AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION CLE PROGRAMS
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio Book for ABA Programs
ABA EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS & LUNCHEONS
Wednesday, October 8, 2014 through Saturday, October 11, 2014
ABA Registration and CLE Help Desk
East Tower, Grand Ballroom Foyer
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
2:00 – 4:00 pm – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeWest Tower, Crystal Ballroom A
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Pro Bono Service on a Board of a Not for Profit in Crisis/Fulfilling Your Not For Profit’s Mission During Financial Distress. In memoriam of U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Nancy Dreher, District of Minnesota.
NCBJ - ABA Joint Program
Sponsoring Subcommittees: Pro Bono Services, Abuses of Bankruptcy Process, Health & Non-Profit, Insurance, and Professional Ethics
Moderator:
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| Andrew Troop, Partner Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP New York, NY |
Speakers:
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| Deborah Gutfeld, Senior Counsel Perkins Coie Denver, CO |
Martha E.M. Kopacz, Sr. Managing Dir. Phoenix Management Services Boston, MA |
Raymond T. Lyons, Counsel Fox Rothschild LLP Princeton, NJ |
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Parvathy Sree, RPLU, AIM, CIPM |
Kenneth J. Young, Member Buerger, Moseley & Carson, PLC Franklin, TN |
Not-for-profit organizations, including charities, are often under enormous financial pressure and frequently face numerous challenges in order to keep their doors open. This panel will discuss corporate governance issues faced by the board members of a distressed non-profit, what happens to non-profits in bankruptcy, director and officer insurance issues from the viewpoints of a D&O insurer, and the roles and perspectives of the financial advisor and attorney trying to assist the non-profit through its crisis, a bankruptcy trustee, and the judge presiding over a non-profit’s bankruptcy case.
This program is the second annual in memoriam to Judge Nancy Dreher who served as a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge in the District of Minnesota for many years and who wrote and spoke on the importance of pro bono services.
3:00 – 5:00pm – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeEast Tower, Columbus GH
(Almost) Everything You Wanted to Know About...Executory Contracts
NCBJ - ABA Joint Program
Sponsoring Subcommittees: Membership, Executory Contracts and Claims & Priorities
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderator:
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| Christopher Combest, Partner Quarles & Brady LLP Chicago, IL |
Materials Coordinator: Jill C. Walters, Poyner Spruill LLP. Raleigh, NC
Speakers:
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| Hon. Carol A. Doyle U.S. Bankruptcy Court Northern District of Illinois Chicago, IL |
Ashley Champion, Judicial Law Clerk, Bankruptcy Judge Katharine M. Samson Southern District of Mississippi |
Andrea Coles-Bjerre, Assoc. Professor University of Oregon School of Law Portland, OR |
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Paul R. Hage, Partner |
Lisa M. Schweitzer, Partner Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP New York, NY |
Virtually every bankruptcy requires parties to resolve competing rights and claims under "executory contracts," a term encompassing agreements as varied as supply contracts, service agreements, leases, licenses, options, and rights of first refusal. From diverse perspectives, the panel will thoroughly review the basic rules for identifying, treating, and disposing of such contracts in bankruptcy; the surprising ways in which contract rights can remain uncertain, even unenforceable, in bankruptcy, and practical strategies for protecting those rights. The panel will also probe more deeply into problems peculiarly associated with certain types of contracts, including intellectual property licenses, real estate leases, and contracts with governmental units.
Thursday, October 9, 2014
7:30-8:45 am – Joint Program - Business Bankruptcy and Consumer Bankruptcy Committees
Concurrent A SessionWest Tower, Comiskey
The Uniform Voidable Transactions Act
Sponsoring Subcommittee: Avoiding Powers (Business Bankruptcy) and Consumer Bankruptcy Committee
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderator:
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| Bruce Borrus, Shareholder Riddell Williams P.S. Seattle, WA |
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| Patricia A. Redmond, Shareholder Stearns Weaver Miller Weissler Alhadeff & Sitterson, P.A. Miami, FL |
Edwin E. Smith, Partner Bingham McCutchen LLP Boston, MA and New York, NY |
This panel will discuss the proposed amendments to the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act.
7:30-8:45 am – Business Bankruptcy Committee
Concurrent B SessionWest Tower, Gold Coast
It’s Not About the Money! (or Is It?): Garnering Support for Bankruptcy Sales Without Increasing the Purchase Price
Sponsoring Subcommittees: Use and Disposition of Property
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderators:
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| Steven N. Cousins, Partner Armstrong Teasdale LLP St. Louis, MO |
Marc J. Carmel, Of Counsel Paul Hastings LLP Chicago, IL |
Speakers:
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| Honorable Timothy A. Barnes US Bankruptcy Court Northern District of Illinois |
Robert A. Klyman, Partner Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher Los Angeles, CA |
Adam C. Maerov, Partner McMillan LLP Calgary, Canada |
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| David M. Schulte, Managing General Partner Chilmark Partners Chicago, IL |
Suzanne S. Yoon, Managing Director, Transaction Development Versa Capital Management, LLC, Chicago, IL |
This highly-entertaining and energized panel boasts experience in all aspects of bankruptcy purchases and sales—Bankruptcy Judge, Attorney, Financial Advisor, and Principal Investor. The panelists will share their real world experiences as they discuss and debate what purchasers can do to increase the likelihood of being the successful bidder for assets in bankruptcy sales and how to execute on a winning strategy, all without increasing the purchase price.
7:30-8:45 am – Business Bankruptcy Committee
Concurrent C Session West Tower, Water Tower Room
Engagement Agreements with Individual Chapter 11 Debtors
Sponsoring Subcommittees: Individual Chapter 11 Debtors and Small Business
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderator:
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| Harry Greenfield, Partner Buckley King Cleveland, OH |
Speakers:
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| Mariaelena Gayo-Guitian, Partner Genovese, Joblove & Battista P.A. Fort Lauderdale, FL |
Leonard C. Walczyk, Member Wasserman, Jurista & Stolz, P.C. Millburn, NJ. |
The Small Business and the Individual Chapter 11 Debtor Subcommittees are co-sponsoring a program on representing individual debtors in Chapter 11 cases. This panel of attorneys with experience in representing debtors will discuss the debtor’s duties as a debtor in possession and the issues this fiduciary position creates for the debtor and the debtor’s counsel. The importance of engagement agreements that address these issues will be discussed, and the panel will provide drafting tips for such agreements.
1:00 – 3:15 pm – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeWest Tower, Regency Ballroom CD
Business Bankruptcy Committee Heidt Award / Chapter 11 Luncheon CLE Program
What Every Distressed Investor Should Ask When Venturing Offshore. Are Chapter 11 Skill Sets and Experience Alive and Well (and Relevant) in Europe?
NCBJ - ABA Joint Program
Sponsoring Subcommittees: Chapter 11
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderator:
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| Corinne Ball, Partner Jones Day New York, NY |
Speakers:
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| Honorable Shelley Chapman, US Bankruptcy Court S. District of New YorkNew York, NY |
Eckart Budelmann, Partner Bryan Cave LLP Hamburg, Germany |
Jay Goffman, Partner & Practice Leader, Global Restructuring Skadden Arps New York, NY |
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| Simon Granger, Senior Managing Director FTI Consulting London, UK |
U.S.-based investors are very comfortable with U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, Chapter 11 proceedings and restructuring professionals. How has this perspective impacted on the expectations and experiences of distressed investors when they venture offshore? What happens when principles fundamental to U.S. bankruptcy law, such as favoring debt over equity in insolvent situations, are not universally applied? This program will explore recent developments in offshore restructurings, including how the experience and mindset of U.S. investors and their advisors are playing a vital role in changing the face of distressed investing in Europe and elsewhere and the challenges that every U.S. investor should be aware of when investing outside of the U.S. so as not to be caught by surprise.
3:30-5:30 p.m. – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeWest Tower, Comiskey
FEATURED PROGRAM - Take the First Exit! – Defenses That Can Win a Case Early
NCBJ - ABA Joint Program
Sponsoring Subcommittees: Litigation and Administration and Courts
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderators:
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| Sandra A Riemer, Partner Phillips Nizer LLP New York, NY |
John C. Weitnauer, Member Alston & Bird LLP Atlanta, GA |
Speakers:
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| Honorable Martin Glenn, US Bankruptcy Court Southern District of New York |
Patrick Darby, Partner Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP Birmingham, AL |
Jonathan M. Landers, Partner Scarola Malone & Zubatov LLP New York, NY |
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| Catherine L. Steege, Partner Jenner & Block LLP Chicago, IL |
The distinguished panel will discuss the strategic and tactical benefits that can be gained by an early focus on "procedural" and affirmative defenses that could be dispositive in an adversary proceeding, such as the "plausibility standard" enunciated in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, standing, res judicata, estoppel and waiver.
Friday, October 10, 2014
7:30-8:45 am – Business Bankruptcy Committee
Concurrent A SessionEast Tower, Plaza Ballroom AB
Is there Room in the Chapter 11 Ark for Trustees, Examiners, Receivers and CROs?
Sponsoring Subcommittee: Trustees and Examiners
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
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| Rafael X. Zahralddin-Aravena, Shareholder and Director Elliott Greenleaf, P.C. Wilmington, DE |
Speakers:
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| Katherine R. Catanese, Sr. Counsel Foley and Lardner LLP New York, NY |
Benjamin I. Finestone, Partner Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, LLP New York, NY |
William K. Harrington, US Trustee Region I and II Boston, MA |
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| Judith W. Ross, Shareholder Law Offices of Judith W. Ross Dallas, TX |
Sheila T. Smith, Principal Deloitte CRG New York, NY |
This panel will discuss the underlying common law surrounding receiverships (including federal receivers), case law and statutory authority relating to the appointment of trustees and examiners, and the use of crisis restructuring officers in chapter 11. The panel will focus on recent trends including cases resulting from the use of foreign subsidiaries to access the U.S. market through reverse mergers, cross border fiduciary duties, fraud cases, and cases related to gross mismanagement. Special attention will be paid to the practical limitations of using receivers, CROs, trustees and examiners.
7:30-8:45 am – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeEast Tower, Skyway 260
Concurrent B Session
Restaurant Bankruptcies--Should I Make a Reservation Now?
Sponsoring Subcommittees: Claims & Priorities, Executory Contracts, Insurance and Small Business
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderator:
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| Ryan T. Schultz, Partner Fox, Swibel, Levin & Carroll, LLP Chicago, IL |
Speakers:
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| Bobby Guy, Partner Frost Brown Nashville, TN |
Phillip Martino, Partner Quarles & Brady Chicago, IL |
Mario Ponce, Principal Partners in Hospitality Chicago, IL |
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| Patricia J. Rynn, Partner Rynn & Janowsky Newport Beach, CA |
Jennifer Sucher, Executive Counsel, Restructuring Bankruptcy GE Capital Chicago, IL |
Industry reports project an increase in the number of restaurants filings, especially by casual dining restaurants. Restaurant bankruptcies raise a number of complex issues that are not found in a manufacturer case or in cases involving other service businesses. Our panelists will discuss:
- What is cash collateral subject to the lien of the secured lender?;
- How do you deal with the franchise agreement, which may have very high cure costs?;
- Can the Bankruptcy Court authorize the transfer of the liquor license?;
- Why the broccoli supplier may be one of the case’s most important creditors; and
- Why you especially don’t want coffee spilled on you when you are visiting the restaurant? (hint--the claim is probably uninsured).
The panelists will speak from a variety of views, including those of the secured creditor, the debtor, the chapter 11 trustee of a restaurant franchisor and the suppliers.
7:30-8:45 am – Business Bankruptcy Committee
Concurrent C Session West Tower, Comiskey
Discovery and Judicial/Legislative Developments in Mass Torts and Asbestos Trusts
Sponsoring Subcommittee: Rules, Legislation and Mass Tort and Environmental Claims
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
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| Hon. Judith K. Fitzgerald (Ret.), Professor of Law Indiana Tech Law School Fort Wayne, Indiana Of Counsel Tucker Arensberg, P.C. Pittsburgh, PA |
Speakers:
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| Leslie A. Davis, Counsel Crowell & Moring LLP Washington, DC |
Charles H. Mullin, PhD, Partner Bates White LLC Washington, DC |
Trevor Swett III, Member Caplin & Drysdale, Chartered Washington, DC |
Asbestos trusts established pursuant to confirmed plans of reorganization currently hold in excess of $30 billion in assets. They resolve and process large numbers of asbestos personal injury tort claims. Asbestos claims filed with an asbestos trust, unlike claims filed in the tort system, are not publicly filed, and there is an issue as to whether lack of transparency in the trust system has led to abuse of the trusts and of the tort system--as recently illustrated by the Garlock bankruptcy court decision on claim estimation. In Garlock it was found that claimants gave materially different work histories to trusts from which they recovered payments, on the one hand, and to Garlock, in connection with the bankruptcy, on the other--which the court found to show a "startling" "pattern of misrepresentation." 504 B.R 71, 86 (Bankr. W.D.N.C. 2014). The panel will focus on the need for trust discovery in asbestos bankruptcies, legislative proposals as to trust transparencies, and judicial and rule responses to the issue.
1:00 – 3:00 pm – Business Bankruptcy Committee
West Tower, Regency Ballroom CD
Secured Creditors Lunch
Herding Clients: Working with Multiple Secured Creditors
NCBJ - ABA Joint Program
Sponsoring Subcommittee: Secured Creditors and Trust Indentures
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
Moderator:
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| Susan M. Freeman, Partner Lewis Roca Rothgerber LLP Phoenix, AZ |
Speakers:
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| Bryant D. Barber, Partner Lewis Roca Rothgerber LLP Phoenix, AZ |
Jeanne P. Darcey, Partner Sullivan & Worcester Boston, MA |
Jennifer C. Hagle, Partner Sidley Austin LLP Los Angeles, CA |
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| William P. Smith, Partner McDermott Will & Emery LLP Chicago, IL |
Panelists regularly representing indenture trustees, hedge funds and financial institutions will discuss issues arising in restructurings and Chapter 11 cases when secured creditor clients have constituent groups, including communications with participants and beneficiaries, driving consensus on interim and exit strategies, obtaining direction from majorities and meeting rights of minorities, funding bridge or DIP financing, decision-making on credit bidding, and plan voting logistics.
3:15 – 4:45 pm – Business Bankruptcy Committee East Tower, Columbus GH
Current Developments
Sponsoring Subcommittee: Current Developments Task Force
ABA Moderator & Speakers' Bio for This Session
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| Martin J. Bienenstock, Partner Proskauer Rose LLP New York, NY |
Speakers:
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| Michael R. Enright, Partner Robinson & Cole LLP Hartford, CT |
Monique D. Hayes, Associate Genovese Joblove & Battista, PA Miami, FL |
Jennifer R. Hoover, Partner Benesch, Friedlander, Coplan & Aronoff LLP Wilmington, DE |
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| Robert B. Millner, Partner Dentons Chicago, IL |
Description: This popular panel, led by Martin Bienenstock, will discuss current developments in the areas of claims, exemptions, priorities and Chapter 11.
ABA COMMITTEE WORKING MEETINGS
| Wednesday, October 8, 2014 3:30 – 5:30 pm – Business Bankruptcy Committee  West Tower, Crystal Ballroom B Chairs and Vice Chairs Meeting - Working Meeting Chair: Kay Kress, Partner, Pepper Hamilton LLP, Detroit, MI |
Thursday, October 9, 2014
7:30-8:30 am – Business Bankruptcy Committee
E-newsletter Subcommittee Working MeetingEast Tower, Plaza Ballroom AB
Co-Editors:
- Brett Fallon, Partner, Morris James LLP, Wilmington, DE
- Mariaelena Gayo-Guitian, Partner, Genovese, Joblove & Battista S.C., Miami, FL
7:30-8:30 am – Bankruptcy Court Structures and Insolvency Process Committee West Tower, Soldier Field
Committee Meeting - Working Meeting
Chair: Sharon Z. Weiss, Partner, Bryan Cave LLP, Santa Monica, CA
8:30-9:30 am – Bankruptcy Court Structures and Insolvency Process CommitteeWest Tower, Soldier Field
White Collar Crime and Business Bankruptcy Subcommittee Meeting - Working Meeting
Chair: Associate Professor Karen Gebbia, Golden Gate University Law School, San Francisco, CA
9:30 – 10:30 am – Bankruptcy Court Structures and Insolvency Process CommitteeWest Tower, Soldier Field
Electronic Stored Information / Discovery Subcommittee Meeting - Working Meeting
Chair: Richard Wasserman, Partner, Venable LLP, Baltimore, MD
10:30-12:00 pm - Business Bankruptcy CommitteeEast Tower, Skyway 273
Publications Subcommittee Meeting - Working Meeting
Chair: Associate Professor Karen Gebbia, Golden Gate University Law School, San Francisco, CA.
12:00 - 1 pm - Business Bankruptcy CommitteeEast Tower, Skyway 273
Publications Subcommittee – Reorganizing Failing Businesses Book Project - Working Meeting
Chair: Associate Professor Karen Gebbia, Golden Gate University Law School, San Francisco, CA
Friday, October 10, 2014
7:30-8:30 am – Joint Working Group Business Bankruptcy and Bankruptcy Court Structures and Insolvency Process CommitteesEast Tower, Skyway 272
Bankruptcy Code Revisions Subcommittee - Working Meeting
Chair: Hon. Samuel Bufford, Distinguished Scholar in Residence, Penn State Law, University Park, PA.
8:30-9:30 am – Bankruptcy Court Structures and Insolvency Process CommitteeEast Tower, Skyway 272 Monetization Subcommittee - Working Meeting
Chair: James L. Patton, Jr., Partner, Young, Conway, Stargatt & Taylor, LLP, Wilmington, DE
2:00 – 3:00 pm – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeWest Tower, Comiskey
Bankruptcy Committees Subcommittee - Working Meeting
Chair: Henry Kevane, Partner, Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones, San Francisco, CA
3:00 – 4:00 pm – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeWest Tower, Comiskey
Joint Task Force on Governance Issues for Distressed Companies - Working Meeting Focusing on 50 State Questionnaire on D&O Issues
Co-Chairs of Joint Task Force:
- J. William Boone, Partner, James-Bates, Brannan-Groover-LP, Atlanta, GA
- Rolin Bissell, Partner, Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP, Wilmington, DE
- Corporate Governance Chair: Regina Stango Kelbon, Partner, Blank Rome LLP, Wilmington, DE
5:00 – 6:30 pm – Business Bankruptcy CommitteeEast Tower, Plaza Ballroom AB
Programs Subcommittee - Working Meeting
Chairs:
- Chris Alston, Partner, Foster Pepper PLLC, Seattle, WA
- Andrea S. Hartley, Partner, Akerman, Miami, FL
