experts, the reasonableness of their assumptions and their relative credibility. Disputes usually center around those items where the expert has made subjective adjustments based on professional judgment, and even small adjustments can lead to substantial differences in value. This panel explores those issues that are most often “adjusted” based on professional judgment, including normalizing EBITDA, methodology weighting, treatment of excess cash, control premiums, minority discounts, liquidity discounts, and contingent assets and liabilities.

Using a case study approach, this panel will examine the restructuring alternatives of a typical mid-cap company, with mock negotiations between and among a distressed company, its senior secured bank lenders, its mezzanine lenders and the equity. The presentation will focus on valuation, along with the benefits and burdens of (1) bankruptcy, (2) exercising the rights and remedies of a secure lender, (3) a consensual out-of-court restructuring and (4) the techniques and strategies for each constituency to achieve its goals.

A review and analysis of the cost, market and income (cash flow) approaches in business valuation, including key assumptions in each of these valuation methodologies and a discussion of how academics and practitioners vary in their approaches.

Distressed companies usually show declining financial performance prior to failure. This session will focus on key financial ratios such as liquidity, leverage and coverage, as well as a firm’s sources and uses of funds, cash-conversion cycle and free cash flow, both before and after restructuring.

In 2009, Fairfield Sentry Ltd.’s liquidators commenced litigation in the BVI and the U.S. to recover more than $6 billion from redeeming investors. This panel discussion will discuss the basis for clawback claims generally, the recent decision by the Privy Council, and the impact of the decision for trustees, liquidators and redeeming investors going forward.

Debt recovery in the Caribbean can sometimes require more from creditors than simply having a well-drafted set of documents containing prescribed remedies. The astute creditor should take into consideration several factors when seeking to resolve and satisfy its outstanding claims against an insolvent business entity, including the impact on the debtor’s business, an awareness of local issues, and an appreciation for the importance of relationships in preserving and fostering long-term business relationships. Join us as we explore some of the practical considerations of debt recovery in the Caribbean and strategies for helping your clients.

Debt recovery in the Caribbean can sometimes require more from creditors than simply having a well-drafted set of documents containing prescribed remedies. The astute creditor should take into consideration several factors when seeking to resolve and satisfy its outstanding claims against an insolvent business entity, including the impact on the debtor’s business, an awareness of local issues, and an appreciation for the importance of relationships in preserving and fostering long-term business relationships. Join us as we explore some of the practical considerations of debt recovery in the Caribbean and strategies for helping your clients.