Ethics

This panel of board-certified judges will break down some of the most interesting, shocking and sometimes amusing ethical missteps taken by members of the federal bar.

This panel will provide an update on the key technological issues facing practicing attorneys today, including cyberattacks, software needs, Zoom updates, electronic signatures, hybrid hearings and cryptotechnology, as well as decentralized autonomous organizations and tokenized assets (i.e., NFTs, metaverse and DeFi).

This panel will discuss litigation funding, conflicts and disqualifications, client complaints, mediation and dealing with pro se litigants.

Ever get stuck with one of “those” clients? (We’ve all been there.) What do you do when you uncover serious problems with a debtor? Learn the right —and wrong —ways to extract yourself from a problem case.This panel will discuss limited-scope representation and the ability of the attorney to withdraw before, during and after the bankruptcy case.

This program will use clips from movies to identify ethical issues that arise during bankruptcy proceedings. Attendees will be encouraged, including using de minimis prizes, to participate in a discussion about circumstances in which these ethical issues arise, their potential impact on bankruptcy proceedings and how to deal with them constructively and productively.

This session will focus on some of the key ethics issues that confront professionals practicing in the bankruptcy field, and offer potential solutions on how to avoid getting caught in these traps. The panelists will present these issues in an interactive format so that the audience can participate and test their knowledge.

This panel of ABC-certified judges will discuss the applicable rules of professional conduct and other authority implicated in electronic filing, the use of email, “phishing” scams and hacking, and technology issues raised by today’s pandemic practice. The panelists will also consider issues raised by the requirement that many professionals must file public fee applications in bankruptcy cases, as well as fee issues stemming from converted cases, insufficient content in the applications, and problems that arise when the results achieved and the fees sought bear little relationship to each other. Finally, the panelists will consider unique professionalism issues raised by attorneys and law firms as bankruptcy debtors, particularly involving clients and the use of IOLTA accounts, along with more general do’s and don’ts about practicing in bankruptcy court before, during and (hopefully) after the pandemic.

This session will focus on several of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct, including 4.1 (Truthfulness to Others), 7.1 (Communications Concerning Lawyer’s Services) and 8.4 (Misconduct). The panelists will address compensation and diversity in U.S. law firms and the elimination of bias; the importance of diversity and inclusion regarding creativity and innovation, the correlation with financial performance, and improving the workplace and client relationships; and ways in which law firms can actively combat unconscious bias and make retention of diverse talent a priority. The Neiman Marcus case will be discussed.

This session addresses when a bankruptcy court will accept jurisdiction and control of pending state court litigation upon the filing of a bankruptcy case by an involved party. Topics include removal, abstention, stay relief and remand, as well as the strategies and risks of filing bankruptcy in hopes of having a state court action removed to bankruptcy court.

Small group breakouts led by the judges of the Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop will focus on different ethical dilemmas facing practitioners.