Finance and Banking

The record-setting 11-year national economic expansion has now been displaced by the worst pandemic in a generation. In this session, moderated by Bankruptcy Judge Michelle Harner (D. Md.), Professors Abbye Atkinson (UC Berkeley School of Law) and Roger Tutterow (Kennesaw State University) consider how pandemic-related economic challenges are impacting household spending, corporate performance, and the ability of both consumers and corporate entities to service existing debt obligations.

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.

This panel will explore recent cases and trends of credit bidding in chapter 11 cases. Many lenders are now requesting up-front approval of credit bid rights in debtor-in-possession financing orders, which would curtail the bankruptcy court’s ability to modify or limit credit bidding rights under Bankruptcy Code § 363(k) later on when the assets are auctioned. The panel will examine recent decisions on credit bidding and what limitations courts have applied to a secured creditor’s right to credit bid in bankruptcy cases.

Recent high-profile cases have been impacted by credit derivatives (e.g., Hovnanian, Sears, Caesars, iHeart). The panelists will discuss how these situations have unfolded and their effects. What pre-filing diligence should a debtor perform in order to be prepared?