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A Note from Your Co-Chairs: A Look Back on 2021

2021 has been an incredibly productive year for the Young and New Members Committee. The committee continued to produce high-quality newsletters and educational programs, while branching out and trying some new things, too. Below are some highlights.

Quarterly Newsletters

In 2021, the committee published newsletters in March, May and August featuring eight articles, including several articles authored by our committee leaders, as well as law students. Our March 2021 newsletter featured an article by co-Membership Relations Director Christian Pereyda regarding the Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals decision in Lawson-Ross v. Great Lakes Higher Ed. Corp., which examined the difference between an affirmative misrepresentation and the failure to disclose. Our August 2021 newsletter featured an article on pro hac vice tips from co-Newsletter Editor CC Schnapp, as well as an article on the constitutionality of the U.S. Trustee fee increases by co-Newsletter Editor Joe Esmont. Our newsletters featured a number of other timely and interesting articles, including several on various subchapter V issues. The next newsletter is expected to be published soon, so stay tuned! If you have any interest in writing for the newsletter, please reach out to Joe or CC.

ABI Annual Spring Meeting

As part of the ABI’s virtual Annual Spring Meeting (April 12-22, 2021), the committee partnered with the Commercial Fraud Committee to present a panel titled, “Fraud Litigation Against Directors and Officers in Bankruptcy.” The panel consisted of Alicia M. Bendana (Lugenbuhl Wheaton, Peck, Rankin & Hubbard; New Orleans) Vincent E. Lazar (Jenner & Block; Chicago), Leo Oppenheimer (Reid Collins & Tsai LLP; Dallas) and Shane G. Ramsey (Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP; Nashville, Tenn.). The panelists explored the use of fiduciary-duty litigation in bankruptcy by dissecting the anatomy of a D&O lawsuit, including the types of claims asserted and their possible defenses. The panelists also discussed how to analyze D&O insurance policies, and such key issues as whether the proceeds of D&O policies are considered property of the estate. Finally, the panelists highlighted best practices for debtors’ counsel faced with such claims, and showed how to navigate potential ethical issues.

Emerging Leaders Program

On July 13, 2021, the committee was delighted to co-sponsor, along with the advisory board for ABI’s Northeast Bankruptcy Conference, the Emerging Leaders Program: “Hot Topics in Evidence” prior to ABI’s Northeast Bankruptcy Conference & Northeast Consumer Forum. The program featured an interactive virtual panel discussion covering essential topics that up-and-coming restructuring professionals need to know, including how to craft and when to use leading vs. open-ended questions when examining a witness, a tutorial for admitting common kinds of evidence, and tips for advocates and experts when preparing each other for expert testimony. The panel consisted of Jay S. Geller (Law Office of Jay S. Geller; Portland, Maine); Letson Douglass Boots (Bernstein Shur; Portland, Maine), Isley Gostin (WilmerHale; Washington, D.C.), Charles R. Bennett, Jr. (Murphy & King; Boston) and Leanne Gould (Gould Consulting; Atlanta).

Webinar on Commercial Fraud/Litigation

On July 22, 2021, the committee co-hosted a webinar with the Commercial Fraud Committee titled, “Pursuing a Career Path in Commercial Fraud/Litigation.” Adam Crane (HSM; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands) and Christian Pereyda (Maynard Cooper & Gale; Birmingham, Ala.) served as moderators, while Joel Cohen (Stout; New York), Kathy Phelps (Raines Feldman LLP; Los Angeles) and Martin Trott (R&H Restructuring; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands) rounded out the panel.

ABI Winter Leadership Conference

The committee, led by Co-Education Directors Bodie Colwell and Chrissy Sanfelippo, will be co-hosting a panel at ABI’s Winter Leadership Conference (Dec. 9-11, 2021) with the Mediation Committee. Titled “Prepping for Success: The Keys to Maximizing the Mediation Process,” the panel will consist of Isley Gostin (WilmerHale; Washington, D.C.), Jerry M. Markowitz (Markowitz Ringel Trusty & Hartog; Miami), Dan Schimizzi (Whiteford Taylor Preston; Pittsburgh) and Edward Schnitzer (Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhodes LLP; New York). This session will explore the keys to a successful mediation, from deciding when mediation is appropriate through properly documenting the mediated resolution, with an emphasis on how to prepare both yourself and your client for mediation to maximize its value, regardless of whether an actual settlement is reached.

Virtual Happy Hours

During 2021, the committee hosted two ABI virtual happy hours. On March 3, the committee hosted virtual happy hour titled, “Millennials: The Future of the Insolvency Profession.” According to the Pew Research Center, “elder” Millennials begin turning 40 in 2021 as the youngest turn 25. As a result, Millennials now comprise the largest portion of the working population. With that fact in mind, Brendan Gage (Goulston & Storrs, PC; Boston) and Tara Schellhorn (Riker Danzig Scherer Hyland & Perretti LLP; Morristown, N.J.) examined what it means to be a Millennial and highlighted the accomplishments of the committee over the last year. The happy hour also featured “choose your own adventure”-style breakout rooms to discuss topics ranging from the subchapter V debt limits to favorite podcasts. Special thanks go to Special Projects Leader Jack O’Connor (Sugar Felsenthal Grais & Helsinger LLP; Chicago) for his efforts in planning the happy hour.

Then on Sept. 1, the committee hosted another virtual happy hour to welcome back football season. Committee leaders engaged attendees in some friendly competition to determine the biggest football fan and best tailgate recipe, with the winners receiving prizes from ABI that included football tickets. A good time was had all around. Register Now.

New Member Virtual Meet-and-Greet

Co-Membership Relations Directors Gabrielle G. Palmer and Christian A. Pereyda are working on an initiative to allow our new members to meet and network during virtual meet-and-greets. We ask that new members keep an eye out in their inboxes for an invitation. We hope to launch the program in late 2021 or early 2022. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to Gabrielle or Christian for more information.

Looking Forward to 2022

While we are nowhere back to “normal” yet, we are thrilled to see the level of engagement of our committee leadership and committee members. We look forward to building on this momentum in 2022!

Leadership

Committees
Young and New Members