Press Releases

ABI Applauds House Passage of the "Bankruptcy Threshold Adjustment and Technical Corrections Act"

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) applauds the House of Representatives passage (392-21) yesterday of the amended S.3823, the “Bankruptcy Threshold Adjustment and Technical Corrections Act.” The Senate on April 7 had passed the legislation introduced by Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) to raise the debt limit back to $7.5 million for small businesses electing to file for bankruptcy under subchapter V of chapter 11. Consistent with the recommendations of ABI’s Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy, the substitute also raises the debt limit for individual chapter 13 filings to $2.75 million and removes the distinction between secured and unsecured debt for that calculation. All provisions of the legislation will sunset two years after enactment. The legislation will now be sent to President Biden to be signed into law.

Due to priorities and procedural issues, the Senate was not able to address S.3823 prior to the March 27 sunset of the $7.5 million eligibility limit for small businesses electing to file for bankruptcy under subchapter V of chapter 11. The debt-eligibility limit returned to the original $2,725,625 threshold on March 28 that had been established under the “Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019” (SBRA). In addition to providing a two-year extension of the subchapter V debt limit back to $7.5 million, the bill also covers any subchapter V cases that were pending at the time of the March 27 sunset.

“Amid growing economic challenges, ABI commends Congress on their determined action and efforts to provide greater access for struggling small businesses and families to achieve a financial fresh start,” said ABI Executive Director Amy Quackenboss. “Senator Grassley’s legislation re-establishing the debt limit for subchapter V at $7.5 million and increasing the eligibility of individuals to access relief under chapter 13 provides a cost-effective and efficient path for more consumers and businesses to reorganize their finances.”

As a direct result of the work of ABI’s Commission to Study the Reform of Chapter 11, the Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019 (SBRA) became effective on February 19, 2020, to provide Main Street business debtors with a more streamlined path for restructuring their debts. Since then, more than 3,000 debtors have elected to file under subchapter V of chapter 11. In response to the economic distress caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the “Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act” (CARES Act; P.L. 116-136) was enacted on March 27, 2020, which increased the debt-eligibility limit from $2,725,625 to $7,500,000 for small businesses looking to file under the SBRA’s subchapter V. Congress extended the limit last year with the enactment of the “COVID-19 Bankruptcy Relief Extension Act of 2021,” but the threshold returned to $2,725,625 on March 27.

Sen. Grassley (R-Iowa) originally introduced the bipartisan S.3823 on March 14, aiming to make the subchapter V debt limit permanent at $7.5 million and index it to inflation, increase the chapter 13 debt limit to $2.75 million and remove the distinction between secured and unsecured debt in that calculation, make Small Business Reorganization Act technical amendments, and make Bankruptcy Administration Improvement Act technical amendments. Senate Judiciary Chair Richard Durbin (D-Ill.) and Sens. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) are both co-sponsors of the legislation.

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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 nearly 10,000 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.

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May Total Commercial Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Filings Increased 34 Percent over the Same Period Last Year, Total Bankruptcy Filings Fall 10 Percent

Alexandria, Va. — There were 330 commercial chapter 11 filings registered in May 2022, an increase of 34 percent from the 246 filings in May 2021, according to data provided by Epiq Bankruptcy, the leading provider of U.S. bankruptcy filing data. Overall commercial filings decreased 14 percent in May 2022, as the 1,738 filings were down from the 1,813 commercial filings registered in May 2021. Small business filings, captured as subchapter V elections within chapter 11, registered an increase of 21 percent to 123 in May 2022 from 102 in May 2021. Total bankruptcy filings were 31,314 in May 2022, a 10 percent decline from the May 2021 total of 34,783. Noncommercial bankruptcy filings totaled 29,576 in May 2022, also registering a 10 percent decrease from the May 2021 noncommercial total of 32,970.

“The bankruptcy market continues to navigate uncharted waters as the effect of the global pandemic lingers and the uncertainty around the U.S. public markets enters the mix,” says Chris Kruse, senior vice president at Epiq. “As the economy declines, the bankruptcy market will likely become more active.”

May’s commercial chapter 11 filings increased 32 percent from the 250 filings in April 2022. The commercial filing total represented a 2 percent decrease from the April 2022 commercial filing total of 1,775. Subchapter V elections within chapter 11 increased 23 percent from the 100 filed in April 2022. May’s total bankruptcy filings represented a 4 percent decrease when compared to the 32,518 total filings recorded the previous month. Total noncommercial filings for May also represented a 4 percent decrease from the April 2022 noncommercial filing total of 30,743.

“Rising interest rates, inflationary price increases and global supply concerns are compounding the economic challenges for financially distressed families and businesses,” said ABI Executive Director Amy Quackenboss. “Legislation currently being considered in the House would expand the debt-eligibility limits for small businesses and individuals that would create greater access and a more efficient process for families and businesses looking for a financial fresh start.”

The debt-eligibility limit for small businesses to elect subchapter V reverted in March to the original $2,725,625 threshold from the expanded amount of $7.5 million first established under the CARES Act of 2020. Legislation was passed in the Senate in April to restore the eligibility limit back to $7.5 million and cover any subchapter V cases that were pending at the time of the March 27 sunset. Consistent with the recommendations of ABI’s Commission on Consumer Bankruptcy, the substitute also continues to push for the debt limit for individual chapter 13 filings to be increased to $2.75 million and to remove the distinction between secured and unsecured debt for that calculation. Both of the expanded eligibility limits for small business subchapter Vs and consumer chapter 13s would sunset after two years.

ABI has partnered with Epiq Bankruptcy to provide the most current bankruptcy filing data for analysts, researchers, and members of the news media. Epiq Bankruptcy is the leading provider of data, technology, and services for companies operating in the business of bankruptcy. Its new Bankruptcy Analytics subscription service provides on-demand access to the industry’s most dynamic bankruptcy data, updated daily. Learn more at https://bankruptcy.epiqglobal.com/analytics.

For further information about the statistics or additional requests, please contact ABI Public Affairs Officer John Hartgen at 703-894-5935 or [email protected].

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Epiq Bankruptcy is a division of Epiq, a global technology-enabled services leader to the legal services industry and corporations that takes on large-scale, increasingly complex tasks for corporate counsel, law firms, and business professionals with efficiency, clarity, and confidence. Clients rely on Epiq to streamline the administration of business operations, class action and mass tort, court reporting, eDiscovery, regulatory, compliance, restructuring, and bankruptcy matters. Epiq subject-matter experts and technologies create efficiency through expertise and deliver confidence to high-performing clients around the world. Learn more at https://www.epiqglobal.com.

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Wayne P. Weitz of B. Riley Advisory Services Elected to ABI's Board of Directors

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) announces that Wayne P. Weitz of B. Riley Advisory Services (New York) has been elected to ABI’s Board of Directors. An ABI member since 2008, Weitz co-chairs ABI’s Complex Financial Restructuring Program, is a former co-chair of ABI's Financial Advisors and Investment Banking Committee, served on the advisory boards for ABI’s Bankruptcy Battleground West program and Caribbean Insolvency Symposium, and has written articles and spoken at ABI events on key bankruptcy topics. He will serve a term of three years on the 60-member ABI Board of Directors.

Weitz is a senior managing director at B. Riley Advisory Services, where his practice includes debtor and borrower advisory services, secured and unsecured creditor advisory services, offshore and cross-border insolvency, valuation and litigation support, and statutory and ad hoc committees. He also is a board member of the New York chapter of the Turnaround Management Association and co-chairs its Membership Committee. Weitz earned his B.A. from Brandeis University in 1987 and his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in 1989, and is designated a Certified Turnaround Professional. In addition, he has earned his Intermediate Sommelier Certification from the National Wine School.

The complete list of directors and officers is available at http://www.abi.org/about-us/board-directors.

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Elizabeth B. Vandesteeg of Levenfeld Pearlstein, LLC Elected to ABI's Board of Directors

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) announces that Elizabeth B. Vandesteeg of Levenfeld Pearlstein, LLC (Chicago) has been elected to ABI’s Board of Directors. An ABI member since 2009, Vandesteeg co-chairs ABI's Unsecured Trade Creditors Committee, is a member of the advisory board for ABI's Central States Bankruptcy Workshop, is a member of four ABI membership committees, has spoken and written on a number of key bankruptcy topics, and was named to ABI’s inaugural “40 Under 40” class in 2017. She will serve a term of three years on the 60-member ABI Board of Directors.

Vandesteeg is a partner in the Financial Services & Restructuring Group at Levenfeld Pearlstein in Chicago. She focuses on identifying risk exposure and mitigating liability for clients, with a concentration in the areas of bankruptcy, creditors’ rights, commercial litigation, and data security and privacy. Vandesteeg is also qualified as a Certified Information Privacy Professional for the U.S. Private Sector by the International Association of Privacy Professionals, the world’s largest information privacy organization. She advises clients on cybersecurity and privacy compliance and regulatory issues, and last year launched the Cyber-U column in the ABI Journal, ABI’s monthly periodical. She also guides clients in developing and implementing information security programs that are reasonable and appropriate for their specific business needs and risks, and advises them on responding to data breaches. She has been named to the “Top 100” by Illinois Super Lawyers and “Illinois Top 50” by Women Illinois Super Lawyers, and has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America. In addition to her robust legal practice, Vandesteeg is also on the board of directors of Chicago Run, an organization that promotes the health and wellness of Chicago children through innovative, engaging and sustainable youth running programs. She received her J.D. from Boston College Law School in 2004 and her B.A. from Columbia University in 2001.

The complete list of directors and officers is available at http://www.abi.org/about-us/board-directors.

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Eric J. Monzo of Morris James LLP Elected to ABI's Board of Directors

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) announces that Eric J. Monzo of Morris James LLP (Wilmington, Del.) has been elected to ABI’s Board of Directors. An ABI member since 2010, Monzo co-chairs ABI's Unsecured Trade Creditors Committee, is a member of the advisory boards of ABI's Mid-Atlantic Bankruptcy Workshop and Delaware Views from the Bench program, and has spoken and written on a number of key bankruptcy topics. He will serve a term of three years on the 60-member ABI Board of Directors.

Monzo is a partner in the Wilmington, Del., office of Morris James, where he focuses his practice on issues relating to business restructuring and insolvency. He regularly represents a wide range of stakeholders with a focus on official and unofficial committees, indenture trustees, commercial creditors and lender groups, in addition to corporate debtors and their independent and special committee management. Monzo handles matters relating to the restructuring and liquidation of companies in a broad range of industries, with experience in health care, construction, energy, finance, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, technology, transportation, real estate and retail. While many of the matters pertain to matters pending in courts located in Delaware and involve issues of Delaware law, Monzo also represents clients in multi-jurisdictional and international insolvency proceedings and litigation outside of Delaware. He has been recognized in The Best Lawyers in America since 2019, in Chambers USA for Bankruptcy/Restructuring (Up and Coming) since 2020, and as one of Delaware Today’s Top Lawyers, Business Bankruptcy, since 2016 and was the top vote-getter in 2019. He received his J.D. with honors from Widener University Delaware Law School in 2002, and his B.A.s in both business administration (with a concentration in finance) and psychology from Washington & Jefferson College in 1999.

The complete list of directors and officers is available at http://www.abi.org/about-us/board-directors.

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Kenneth W. Mann of SC&H Capital Elected to ABI's Board of Directors

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) announces that Kenneth W. Mann of SC&H Capital (Ellicott City, Md.) has been elected to ABI’s Board of Directors. An ABI member since 2003, Mann co-chairs ABI’s Financial Advisor and Investment Banking Committee, is a member of the advisory board of ABI’s Mid-Atlantic Bankruptcy Workshop, and is a frequent speaker at ABI conferences and events. He will serve a term of three years on the 60-member ABI Board of Directors.

Mann is a managing director with SC&H Capital, where he provides distressed M&A advisory services to private company business owners. He has personally handled unique sets of circumstances and found appropriate, innovative solutions for more than 300 middle-market businesses. With more than 25 years of experience, Mann specializes in everything from driving go-to-market strategies for engagements, interfacing with lenders and attorneys, negotiating offers and purchase agreements, and conducting auctions to testifying in court in support of the firm’s clients’ transactions. In addition to ABI, Mann is active in the Turnaround Management Association (TMA) and International Women’s Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation (IWIRC), serving in leadership and committee roles for each. In January 2021, he was appointed to the board of directors of TMA’s Chesapeake Chapter. He has presented at many workshops for ABI and TMA, as well as the Florida Bar and Mississippi Bankruptcy Conferences. He has been published in the ABI Journal, TMA’s Journal of Corporate Renewal, ABL Advisor, ABF Journal and other business publications. Mann received his B.S. from Salisbury University in 1989.

The complete list of directors and officers is available at http://www.abi.org/about-us/board-directors.

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Kristina M. Johnson of Jones Walker LLP Elected to ABI's Board of Directors

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) announces that Kristina M. Johnson of Jones Walker LLP (Jackson, Miss.) has been elected to ABI’s Board of Directors. An ABI member since 1994, Johnson is a member of ABI’s “40 Under 40” Steering Committee, serves on the advisory board of the Southeast Bankruptcy Workshop, is a Southeast Regional Development Fundraising Chair, and has written and spoken at ABI events on key bankruptcy topics. She will serve a term of three years on the 60-member ABI Board of Directors.

Johnson is a partner in Jones Walker's Litigation Practice Group, where she counsels on complex and cross-jurisdictional bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, workout, receivership, commercial litigation and collection matters. She has represented secured and unsecured creditors, buyers of assets in bankruptcy sales, contract parties, trustees, and unsecured creditors' committees and debtors. Johnson served as co-leader of Jones Walker's Bankruptcy, Restructuring & Creditors'-Debtors' Rights team from 2012–2020. As the only female attorney in Mississippi selected as a Fellow by the American College of Bankruptcy and one of only six attorneys in Mississippi who are board-certified in Business Bankruptcy Law by the American Board of Certification, she has handled a broad range of bankruptcy and insolvency litigation in chapter 11 and chapter 7 cases, as well as in less-common chapter 9 and chapter 12 cases and chapter 13 class-action adversary proceedings and receiverships. Johnson is a peer-selected Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America and the American College of Bankruptcy. She is also active in the leadership of numerous national, state and local bar associations, conferences and related organizations. Johnson has served on multiple committees during her career, including the steering committee to rewrite the Mississippi Local Bankruptcy Rules. She is an annual contributing author to West's^® Bankruptcy Exemption Manual and presents on a broad range of bankruptcy and other insolvency industry issues. Johnson received her J.D. magna cum laude from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 1992 and her B.B.A. summa cum laude from the University of Mississippi in 1989.

The complete list of directors and officers is available at http://www.abi.org/about-us/board-directors.

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Sonia Colón of Ferraiuoli LLC Elected to ABI's Board of Directors

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) announces that Sonia Colón of Ferraiuoli LLC (Orlando, Fla.) has been elected to ABI’s Board of Directors. An ABI member since 2014, Colón is a member of ABI’s Diversity and Inclusion Working Group, serves on the advisory boards of the Caribbean Insolvency Symposium and Stetson Paskay Bankruptcy Seminar, and has written and spoken at ABI events on key bankruptcy topics. She will serve a term of three years on the 60-member ABI Board of Directors.

Colón is a Capital Member of Ferraiuoli LLC, and chairs its Bankruptcy and Creditors’ Rights Practice Group. She also heads Ferraiuoli’s Florida office, serving business clients expanding their operations to Florida in the areas of corporate law, real estate and regulatory matters. For 22 years, Colón has focused her practice on insolvency-related matters, including workouts, debt-restructurings and complex commercial litigation in which she represents various parties, including institutional lenders, investors, equityholders, and bonding and insurance companies in all aspects of bankruptcy and workouts. She also has represented clients in matters related to Puerto Rico’s fiscal crisis, including the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA), enacted on June 30, 2016. Colón has represented clients in numerous bankruptcy cases, including out-of-court restructurings and all aspects of complex bankruptcy litigation, including dischargeability, fraudulent transfers, preference actions, super-priority lending, cramdowns and valuations, and she has represented creditors’ committees, secured creditors and debtors in chapter 11 cases. She also advises clients on insolvency-related transactions, including workouts, restructurings of financial transactions and tracing of funds, fraudulent-conveyance actions, acquiring bankruptcy assets, and securing diverse types of financing agreements during a bankruptcy case. She received her J.D. magna cum laude from the University of Puerto Rico School of Law in 1997 and her B.S. in foreign service cum laude from Georgetown University in 1994.

The complete list of directors and officers is available at http://www.abi.org/about-us/board-directors.

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State of the Economy and Opportunities for Distressed Investors, Impacts of the Global Pandemic on Valuation and More to Be Discussed at ABI's New York City Bankruptcy Conference on June 10

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute’s (ABI’s) popular New York City Bankruptcy Conference is scheduled for June 10 at the New York Hilton Midtown in Manhattan. The day-long conference brings together a faculty of New York-area bankruptcy judges with practitioners from the top national insolvency firms in New York City to discuss timely bankruptcy issues. The conference features an expanded workshop format: Each of the six concurrent breakout sessions will be presented twice with different panelists, offering attendees two points of view on the same topic. Additionally, a judges’ roundtable featuring a panel of bankruptcy judges from the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York will discuss current bankruptcy case developments.

Topical sessions include:

Judges’ Roundtable: Selected Current Topics
Mediation in Large Cases
Bankruptcy Litigation Panel
Update on Topical Issues in Bankruptcy
Recent Confirmation Developments
Impacts of the Global Pandemic on Valuation: “An Invitation for a Fight”
DIP Financing
The State of the Economy and Opportunities for Distressed Investors
Corporate Governance in Distressed Situations, Including the Role of Sponsors and Senior Management
Ethics Panel
Cross-Border Bankruptcy Issues
Mass-Tort Cases: Recurring Issues
Revisiting Bad-Faith Filings: Exiting Chapter 11
Anatomy of a Hundred-Cent Case: Deconstructing Hertz and Garrett Motion

Approval for 7.5 hours of general CLE credit, including 1.25 hours of ethics, is pending in states calculating CLE on a 60-minute hour, and 9 hours of general CLE credit, including 1.5 hours of ethics, are pending in 50-minute-hour states. Nine hours of CPE credit, including 1.5 hours of ethics, are also available.

Sandeep Qusba of Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP (New York) and Leon Szlezinger of Jefferies are the program chairs for the conference. Bankruptcy Judge Hon. Michael E. Wiles (S.D.N.Y.; New York) serves as the judicial chair.

Press interested in attending the New York City Bankruptcy Conference should contact ABI Public Affairs Officer John Hartgen at (703) 894-5935 or [email protected].

For more information about the New York City Bankruptcy Conference, call ABI at (703) 739-0800 or click here.

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In re Lighthouse Resources Inc. Wins ABI Asset Sales Committee's Fourth Annual "Asset Sale of the Year" Award

Alexandria, Va. — The American Bankruptcy Institute’s (ABI’s) Asset Sales Committee announced that the case of In re Lighthouse Resources Inc. et. al. (20-13056 JTD) (D. Del.), won its fourth annual “Asset Sale of the Year” award. The committee received 10 submissions vying for the top deal in the contest, and selected Lighthouse Resources as the top asset sale because the sale was integral to the innovative and successful use of a cost-effective bankruptcy process to obtain confirmation of a chapter 11 plan. Not only was the sale itself integral to the process, it was also complicated by an expedited timeline, a need for creative marketing, and the disparate nature of the real property itself. Neopharma, Inc. (E.D. Tenn.; Greeneville) received an honorable mention.

Bankruptcy sales (via either § 363 or a chapter 11 reorganization plan) that closed between January 1 and December 31, 2021, were eligible for the contest, and at least one professional involved in the sale had to be a member of ABI’s Asset Sales Committee. Self-nominations were permitted. Submissions were received from January through March 18, 2022. Criteria for submissions included:

Completion of a sale that was strategic and provided stakeholders with value;
A display of excellence across the full spectrum of the sale process, from the initial targeting through pursuit, structuring and financing to complete a transaction;
A sale that reflected a high level of professional expertise in the design of the transaction, and that tested creativity and skill in completing the transaction; and/or
A sale of strategic or legal significance and impact (such as overcoming challenges to complete the sale, innovative financial engineering, and motivating agreement across multiple stakeholders).

Previous winners of the “Asset Sale of the Year” contest include:

2020: In re Verity Health System of California, Inc., Case No. 2:18-bk-20151-ER (C.D. Cal.)
2019: In re Agera Energy, LLC, et al., Case No. 19-23802 (S.D.N.Y.)
2018: In re Cobalt International Energy, Inc., et al. Case No.: 17-36709 (S.D. Tex.)

For further information about the Asset Sales Committee and ABI’s 16 other specialty-based ABI committees, please click here: https://www.abi.org/members/membership/committees.

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