District of Columbia State Approved Sessions

Each affiliated debtor and its creditors have potentially conflicting interests in maximizing assets and minimizing claims, so how are these interests reconciled in multi-debtor cases?; can one board make decisions for all debtors?; when is an independent board or CRO needed to represent the interests of a particular business unit, and why don’t we see that more often?; how should one arrange intercompany DIP financing?; how should one ensure that all constituencies are represented and that key stakeholders are at the table?; should there be multiple creditors’ committees?; use of examiners and other third parties; increased use of motions seeking to disqualify counsel, mediators, etc.

Discussion about unanticipated and anticipated problems in chapter 11 cases in which all or substantially all of the assets are being sold in a § 363 sale; “pay to play” arguments by unsecured creditors; should bankruptcies be run exclusively for the benefit of secured creditors?; presale orders regarding the use of sale proceeds; funding of wind-down costs and payment of administrative claims; post-sale chapter 7 conversions

What are the consequences of using § 9019 settlements as a means of resolving primary intercreditor disputes?; does application of settlement approval standards effectively alter § 1129 standards?; do settlements become sub rosa plans?; is the door open for “involuntary settlements” based on a debtor’s assessment of litigation probabilities?; other related issues might include “gifting” through § 9019 in the Third Circuit vs. the Second Circuit, plan-support agreements, absolute priority rule/new value plan (Castleton Plaza), equitable mootness (Charter/SemCrude); fee reimbursements for participants (Lehman, AMR)

Nortel (involving two courts simultaneously trying allocation issues); Kelmsley (U.S./U.K. courts regarding anti-suit injunction); ABC Learning/Fairfield Sentry (circuit court cases involving chapter 15 recognition); troubled foreign banks’ use of chapter 15 (Anglo Irish, Banco Pontual S.A.); In re Barnet (Octaviar)

Dilemmas of Dying Businesses: Practical and Ethical Issues to Consider When Representing Businesses that Are on Death’s Doorstep

Inaugural organizational meeting for this new ABI committee focusing on mediation and other ADR methods applied in the bankruptcy process, including conflict-resolution skills development, overcoming impasses, multiparty mediations, confidentiality and more. The committee will consider Model Rules for courts on the use of mediation, mediator qualifications and compensation.

IP Issues in Bankruptcy Deals

Shoveling Through the Dirt of Real Estate Fraud

Preparing for Metamorphosis: Tax Questions Arising from Changes in Debt from Recourse to Nonrecourse (or vice versa) — Bankruptcy Discharges, Anti-Deficiency Statutes and § 1111(b)

Past Presidents’ Debate: Michael P. Richman Hunton & Williams LLP; New York Deborah D. Williamson Cox Smith Matthews Incorporated; San Antonio Resolved: Secured creditors should be required to fund the payment of all administrative claims and make a distribution to general unsecured creditors as a condition of cleansing substantially all of the debtors’ assets through a § 363 sale process. Judicial Debate: Hon. Kevin J. Carey U.S. Bankruptcy Court (D. Del.); Wilmington Hon. Frank J. Santoro U.S. Bankruptcy Court (E.D. Va.); Norfolk Resolved: A claim is not impaired for purposes of § 1129(a)(10) if the alteration of the rights in question arises solely from the debtor’s exercise of discretion, because § 1129(a)(10) recognizes impairment only to the extent that it is driven by economic need. Consumer Debate: John Rao National Consumer Law Center; Boston Brett Weiss Chung & Press, PC; Greenbelt, Md. Resolved: The Bankruptcy Rules and Forms should require that a national chapter 13 official plan form be used in all cases.