Venue/Jurisdiction

This panel will explore the effectiveness (and, sometimes, lack thereof) of creditor strategies to restrict by contract a borrower’s ability to obtain bankruptcy relief, whether by limiting the ability of a corporate borrower to seek bankruptcy relief without certain stakeholder approvals, limiting the type of available bankruptcy relief, choosing which country’s bankruptcy laws will apply to an insolvency proceeding involving the borrower, bankruptcy-remote structuring techniques, and other means. For example, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently upheld a “golden share” arrangement whereby a creditor was able to prohibit the debtor limited liability company from filing bankruptcy; and in the international realm, choice of law clauses have at times limited a debtor’s ability to obtain relief under the Model Law for Cross-Border Insolvency. This panel will also explore variations in international public policies with respect to restrictions on a borrower’s ability to seek bankruptcy relief.

This panel will explore the roles, responsibilities, benefits, and liabilities in using independent directors through multi-jurisdictional insolvency proceedings and will discuss using directors strategically throughout the life of a company. The panelists will explain the three typical stages of a company where directors could be instructed — going concern, insolvency, and emergence from a restructuring — then explain the roles and responsibilities at each of these appointments. The session would also overlay the jurisdictional distinctions among various administrative proceedings, including offshore liquidations, U.S. bankruptcy, U.S. receiverships, and common law receiverships. The panelists will offer real-world examples to show the differences and how the role of the director is utilized, as well as what is at stake for them, the company, the creditors and the investors.

This panel will discuss recent Chapter 15 and cross-border cases, including those involving the scope of discovery available to foreign representatives, § 109 eligibility, venue issues, and parallel case concerns. The panel will also discuss logistical and practical solutions in running chapter 15 cases.

This webinar will discuss: Consent after Wellness, retention of jurisdiction, stays pending appeal, transfer of venue, structured dismissal, jury demands, court-appointed experts, and withdrawal of the reference. These perplexing concepts are all tools in your strategic tool belt. This fast-paced webinar will consider these tools and others from the perspective of when and whether to raise them. What are the risks and benefits of raising them? You will hear highly experienced practitioners and a seasoned bankruptcy judge discuss and debate these points. Remember: one lawyer's strategy is another lawyer's tactic. Attend this program before you file that motion!

Two sitting judges and a professor of bankruptcy law will offer an overview on the sources of authority for the issuance of sanctions and holding persons or entities in contempt, the nature of the remedies available, applicable standards and the appropriate procedures. The discussion will cover sanctions available under various provisions of the Bankruptcy Code and the Bankruptcy Rules, including Rule 9011, failure to make discovery and bankruptcy court authority to discipline counsel. Also discussed will be the court's sources of power of contempt, limitations on that power, and procedures the court should consider before exercising such power.

This program will include discussion of a series of issues that arise in adversary proceedings. They will include Merchant Cash Advance Chapter 5 litigation; trustees attempted 10 year IRS statute of limitations use in section 544 actions; license issues on contested sales (Lubrizol); jurisdiction in international cases). This program is designed for lawyers with beginner level experience in adversary proceedings.

.video-container {position:relative; padding-bottom:56.25%;padding-top:30px;height:0; overflow:hidden;}.video-container iframe {position:absolute;top:0;left:0;width:99%;height:100%;} Although Congress expanded the power of the bankruptcy courts to decide matters that were “related to” bankruptcy cases four decades ago, the United States Supreme Court’s decisions in Stern and Wellness have created uncertainty about bankruptcy court jurisdiction with which lower courts still struggle, and any litigator handling ancillary matters that relate to bankruptcy estates must understand and analyze jurisdictional strategies for the benefit of their clients. The webinar's panelists will discuss key issues regarding the limitations of bankruptcy jurisdiction, which may include frequently litigated issues concerning “related to” jurisdiction, consent for the bankruptcy court to issue final orders, the bankruptcy court’s power to enjoin litigation against nondebtors, the impact of jury demands, standards and strategies in withdrawing the reference of matters from the district court, and issues concerning the appellate process. Recent case of interest will be discussed.

The Constitution authorizes Congress to enact uniform bankruptcy laws, but attorneys know that many times the handling of consumer bankruptcy cases can seem just like real estate: location, location, location! This session will compare local consumer bankruptcy rules and procedures in the Eastern District of Michigan with those of the Western District of Michigan. It will cover the things that consumer bankruptcy attorneys who practice on both sides of the state need to know about the differences in the specific procedures of each of those courts regarding the preparation and filing of motions, conducting evidentiary hearings, chapter 13 plans and confirmation hearings, § 341 meetings, reaffirmation agreements, use of special-appearance attorneys, ethical implications of running a multidistrict practice, management of adversary proceedings, and the scheduling and handling of small chapter 11 cases.

This panel will examine the factors considered by debtors and their advisors when determining where to file a large chapter 11 business case, and the occasional efforts to have the case transferred to a venue that is arguably more convenient to creditors, employees and/or shareholders. The panel will also discuss the pending legislation known as the Bankruptcy Venue Reform Act of 2018 (S. 2282) — as well as the arguments both supporting and opposing its passage.

This panel will address numerous chapter 13 hot topics, such as the use of the national plan, modified national plan and local plans, the treatment of special claims in plans, end-of-case issues, the modification of plans and related topics.