California

This October 22, 2020 session from the Insolvency 2020 Summit addresses the use of technology by bankruptcy professionals inside and outside of the courtroom. The panel covers practicing in court in a pandemic, lawyers behaving badly, use of technology, lawyers and law firms as bankruptcy debtors, and best practices in fee applications.

Members of ABI's Commercial Fraud Committee will discuss hot topics related to COVID-19, particularly fraudulent schemes likely expected due to the pandemic and schemes that may be revealed as a result of the pandemic's economic repercussions. The panelists will also address the coronavirus relief bill and resulting potential fraudulent schemes, as well as the international impact of the pandemic.

The novel coronavirus has certainly induced many systemic changes around the world, and the bankruptcy and restructuring industry is no exception. What once worked in a pre-COVID-19 world might not work anymore, so parties must adapt quickly, often with no precedence upon which to rely. This panel will discuss the idiosyncrasies and novel ways bankruptcy practice is operating, restructuring and adapting to a “new normal,” and how constituencies on all sides of the table are approaching its unique aspects.

This panel will provide an analysis of the current levels of financial distress across the hospital, skilled-nursing and home-health sectors using various measurements, including distributions by state.

The panel will briefly address the historical use of cannabis in America for medicinal purposes and the subsequent criminalization of cannabis, which was racially motivated. The panel will then discuss the challenges faced by corporate entities that seek to obtain bankruptcy protection when at least a portion of their income is derived from the sale or cultivation of cannabis, the lease of space to cannabis companies, or the sale or manufacture of products used in connection with a cannabis business.