Members in the News

Journal Issue

Nov 2005

Column Name

Inside ABI

Citation

ABI Journal, Vol. XXIV, No. 9, p. 73, November 2005

Topic Tags

Consumer Bankruptcy

Journal HTML Content

ABI's Consumer Bankruptcy Committee is co-chaired by
Hon. Dennis R. Dow, Hon. Thomas F. Waldron, Dennis J.
LeVine and Thomas J. Yerbich.Judge Dow was appointed a
Bankruptcy Judge for the Western District of Missouri Circuit Court of
Appeals on Nov. 10, 2003. Prior to his appointment, Judge Dow was a
partner at Shook, Hardy & Bacon LLP, where he participated in a
broad range of cases representing many different types of clients,
including trustees in chapter 7 cases involving significant assets,
individual and corporate debtors in proceedings under chapter 7 and 11,
and secured, unsecured and priority creditors and lessors in chapter 7,
11, 12 and 13 cases. He also participated in and tried numerous
adversary proceedings and contested matters including preference
actions, objections to discharge, dischargeability, complaints and
objections to confirmation of chapter 11 plans. His practice also
included representing purchasers of assets from chapter 11 estates. He
received his B.A. with honors from the University of Wyoming and his J.D
from Washburn University School of Law, where he was notes editor of the

Washburn Law Journal.Judge Waldron is a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge
for the Southern District of Ohio in Dayton. He is currently chief
judge. He also served as Chief Judge of the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel
of the Sixth Circuit. He is a fellow of the American College of
Bankruptcy, a member of the adjunct faculty at the University of Dayton
Law School and a contributing editor to the Norton Bankruptcy Law
Practice Treatise. He is a frequent speaker at national, regional
and local bankruptcy education programs. Judge Waldron earned his J.D.
at the University of Cincinnati Law School.Mr. LeVine is the founder
of Dennis LeVine & Associates PA in Tampa, Fla., where he represents
creditors in all bankruptcy courts in the state of Florida. The firm
also represents creditors in commercial and consumer collection
litigation throughout Florida. Prior to forming his own firm in March
1996, Mr. LeVine was a named partner in the firm of Cramer, Haber,
McDonald & LeVine PA in Tampa. He is Board Certified in Consumer and
Business Bankruptcy Law by the American Board of Certification, for
which he also served on the its Board of Directors. Mr. LeVine served as
president of the Tampa Bay Bankruptcy Bar Association. He has published
various articles in the ABI Journal, the Florida Bar
Journal and Cramdown, the quarterly publication of the Tampa
Bay Bankruptcy Bar Association. He has been a speaker at many
conferences throughout the United States. Mr. LeVine graduated Phi Beta
Kappa from Tulane University and received his J.D. from George
Washington University's National Law Center.Mr. Yerbich currently
serves as the rules attorney for the U.S. District Court in Anchorage,
Alaska. He is admitted to practice in California and Alaska and has more
than 30 years of experience representing debtors, trustees, creditors'
committees and creditors in business reorganizations and consumer cases.
Mr. Yerbich is Board Certified by the American Board of Certification in
both Business and Consumer Bankruptcy Law. He is a frequent CLE panelist
on bankruptcy and tax law, has written numerous articles on the subject
of bankruptcy law and is the author of the ABI publication

Fundamentals of Consumer Bankruptcy Law: Chapters 7 & 13 of the
U.S. Bankruptcy Code, 2d Ed., which has just been updated to include
the new law. Mr. Yerbich earned his J.D. with distinction and his LL.M.
in Business & Tax from McGeorge School of Law, University of the
Pacific.<h3>More Members in the News</h3>Hon. Mary Patricia
Gorman was appointed a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the U.S. District
Court for the Central District of Illinois in Springfield on Sept. 19.
Previously, Judge Gorman was in private practice with the Rockford,
Ill., firm of O'Brien, Healy, Wade, Abate and McNamara, where she
focused her practice on bankruptcy, commercial transactions and
litigation. She has served as president of the Winnebago Bar
Association, where she received the Seely P. Forbes Memorial Award. She
is a member of the Illinois State and Seventh Circuit Bar Associations
and formerly taught bankruptcy law at the Northern Illinois University
College of Law.Mark E. Felger was recently certified in
business bankruptcy law by the American Board of Certification,, making
him one of only seven board-certified bankruptcy specialists in
Delaware. Mr. Felger is a partner at Cozen O'Connor in Wilmington, Del.,
where he is a member of the firm's bankruptcy, insolvency and
restructuring practice group. He has represented debtors, unsecured
creditors' committees, plan trustees, secured creditors, insurance
companies, equity security-holders and acquires in corporate
restructurings both in and out of chapter 11. Mr. Felger is a member of
ABI, the Turnaround Management Association and the Eastern District of
Pennsylvania Bankruptcy Conference, and serves of the panel of mediators
for the Bankruptcy Court of the District of Delaware. He was named a
"Super Lawyer" in Philadelphia Magazine and is listed Chambers
and Partners USA.Conaway Stargatt & Taylor LLP ranked 22nd in
the nation and first in Delaware, according to the 2005 American Lawyer
Midlevel Associates survey. The Wilmington, Del., firm ranked eighth in
the country when compared to other firms its size. Nearly 6,000
associates took part in the national survey. Young Conaway had an
overall ranking of 4.45 out of 5.0, including high ratings in categories
as a place to work, having a significant amount of client contact and a
5.0 in opportunities to work with partners. The survey results and
methodology are highlighted as the cover story in the October issue of

The American Lawyer. ABI members include Joseph M. Barry, Sean
M. Beach, Donald J. Bowman Jr., Robert S. Brady, Timothy P. Cairns, M.
Blake Cleary, Curtis J. Crowther, John T. Dorsey, Ian Swart Fredericks,
Kara Stephanie Hammond, Edwin J. Harron, Edward J. Kosmowski, Maureen D.
Luke, Matthew B. Lunn, Joseph Malfitano, John Daniel McLaughlin, Pauline
K. Morgan, Edmon L. Morton, Michael R. Nestor, Jennifer R. Noel, Brendan
Linehan Shannon, Joel A. Waite, Margaret Whiteman and Patricia A.
Widdoss.Rebecca R. DeMarb of Murphy Desmond SC in Madison,
Wis., was certified in business bankruptcy law by the American Board of
Certification. Ms. DeMarb joined Murphy Desmond in 1997 and has focused
her practice primarily on business bankruptcy and financial
restructuring. She represents secured creditors, debtors-in-possession
and other parties in business bankruptcies.Wendy L. Hagenau, a
bankruptcy and corporate reorganization partner with Powell Goldstein
LLP in Atlanta, has been selected for Georgia Trends' "Legal
Elite for 2005." The business magazine polled thousands of Georgia
attorneys for nominations of professionals in 10 recognized practice
areas. Ms. Hagenau concentrates in the areas of workout and insolvency,
representation of debtors in workouts and chapter 11 cases, the
representation of creditors, including indenture trustees in chapter 11
cases, receivership actions and workouts, and general commercial
litigation, including dischargeability litigation.Gary L.
Diamond, CPA/CIRA, has rejoined the bankruptcy and turnaround
practice of Berger Epstein & Garber PA, an accounting and consulting
firm in Hollywood, Fla. Mr. Diamond has more than 15 years of experience
providing financial advisory and turnaround services to both debtors and
creditors, including acting as liquidating trustee/plan administrator in
high-profile cases.James H. Joseph, an associate in
McGuireWoods LLP in Pittsburgh, was appointed to the board of directors
of the Pittsburgh Musical Theater, a nonprofit professional theater
company committed to quality musical theater, the education of youth and
the support of local talent. Along with McGuireWoods partner Robert
G. Sable, Mr. Joseph has represented the Pittsburgh Musical Theater
for the past two years on a pro bono basis regarding the
organization's successful financial restructuring. Mr. Joseph practices
in the firm's financial-services department, focusing on commercial
bankruptcy, insolvency and creditors' rights. He concentrates his
practice on chapter 11 bankruptcy matters, representing debtors,
creditors' committees and creditors. He also advises small businesses in
general commercial matters.Corporate Revitalization Partners LLC
(CRP) and RKG Osnos Partners LLC announced the merger of their
organizations in September. The new company will continue to operate as
CRP and will add approximately eight turnaround professionals for an
estimated total of 50 professionals nationwide. The new coast-to-coast
organization will continue to have key offices in New York, Dallas and
Los Angeles. ABI members include: T. Scott Avila, Gene Baldwin, Mark
D. Barbeau, Gary Barrett, Rob Carringer, Darius Chagnon, J. Cooper
Crouse, Dennis Gerrard, Frank Guidone, Edward C. Hall, Mike Manos,
Thomas O'Donoghue, Holly O'Hara, Lee Rudisail, Gerald M. Sherman, Kevin
Smith and William K. Snyder.Chicago-based Daniel F.
Dooley, CPA, Delaware-based Robert F. Troisio and David B.
Paddy of Morris-Anderson & Associates have been named in The
Deal's September list of "Top Noninvestment Bank Professionals." Mr.
Dooley is a turnaround and crisis manager with more than 20 years of
experience in general management, operations, finance and project
management. Mr. Troisio is a managing director with extensive experience
in turnarounds and bankruptcy. Mr. Paddy has an extensive background in
chapter 11 restructuring and chapter 7 liquidations, along with
experience in restructurings outside the bankruptcy arena.Novare Inc.
of Crystal Lake, Ill., was recently acquired by EPIQ Systems Inc. of
Kansas City, Kan. Jack B. Fishman, president of Novare, will
retain his title and continue to manage the operation of the business,
which will continue to offer liquidating trustee and plan-administrator
functions, preference analysis and recovery, claims reconciliation,
workers' compensation management, wind-down and liquidation processes
and other services related to liquidating or reorganizing debtors.
Novare joins Bankruptcy Services LLC (BSI) and a number of other
bankruptcy related companies within the EPIQ Systems family.

Journal Authors

ABI

Journal Date

Tuesday, November 1, 2005 - 12:00

Bankruptcy Rule

2005

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