Sixteen Bankruptcy Judges Featured at ABIs 2007 Central States Bankruptcy Workshop

Sixteen Bankruptcy Judges Featured at ABIs 2007 Central States Bankruptcy Workshop

Contact: John Hartgen
             (703) 739-0800
            
[email protected]

 

SIXTEEN BANKRUPTCY JUDGES FEATURED AT ABI’S 2007 CENTRAL STATES BANKRUPTCY WORKSHOP

February 28, 2007, Alexandria, Va. —The American Bankruptcy Institute’s (ABI) 14th Annual Central States Bankruptcy Workshop, featuring 16 bankruptcy judges from the Sixth and Seventh Circuits, will take place June 14-17 at Michigan’s Grand Traverse Resort and Spa. More than 400 professionals are expected to attend this year’s workshop. Attendees have the opportunity to earn up to 10 hours of CLE and CPE credits, including 1.25 hours of ethics. Sheryl L. Toby of Dykema PLLC (Detroit, Mich.) is the program chair, while JudgePhillip J. Shefferly (E.D. Mich.) is the judicial chair.

The newest addition to this year’s Workshop are a series of unique “Judicial Debates,” moderated bytheprogram’s Advisory Board Chair Claire Ann Resop of Brennan, Steil & Basting (Madison, Wis.) will feature the following propositions:

  • Bankruptcy Judges Daniel S. Opperman (E.D. Mich.) and Phillip J. Shefferly (E.D. Mich.) will debate whether “A 503(b)(9) Claimant Is Entitled to Receive Full Payment on Its Claim Prior to the Effective Date of a Plan.”
  • “BAPCPA’s Credit Counseling Requirement Should Be Eliminated” will be debated by Bankruptcy Judges Jeffrey R. Hughes (W.D. Mich.) and Steven W. Rhodes (E.D. Mich.).
  • Bankruptcy Judges Bruce W. Black (N.D. Ill.) and John E. Hoffman, Jr. (S.D. Ohio) will debate “It Is Appropriate for the Court to Enter a First-day Order Defining the Scope of a Creditors’ Committee’s Disclosure Obligation.”
  • “A Chapter 13 Debtor Can Surrender a Vehicle to a ‘910 Creditor’ in Full Satisfaction of Its Claim” will be debated by Bankruptcy Judges Susan V. Kelley (E.D. Wis.) and Mary Ann Whipple (N.D. Ohio).

The second set of “Judicial Debates” will take place on June 16 and include:

  • Bankruptcy JudgesBruce W. Black (N.D. Ill.) and Daniel S. Opperman (E.D. Mich.) debating “The New 45-day Reclamation Period Established by §546(c) Is Merely a Cap on Rights Provided by Nonbankruptcy Law, Rather Than a New Substantive Right.”
  • “Means Test Determines the Proper Deductions for Income under the Totality of Circumstances Test under §707” will be debated by Bankruptcy Judges Pamela Pepper (E.D. Wis.) and Eugene R. Wedoff (N.D. Ill.).
  • Bankruptcy Judges Pamela S. Hollis (N.D. Ill.) and Jeffrey R. Hughes (W.D. Mich.) will debate “During the First 30 Days of a Bankruptcy Case, the Court May Require a Utility to Accept Adequate Assurance in a Form and Amount Not Agreed to by the Utility.”
  • Debating “It Is Inappropriate for an Attorney to Advise a Debtor to Incur Debt for the Purpose of Increasing the Value of the Debtor’s Exemptions” will be Bankruptcy Judges J. Philip Klingeberger (N.D. Ind.) and Eugene R. Wedoff (N.D. Ill.).

Panel topics for ABI’s Central States Bankruptcy Workshop include:

“Reaffirmation: The Ground Rules Have Changed” will feature panelists Elizabeth M. Abood of Charles J. Schneider PC (Livonia, Mich.), James J. Burns, Jr. of Burns & Wincek, Ltd. (Chicago), Stuart A. Gold of Gold Lange & Majoros PC (Southfield, Mich.) and Bankruptcy Judge Mary Ann Whipple (N.D. Ohio).

Panelists for the “Supply Agreements and Other Hot Contract Issues: Adequate Assurance Demand, Does ‘Cure’ Mean ‘Cure and More’?” session include Donald S. MacKenzie Jr. of Conway MacKenzie & Dunleavy (Birmingham, Mich.), Bankruptcy Judge Marci B. McIvor (E.D. Mich.), Patrick Mears of Barnes & Thornburg LLP (Grand Rapids, Mich.) and Norman Newman of Much Shelist Freed Denenberg Ament & Rubenstein, PC (Chicago).

“Ouch! Administrative Insolvency and Disgorgement of Fees – Case Strategies” will include Richard S. Lauter of Levenfeld Pearlstein, LLC (Chicago), Judith Greenstone Miller of Jaffe Raitt Heuer & Weiss, PC (Southfield, Mich.), Bankruptcy Judge Steven W. Rhodes (E.D. Mich.) and Gary A. Wencel of Moglia Advisors (Schaumburg, Ill.).

Bankruptcy Judge John E. Hoffman, Jr. (S.D. Ohio), Alan D. Lasko of Alan D. Lasko & Associates PC (Chicago), Barry P. Lefkowitz of Virchow, Krause and Co. LLP (Southfield, Mich.), Ralph E. McDowell of Bodman LLP (Detroit) will be the featured panel for the “Cash-Flow Statements, Budgets, Financial Reporting: Watch Out for the Catches” session.

The “Avoid Professional Liability in Commercial Cases: Aiding and Abetting Client Wrongdoing and Other Liability Risks” session will include Jeffrey A. Hokanson ofIce Miller LLP (Indianapolis), Bankruptcy Judge Pamela S. Hollis (N.D. Ill.), C. Daniel Motsinger of Krieg Devault LLP (Indianapolis) and Nancy D. Terrill of Grant Thornton LLP (Cleveland).

“Secured Creditor Rights in Consumer Cases” includes Joseph A. Baldi of Joseph A. Baldi & Associates, PC (Chicago), Bankruptcy Judge James D. Gregg (W.D. Mich.), Richardo I. Kilpatrick of Kilpatrick & Associates PC (Auburn Hills, Mich.) and Richard D. Nelson of Cohen, Todd, Kite & Stanford, LLC (Cincinnati).

Panelists on the “Filing a Consumer Case: Pesky Prerequisites” session include John E. Gierum of Gierum & Mantas (Park Ridge, Ill.), Frederick M. Luper of Luper, Neidenthal & Logan, LPA (Columbus), Brian J. Small of Thav Gross Steinway & Bennett PC (Bingham Farms, Mich.) and Bankruptcy Judge John H. Squires (E.D. Mich.).

Chapter 13 Trustee Thomas J. King (Oshkosh, Wis.), Bankruptcy Judge Pamela Pepper (E.D. Wis.), Steven L. Rayman of Rayman & Stone (Kalamazoo, Mich.) and David S. Yen of the Legal Assistance Foundation of Chicago will be featured for the “Disposable Income and the Means Test: What Do They Mean?” session.

Panelists for “Pension and Legacy: New Laws and Old Obligations” include Mark Berkoff of DLA Piper US LLP (Chicago), Gary W. Burns of Walker Nell Consultants (Philadelphia), Bankruptcy Judge J. Philip Klingeberger (N.D. Ind.) and Shawn M. Riley of McDonald Hopkins Co., LPA (Cleveland).

The “Alternatives to Chapter 11: Receiverships, Operating 7s, Mortgage Trusts and More” session will feature John C. DiDonato of Huron Consulting Group (New York),Gregory J. Jordan of Dykema Gossett PLLC (Chicago), Timothy F. Nixon of Godfrey & Kahn SC (Green Bay, Wis.) and Bankruptcy Judge Phillip J. Shefferly (E.D. Mich.).

“Breakfast with a Judge” will feature a roundtable discussion with Bankruptcy Judges James D. Gregg (W.D. Mich.), John E. Hoffman, Jr. (S.D. Ohio), Jeffrey R. Hughes (W.D. Mich.), Philip Klingeberger (N.D. Ind.), Marci McIvor (E.D. Mich.), Daniel S. Opperman (E.D. Mich.), Steven W. Rhodes (E.D. Mich.), Phillip J. Shefferly (E.D. Mich.), John H. Squires (N.D. Ill.) and Eugene R. Wedoff (N.D. Ill.).

For more information about the Central States Bankruptcy Workshop, call ABI at (703) 739-0800 or visit www.abiworld.org/CS07.  

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ABI is the largest multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency. ABI was founded in 1982 to provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy issues. The ABI membership includes more than 11,000 attorneys, accountants, bankers, judges, professors, lenders, turnaround specialists and other bankruptcy professionals, providing a forum for the exchange of ideas and information. For additional information on ABI, visit www.abiworld.org. For additional conference information, visit http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html.