Wisconsin State Approved Sessions

This roundtable will provide insights from judges of the Eastern and Southern Districts of New York (and surrounding areas) on selected hot topics.

This panel will discuss four topics of interest, paying particular attention to litigation strategy and tactics with respect to each. First, we will examine stays pending appeal, particularly stays pending appeals of confirmation orders, including the current state of equitable mootness law in the Second Circuit and elsewhere; when and how to move for a stay; whether and how to make a record at the confirmation hearing to support a later stay motion, and what to do about the bond requirement. Second, we will consider LTL and the standard for dismissal, as well as the importance of making an evidentiary record to support good faith and insolvency on filing. Third, we will consider challenges to the retention of professionals, particularly what standard should govern when a debtor seeks to retain lawyers, investment bankers and other professionals. Should it be the existence of “interests adverse to the estate” or “disinterestedness,” or some combination of the two? We will consider, among other cases, SAS and FTX. Finally, we will consider venue. What are the appropriate criteria that should be considered and relied upon by the debtor when choosing venue and by other parties in interest when challenging the debtor’s choice? How clear or blurry is the line between legitimate strategy and litigation tactics?

With discussions ongoing in Washington, D.C., regarding increasing the cap for subchapter V filings, subchapter V filings are likely to continue to rise. What are the implications for the resulting cases if the cap does or doesn’t get raised?

This panel will discuss ethical considerations prior to filing, including the ethics of negotiating RSAs and pre-paying management incentive plans.

Stunning failures across the crypto ecosystem have caused many to question the future of the industry and ask whether the crypto boom was purely fueled by speculation. Allegations of misfeasance at FTX and the interrelatedness of major industry participants create understandable questions, and business models have been shown to be flawed. This panel discussion will explain industry issues, unique bankruptcy challenges, and what the future of the crypto industry might look like.

Stakeholders will discuss how fraudulent-transfer issues and their potential resolutions affect their strategies.

A team of ABI “40 Under 40” honorees, in the role of the debtor’s professional advisory team, will present the debtor’s value-maximizing plan of reorganization.

Panelists representing the stakeholders in the case (secured creditors, bondholders, trade, equity) will discuss their strategies to increase their constituents’ respective pieces of the pie.

This panel will present a discussion of recent nonconsensual DIP financings, and take a look at some novel provisions that are becoming more common in DIP orders. The panelists will explore the current status of priming DIP financings/nonconsensual uses of cash collateral, and recent developments in DIP-financing orders, including limitations on the challenge period, large roll-ups, equity participations and "interim order creep."