Contact: John Hartgen
             703-894-5935
             [email protected]

SPRING ISSUE OF THE ABI LAW REVIEW FEATURES STUDY ON COSTS OF BAPCPA ON CONSUMER CASES, CHAPTER 11 AT THE CROSSROADS

August 30, 2010, Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) Spring 2010 Law Review (Volume 18, No. 1) features nine articles, including a series on “Chapter 11 at the Crossroads: Does Reorganization Need Reform?,” based on an ABI symposium held last November, and one student note that examines a number of timely insolvency topics, including fraud. One of the featured articles is by Prof. Lois R. Lupica of the University of Maine School of Law (Portland, Maine) entitled “The Costs of BAPCPA: Report of the Pilot Study of Consumer Bankruptcy Cases.” Lupica’s study, funded by the ABI Endowment Fund, found that costs of consumers filing for bankruptcy have increased due to the provisions of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA). While BAPCPA’s provisions have increased costs for consumers, Lupica’s research revealed that distributions to unsecured creditors in chapter 13 and chapter 7 consumer cases have actually decreased since BAPCPA’s enactment.

Additional Spring Issue articles include:

• “Life after Debt: Understanding the Credit Restraint of Bankruptcy Debtors” by Prof. Katherine M. Porter of the University of Iowa College of Law (Iowa City).
• “Susbstantive Consolidation: The Cacophony Continues” by J. Maxwell Tucker of Patton Boggs LLP (Dallas).
• “Beyond Chimerical Possibilities: The Meaning and Application of Adequate Assurance of Future Performance under the Bankruptcy Code” by Jason B. Binford of Kane Russell Coleman & Logan, PC (Dallas).
• “Testing the Bankruptcy Code Safe Harbors in the Current Financial Crisis” by Eleanor Heard Gilbane of Weil, Gotshal & Manges (Houston).

Articles for the “Chapter 11 at the Crossroads: Does Reorganization Need Reform” series include:

• “A Reassessment of Bankruptcy Reorganization after Chrysler and General Motors” by Prof. Barry E. Adler of the New York University School of Law (New York).
• “Repeal the Safe Harbors” by Prof. Stephen J. Lubben of Seton Hall University’s School of Law (Newark, N.J.).
• “Preserving State Corporate Governance Law in Chapter 11: Maximizing Value through Traditional Fiduciaries” by John Wm. (“Jack”) Butler, Jr., Chris L. Dickerson and Stephen S. Neuman of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP (Chicago).
• The “Legislative Symposium Roundtable: Chapter 11 at the Crossroads – Does Reorganization Need Reform” article features the views of past and present ABI Presidents Robert J. Keach of Bernstein Shur (Portland, Maine), Robert M. Fishman of Shaw Gussis Fishman Glantz Wolfson & Towbin LLC (Chicago), Melissa Kibler Knoll of Mesirow Financial Consulting LLC (Chicago), Reginald W. Jackson of Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP (Columbus, Ohio) and John D. Penn of Haynes and Boone LLP (Fort Worth, Texas).

The student note is “‘Fraud and Deceit Abound’ but do the Bankruptcy Courts Really Believe that Everyone Is Crooked? The Bayou Decision and the Narrowing of ‘Good Faith’” was written by Craig T. Lutterbein, the ABI Law Review’s Associate Managing Editor. The note criticizes the Bayou court’s application of an objective, notice-based standard for determining when a redeeming creditor is entitled to the protection of the good-faith defense contained in §548(c) of the Bankruptcy Code.

ABI’s Law Review, published in conjunction with St. Johns University School of Law in Jamaica, N.Y., is among the most cited and respected scholarly publications in the bankruptcy community. It has the largest circulation of any bankruptcy law review. Past issues of the Law Review have focused on a variety of timely insolvency topics, including distressed sectors, single-asset cases, consumer bankruptcy, the revised Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code and other topics.

Members of the press looking to obtain a copy of the Spring 2010 issue should contact John Hartgen at 703-894-5935 or [email protected].

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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 12,600 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.