Practice and Procedure

Come hear a distinguished, national panel of bankruptcy judges share their candid reflections and views about professional do’s and don’ts, effective advocacy, courtroom (in)civility and the importance of bankruptcy law and bankruptcy practice to society generally.

A timely and wide-ranging keynote discussion among leading professionals, market advisors and educators concerning current and future economic trends, predictions about the high yield and leveraged lending markets going forward and what it all means for restructuring practice in the short and long term.

This panel will focus on the current challenging market for restructuring professionals. The faculty will share their insights into how they have maintained their practices during the current industry downturn and will tackle a broad range of questions and topics, including: What are the reasons for the downturn, and what, if anything, can restructuring professionals do to stem the downturn? How has the downturn impacted competition for clients, and what are some tips for distinguishing yourself? How do you stay relevant within your own firm to ensure that you are selected to work on restructuring matters? Is there any advice for younger professionals who are in the early stages of trying to build a career in this field? Have restructuring professionals sought new types of clients or types of restructuring work, or do some now work in entirely different practice areas? If not, should they?

Chapter 7 Breakout Speakers: Chapter 7 Trustee: Joseph A. Baldi, Moderator Baldi Berg & Wallace, Ltd.; Chicago U.S. Trustee’s Office: Jeffrey S. Snell Office of the U.S. Trustee; Chicago Client Advocate: Barbara L. Yong Golan & Christie, LLP; Chicago Chapter 13 Breakout Speakers: Client Advocate: Nathan E. Curtis, Moderator Geraci Law L.L.C.; Chicago U.S. Trustee’s Office: M. Gretchen Silver Office of the U.S. Trustee; Chicago Chapter 13 Trustee: Glenn B. Stearns Chapter 13 Trustee; Lisle, Ill. Creditor Breakout Speakers: Berton J. Maley, Moderator Codilis & Associates, P.C.; Burr Ridge, Ill. Amy A. Aronson Aronson & Walsh, PC; Vernon Hills, Ill. Cari A. Kauffman Manley Deas Kochalski, LLC; Chicago

This panel is for participants who are either solo or small-firm practitioners and will include such topics as paperless offices, trust funds and accounting, managing workflow, and the implications on the office in the event of a natural disaster.

A panel of younger lawyers and financial professionals will talk about the issues and challenges of working for senior lawyers and will suggest ways to improve the working relationships between senior and junior lawyers.

This panel will provide helpful guidelines for creating clear client expectations, adequately defining work scope and managing fees when engaging FAs and expert witnesses. We have all had cases where clients were unhappy because work product didn’t meet expectations or fees were significantly higher than expected. This panel will help the practitioner learn how to use financial professionals more effectively to decrease the risk of having an unhappy client.

This panel of Midwestern judges will discuss some of the common mistakes that they are seeing in consumer cases, and how those mistakes can be avoided.

This panel will present the current trends in the industry, where the work is and isn’t, and where it may be in the future.