2016

The Bankruptcy Code offers a variety of means for addressing balance-sheet issues. Its provisions for dealing with the operational issues that caused those balance-sheet problems are more limited, however. This session will discuss the diagnostic tools available to identify operational problems, with a particular focus on the primary methodology generally used by financial professionals: the “operational review.” Rather than just addressing the symptoms, an operational review primarily focuses on the root causes of a distressed/insolvent company, and provides an outline for action plans that management and the turnaround team can execute in the recovery process. The session will also address the legal and financial issues that should be considered and resolved in dealing with some of the most often-seen problems, which frequently include stale management, poor strategy, a lack of productivity focus, and deficient information infrastructure. The panel will discuss such implementation-process issues as severance and other employment issues presented in offloading stale management, as well as board fiduciary duty issues arising from receiving the results of the operational review and addressing, or not addressing, the issues identified. The panel seeks to discuss the best ways to effectively restore companies and enhance cash flow beyond the traditional and common expense-cutting methods.

This program will explore the boundaries of the sub rosa plan doctrine in a variety of contexts potentially arising in chapter 11 cases. The focus will be on efforts to resolve the relationship of the debtor to all or many of its creditor constituencies and equity-holders that arguably deviate from the priority and procedural schemes of the Bankruptcy Code. Included among the areas examined will be (1) secured creditor/acquirer carve-out and/or gifting agreements, (2) structured dismissals following § 363 sales, (3) settlements of significant or global controversies, (4) lock-up and plan-support agreements, and (5) significant distribution or settlement arrangements made in the context of DIP financing or asset sales made jointly with nondebtor parties.

Puerto Rico is burdened by over $70 billion in debt, as well as approximately $35 billion in pension underfunding. Once the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 5278, the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA), in early June and the Senate passed it on June 29, 2016, President Obama signed the bill immediately — and just in time to address a $1.9 billion payment that was due on July 1, 2016. PROMESA offers relief to Puerto Rico, its municipalities and municipal agencies following a 10-year economic recession. This panel describes the circumstances that led to the financial crisis, the failed effort of the Puerto Rican government to offer relief through a "state" statute that was found to be unconstitutional by the Supreme Court, and the details of how PROMESA is designed to work. The session provides an opportunity to discuss these issues in a casual setting, including the way forward for Puerto Rico, and features a panelist who served as Hon. Steven Rhodes' expert on feasibility issues in the City of Detroit chapter 9 case.

Enjoy a breakfast discussion with the judges of the Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop.

In his popular poem, All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten, writer Robert Fulghum proclaimed: “Most of what I really need To know about how to live And what to do and how to be I learned in kindergarten.” Attorneys and others in the legal profession are often required to address challenging questions about ethics and unprofessional behavior. When faced with these issues, would you make the “right” call? You be the judge with interactive voting when faced with real issues from actual scenarios attorneys have had to address.

This panel will explore legal trends relating to rising real estate values in consumer bankruptcy cases, including issues related to stay relief, lien-stripping, reaffirmation agreements, and what could happen post-discharge if a debtor fails to act in conformity with his Statement of Intention. This panel will also address the current state of mortgage modification mediation programs and the latest happenings with the CFPB.

This panel will explore options for dealing with the difficult situations experienced by consumer debtors who on the surface fail to qualify for relief under chapter 7, have too much debt for relief under chapter 13 jurisdictional limits, and are unable to satisfy the absolute priority rule to qualify for an individual chapter 11 case.

This panel will present a lively discussion of key issues decided in business and consumer bankruptcy cases throughout the country over the past year.

This panel of experienced lawyers will discuss policy issues underlying student debt, current cases, fraud issues in workouts, and possible solutions to this important issue facing our nation.

This panel will provide a brief, general overview of the mechanics and statutory framework for involuntary bankruptcies, with more in-depth discussions of current hot-button issues, including petitioning creditors’ good faith/bad faith, the conflicting approaches taken by various circuits in determining whether a petitioning creditor’s claim is subject to a bona fide dispute, and the potential legal fees and damage claims petitioning creditors face if their involuntary petition is ultimately dismissed.