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Forgotten Super Bowl Champion Was Forced to Declare Bankruptcy After Blowing $20 Million Fortune on Jewelry

Submitted by ckanon@abi.org on
Arguably one of the best receivers of his generation, Andre Rison has had a tumultuous post-retirement life, The U.S. Sun reported. Rison enjoyed a remarkable 12-year NFL career in which he won a Super Bowl, made five Pro Bowls, and earned around $20 million. However, an expensive lifestyle led to him being declared bankrupt years later, forced to rebuild his life. Drafted in the first round by the Indianapolis Colts in 1989, Rison's career took off after being traded to the Atlanta Falcons the following year. Rison blossomed in Georgia, then after five seasons with the Falcons, reaching four Pro Bowls and being named a First-Team All-Pro in 1990, Rison was off to the Cleveland Browns where he signed a five-year deal worth up to just over $17 million. However, his time with the Browns was short, and he was cut after just one year. This was followed by a brief stint with both the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Green Bay Packers, which included a Super Bowl win with the Packers. Rison enjoyed a return to form in 1997 as he reached his first Pro Bowl since 1993 with the Kansas City Chiefs, where he remained for three seasons. Then after a single year with the Oakland Raiders, Rison's time in the NFL was over, and 2004 marked his sole season in the Canadian Football League, after signing for the Toronto Argonauts. One season and a Grey Cup win later and his time playing was finally done for good. Then three years on from the end of his playing days, Rison filed for bankruptcy. He estimated that he'd spent more than $1 million on jewelry. Another avenue down which he's spent a fortune was clubbing. "We were making it snow,” Rison said. “You start throwing $100 bills instead of fives. So you’ve got a competition going on now. I’d be lying on the bed knocked out (after getting back from the club) with $10,000 lying on the floor. I’ve got another $5,000 in my pocket. You might find another $7,500 in the pocket in my coat.” Fast forward to 2022, and according to Celebrity Net Worth, Rison has a net worth of around $250,000.
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Consumer Bankruptcy
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Sam Bankman-Fried’s $16 Billion Fortune Is Eviscerated in Days

Submitted by ckanon@abi.org on
Just weeks ago, Sam Bankman-Fried was considered crypto’s version of John Pierpont Morgan, willing to throw around his massive fortune to save the industry, Bloomberg reported. The curly-haired 30-year-old was everywhere, backing flailing projects including BlockFi, Voyager Digital and Celsius. From the Bahamas, he invested in Robinhood Markets Inc., raising speculation that he’d take over the trading app. And why not? Just last year he said that once his FTX was big enough, it could swallow CME Group Inc. or Goldman Sachs Group Inc. And he looked poised to leverage his fortune — $26 billion at its peak — to shape the world, donating millions to Democrats and promising that one day he’d give it all away to political causes and charity. Now, the future of all of it is in doubt. In the span of days, it became clear that Bankman-Fried and FTX were in the midst of a liquidity crunch and needed a bailout of their own. Changpeng Zhao’s Binance swept in to take over, and, while exact terms weren’t disclosed, it’s likely that SBF’s $15.6 billion fortune will be annihilated at the hands of his billionaire rival. That might come as a shock to investors including Softbank Vision Fund, Temasek and Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, who sunk $400 million into the exchange at a $32 billion valuation in January. But it also put the broader crypto industry on notice: If SBF isn’t safe, who is? Bankman-Fried’s 53% stake in FTX was worth about $6.2 billion before Tuesday’s takeover, based on that fundraising round and the subsequent performance of publicly traded crypto companies. FTX wasn’t Bankman-Fried’s most valuable asset, though. That was his crypto trading house, Alameda Research, which contributed $7.4 billion to his personal fortune.
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Consumer Bankruptcy
Finance and Banking
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Student Loans, Mortgage Mediation and More to Be Discussed at ABI's 2022 Virtual Consumer Practice Extravaganza November 10-18

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

Alexandria, Va. — Leading practitioners will be examining key issues across the consumer bankruptcy landscape at ABI’s 2022 Consumer Practice Extravaganza (CPEX), being held November 10-18 via a state-of-the-art virtual platform. Five broad session tracks will ensure that there is something for every level of consumer practitioner, providing deep dives into student loans, technology and the future, subchapter V of chapter 11, well-being and nontraditional practice. Available at a registration price of only $100, attendees can select sessions from any track, and all sessions will conveniently remain available to attendees for 30 days after the conclusion of the conference. CPEX will also feature a range of special “demo days,” showcasing technology and money-saving tools especially designed for consumer practitioners, as well as plenaries focused on issues relevant to the entire consumer bench and bar.

Sessions at CPEX include:

  • If I Were King
  • Considerations for Winding Up a Business: A Conversation with Your Client
  • Overview of Subchapter V
  • Rules 2002 and 7004: Save Your Clients Money on Service
  • Working with State and Federal Taxing Authorities
  • Using Yoga and Mindfulness to Assist Your Legal Practice
  • Intersection of Ethics and Technology
  • Monetizing Soft Assets: Lessons for Trustees and Bankruptcy Lawyers
  • Post-COVID-19 Mortgage Issues
  • The Basics of Student Loans: Acronyms, Payment Plans, Forgiveness Plans and Administrative Discharges
  • The Roles and Powers of Trustees
  • Networking: Meet Your Judge
  • FDCPA, RESPA and More
  • The Basics of Chapter 13s and Student Loans
  • The New Normal: Virtual/Hybrid Practice
  • When Do You Need to Retain a Professional?
  • Exiting the Practice: Planned and Unexpected
  • Great Debates: Student Loans
  • Contingency Planning, Risk-Reduction and Other Security Considerations
  • Limiting Noticing Under Rule 2002(h)
  • Subchapter V Lightning Rounds and Rods
  • The Biden Administration’s Loan Forgiveness Program, the Fresh Start, IDR Recounts and Incorporating Student Loan Changes into Chapter 13 Plans
  • How Fulton May Change Practice
  • Judicial Roundtables
  • A Breakdown of § 523(a)(8) and Case Law Updates
  • Ditching the Leatherman Tool and Becoming a HUB
  • International Asset-Protection Trusts: Fish or Fowl?
  • Domestic Asset-Protection Trusts: The Basics for Bankruptcy Professionals
  • Imposter Syndrome
  • Bankruptcy for the Deceased: Procedural Nubbins
  • How to Bring a § 523(a)(8) Claim
  • Non-Linear Law Career Paths
  • Tech Tools for Every Practitioner
  • The New Normal, Change and the Flow of Water
  • The Future of Digital Signatures

Networking is also a key ingredient of CPEX, and attendees will have numerous opportunities to connect. The virtual portal will allow speakers and attendees to video or text chat spontaneously after sessions, or allow them to plan a date and time to meet.

Members of the press looking to attend ABI’s Consumer Practice Extravaganza should contact ABI Public Affairs Officer John Hartgen at 703-894-5935 or jhartgen@abiworld.org.

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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. For additional conference information, visit http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html.

Article Tags
Consumer Bankruptcy

Lawyer: Punishment Needed for Alex Jones’ Sandy Hook Claims

Submitted by ckanon@abi.org on
A lawyer for Sandy Hook families said Monday that significant punitive damages need to be imposed on Alex Jones to deter him and other conspiracy theorists from continuing to tell their followers the 2012 Newtown shooting was a hoax, in addition to the nearly $1 billion he already has been ordered to pay victims’ relatives, the Associated Press reported. Attorney Christopher Mattei’s comments came during a video conference hearing before a Connecticut judge on how much punitive damages the Infowars host and his company, Free Speech Systems, should pay victims’ families. In a hypothetical calculation, the families’ lawyers say punitive damages could total $2.75 trillion, but they have not asked for a specific amount. Judge Barbara Bellis said she will rule at a later date. Jones’ lawyer, Norm Pattis, argued any punitive damages should be minimal, because last month’s $965 million jury verdict on compensatory damages is so large and “unparalleled” it is the functional equivalent of punitive damages.
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Consumer Bankruptcy
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Journal Issue
Jan 2023
Bankruptcy Code
first impression
Bankruptcy Rule
Topic Tags
Ethics
Practice and Procedure
Consumer Bankruptcy
Consumer Debt
Bankruptcy Taxation
Business Reorganization
Chapter 12/Farm Cases
Retail
Small Business

October Individual Chapter 13 Bankruptcies Increase 27 Percent Over Last Year

Submitted by jhartgen@abi.org on

Individual chapter 13 filings increased 27 percent to 13,627 in October 2022 from 10,767 filings in October 2021, according to data provided by Epiq Bankruptcy, the leading provider of U.S. bankruptcy filing data. Total bankruptcy filings in the United States increased four percent to 32,695 in October 2022 over the 31,493 total filings in October 2021. Overall individual filings increased four percent in October 2022, as the 30,809 filings were up over the 29,695 individual filings registered in October 2021. The 1,886 total commercial filings in October 2022 represented a five percent increase from 1,798 commercial filings in October 2021. Commercial chapter 11s increased two percent in October 2022, to 304 filings from 297 filings the previous year. Small business filings, captured as subchapter V elections within chapter 11, increased 28 percent to 131 in October 2022 from 102 in October 2021.

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Consumer Bankruptcy
Business Reorganization
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