2015

Does a secure creditor engage in inequitable conduct if it acquires debt, or makes a loan with the intent to acquire the debtor rather than collect on the loan? This panel will discuss “Loan-to-Own” and other common and singular Section 363 bidding and acquisition strategies, including the pitfalls and advances of each.

Oscar Wilde said that “experience is simply the name we give our mistakes”. This panel of Judges will address mistakes that attorneys make during litigation seen from the perspective of the bench.

As a result of falling energy prices, experts expect bankruptcy filings in the energy sector to increase, especially those in the oil and gas industry. Bankruptcy cases involving energy companies raise unique issues due to the interplay among the Bankruptcy Code, federal and state laws, the regulatory structure governing the energy industry, and the political and practical realities of the industry’s significance on national, regional and local levels. This webinar will explore the unique challenges that can arise in a § 363 sale of the assets of a business involved in the energy industry, with a particular emphasis on oil and gas bankruptcies.

In today’s post-BAPCPA environment, why file for bankruptcy at all? Consideration of alternatives, including out-of-court restructurings, state law restructuring statutes, ABCs, foreclosures; receiverships; discussion of common problems, including solicitations and hold-outs.

Preservation and realization of NOLs through plan structures (Capmark, WaMu, Fremont General); tax-sharing agreements and allocations of tax benefits (Edison Mission); OID (ResCap); excess loss account; fair market exchanges; transfer pricing (Nortel); trading restrictions and more.

Constitutional and bankruptcy law issues raised by post-bankruptcy claims asserted by tort claimants, including finality of § 363 sale orders and due process.

Cramdown interest rate (Momentive); extent of security interest (ResCap); credit-bidding (Fisker, Free Lance-Star Publishing); date of collateral valuation. Will Till and Momentive change future bankruptcies? How will pre-bankruptcy and DIP financing change? What new or different issues will arise at the beginnings and endings of cases? Will contested confirmation become the norm? Will secured lenders be less willing to support a bankruptcy process? Will include discussion of changes proposed in the ABI Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11’s Final Report relating to secured creditor rights.

Nortel (two courts simultaneously trying allocation issues); Suntech, Barnet and subsequent bankruptcy court decisions on remand (recognition and § 109(a)); Fairfield Sentry Limited (sale of SIPA claims); enforcement of judgments (Argentina litigation, Madoff); filing of chapter 11 cases by foreign debtors (Alsacia); extraterritoriality issues regarding avoidance actions (Madoff decisions). Do Fairfield, Quimonda, and Madoff represent a retreat from the principle of comity set forth in chapter 15?

Discussion of EPF bankruptcy process issues. What are the duties of directors and their professionals in complex multi-debtor cases? More generally, when is it necessary to obtain a conflict waiver? Current vs. recent vs. former clients; directly adverse vs. positionally adverse; relatedness to a prior matter; use of confidential information; review of disinterestedness standards under Bankruptcy Code § 101(14) and related disclosure requirements; ABI Report on Standards of Professional Courtesy and Conduct.

Major cases filed in New York may follow that state’s laws because of the location of the forum, contractual designation or some other reason. But New York law on debtors/creditors, fraudulent transfer, partnership and other areas may be out of date or may depart from the laws of other jurisdictions. Discussion of New York State law issues and recent cases certified to the New York State Court of Appeals, including rent-controlled leaseholds as property rights.