2017

This session will focus on the current state of the doctrine and recent criticisms, especially from the Third Circuit (Philadelphia Newspapers, SemCrude, One2One Communications), and its applications (City of Detroit (invoking the doctrine to reject the attempted restoration of pension benefits in the city’s bankruptcy)).

This session will discuss (1) selecting a trust, LLC, plan administrator or other vehicle; (2) ensuring that affirmative claims are preserved post-confirmation; (c) establishing a value/tax basis in litigation claims and other assets transferred to a trust or LLC; (d) key plan provisions such as preserving 2004 discovery rights, creditor oversight, continuing court oversight, required reporting and the retention/transfer of the attorney/client privilege; (e) the trading of interests; (f) provisions for closing the case; and (g) structured dismissals following asset sales as an alternative to a liquidating plan (Jevic). Is it preferable to liquidate outside of chapter 11?

This panel will present a fraudulent transfer update and discussion regarding the split over § 546(e) safe harbors (Physiotherapy, Tribune, Madoff, Meritt Management), 10-year reach-back periods (Kipnis), the reinstatement of unsecured creditors’ intentional fraudulent conveyance claims and the ruling that the intent of the CEO can be imputed to the company (Lyondell), the finding that substantive consolidation does not augment the trustee’s § 544(b) avoiding powers by allowing the trustee to rely on predicate creditors from another estate (Petters), and the ruling that access to a credit line rebuts unreasonably small capital claims (SemCrude). The session will also feature an update on the Trust Indenture Act, including discussion of the recent Second Circuit decision in Chesapeake Energy and its implications regarding the finality of bankruptcy court orders, and an update on the litigation of feasibility issues (Paragon).

This panel will discuss the domestic reach of the foreign stay (Sanjel) and recognition of judgments/rulings in cross-border cases, including offshore bankruptcies, as well as non-U.S. companies filing for chapter 11 and the consequences thereof (Ocean Fisheries, Hanjin and Abengoa)

This panel will focus on issues that can arise during an LLC bankruptcy, such as what happens when parties contract out of fiduciary duties and the effect that bankruptcy has on key provisions in an LLC operating agreement, including management and ownership rights and remedies, as well as what happens when a bankruptcy proceeding is initiated against the LLC or one or more of its members. The panel will also discuss Intervention Energy and Lake Michigan, in which the bankruptcy courts refused to enforce LLC agreement provisions requiring the respective LLCs to obtain the unanimous consent of their members in order to seek bankruptcy relief.

Hosted by the Business Reorganization and Unsecured Trade Creditors Committees This session will focus on recent case law developments in the area of executory contracts. The panelists will discuss issues concerning gathering agreements and the Sabine Oil decision, collective bargaining agreements, telecommunication agreements and more.

Join this leading panel of experts as they discuss the most recent important consumer bankruptcy decisions.

Bringing together the perspectives of debtors, creditors and judges, this panel will survey the universe of nondischargeability causes of action, the realistic costs of pursuing and defending these actions, effective discovery and trial strategies, the impact of issue and claim preclusion based on pre-petition judgments, the anatomy of nondischargeability settlement agreements, the challenges of collection, and the prospects for recovery of attorneys’ fees.

This panel will focus on the uses and limits of Bankruptcy Rule 2004 discovery, including e-discovery pointers, the impact of the latest amendments, jurisdictional and scope (“fishing expedition”) limits on discovery, keeping results confidential, using Rule 2004 examination transcripts in later proceedings, and various “nuts and bolts” practice points. The discussion will be based on a fact pattern presenting these various issues.

From your first contact with your client until the entry of a discharge order and the closing of the case, risks for consumer malpractice claims abound. This panel will focus on minimizing those risks, including properly engaging the client, effectively gathering the information necessary to adequately comply with the myriad requirements and disclosures necessary to successfully commence and conclude a consumer bankruptcy case, and guarding against other hazards that could create problems for your client and for you.