Tennessee State Approved Sessions

Kirkland & Ellis LLP's Josh Sussberg will join Jessica Steinhagen and Ian Howland of Reorg's First Day team to provide an overview of 2021 chapter 11 filings data and trends, moderated by ABI Public Affairs Officer John Hartgen. They will also provide industry-level insights across various sectors and highlight key takeaways. Following 2020, the busiest year for chapter 11s on First Day record, 2021 was the slowest and is the first in at least six years to record fewer than 300 cases, with 275. All sectors recorded a drop in filings except for real estate and utilities. Real estate matched 2020’s total exactly, and utilities were up 57% because of Winter Storm Uri’s impact on power-producers in Texas. 2021 included five real estate chapter 11s with more than $1 billion in debt; the sector led all others with respect to filings.

Over the last several years, an increasing number of states, including New York, have adopted the UniformVoidable Transactions Act (UVTA), the latest update to the Uniform Voidable Transfer Act. The UVTA made anumber of minor changes and updates to the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act (UFTA), including changingthe name. What changes were significant? What opportunities to fix problems/vagaries in the UFTA did thedrafters miss? What amendments should the UVTA drafters consider?

This panel of experts will discuss the latest trends in the wind, coal, and oil and gas industries that havedominated the headlines, with special emphasis on new regulatory issues and changes in the energy market.

This panel will discuss some of the more interesting aspects of the asset-recovery process as it relates tolocating foreign assets (i.e., Russian yachts). The panelists also will focus on post-COVID-19 issues, includingsituations where banks were not monitoring collateral as closely as they should have been and are nowhaving trouble locating said assets and selling them, particularly in international cases where the bankruptcyis abroad but the parties are seeking recognition in the U.S.

Featuring the perspectives of the debtor, creditor, subchapter V trustee and the bench, this session willconsider the life cycle of a small business reorganization. Beginning 30 days before the debtor files itspetition, continuing through the 90-day plan filing deadline and hurtling toward confirmation, the panelistswill discuss pre-bankruptcy planning and negotiation, debate eligibility and case-management issues,consider best practices for utilizing a subchapter V trustee throughout the case, and highlight tips and trapsof plan formulation, contested confirmation hearings and post-effective-date matters.

Advances in technology are changing how law is practiced. Online research databases, digital contracts, expert systems and document automation all help make lawyers’ routine tasks easier and more efficient. All lawyers must make informed decisions about what technology tools to acquire, develop or leverage. While lawyers’ use of technology is not an end unto itself, it is providing a catalyst for the transformation of the legal profession. Moreover, in a world of rapidly advancing technologies, data breaches and increasingly sophisticated uses of artificial intelligence, lawyers are now ethically required to understand the benefits and risks of technology. Intractable barriers to access to justice also remain a perennial concern. This panel discusses new developments in legal technology and ethics, and explores the ways in which technology can scale the provision of legal assistance, as well as examines how new developments in attorney regulation have expanded the definition of who can “practice law.” It also considers, despite people’s strong preference for maintaining the status quo, how understanding and adopting technology tools will optimize lawyers’ abilities to provide services to clients more effectively and efficiently.

Learn about the hot buttons, goals and objectives of state and federal taxing authorities in the zone of insolvency during this lively session.

Learn about the hot buttons, goals and objectives of state and federal taxing authorities in the zone of insolvency during this lively session.