Daily Archives: October 25, 2020

A Delaware bankruptcy court has approved a plan in which money to clean up Exides lead-polluted Berks County properties would be put in a trust fund.

The Environmental Response Trust would designate $10 million for "ongoing containment and safety efforts" at 16 of Exides former sites in Pennsylvania and nine other states. The Environmental Protection Agency, which agreed to the trust fund, said in an Oct. 14 filing it would not be enough for full cleanup.

What that means for the Berks County properties, including its facility at 3000 Montrose Ave. in Muhlenberg Township, is not clear.

The bankruptcy will impact Exides environmental liabilities at the Reading facility, the EPAsaid on its hazardous waste cleanup site. The agency said it is working with the Department of Justice and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to negotiate with Exide in the bankruptcy proceedings. Once the settlement of the bankruptcy is finalized, the EPA said, it would schedule a virtual public meeting to present the outcome of the proceedings and to discuss the impact to the environmental cleanups.

"While EPA remains in discussions with PADEP and the bankruptcy trustee over how to most efficiently use available funds to address the environmental cleanup at the Reading facility, EPA currently estimates those funds as being at least $2.5 million," said David Sternberg, EPA press officer in an email statement.

That amount is short of the most recent estimate $6.23 million to clean up and monitor the site. It is not clear where the money to finish the job will come from.

Jamar Thrasher, a DEP spokesman, said in an email statement that the department has actively participated in the Exide bankruptcy case, trying to ensure the most advantageous outcome for Pennsylvania.

"While the settlement proceeds will not be enough to completely address all environmental concerns, the court-approved settlement avoids the abandonment of the Reading site and ensures that there is no immediate and identifiable harm to the publics health and safety," Thrasher said.

"Please note that the plan of reorganization has been confirmed over Californias objection. DEP will work with EPA and the Environmental Response Trust that now owns the Reading site to address outstanding environmental concerns in an orderly fashion."

California state and local officials objected to the settlement, which would have given far less than needed to clean up Exide's Vernon battery plant and leaves the state and taxpayers on the hook to pay for continued environmental cleanup.

Exide's Muhlenberg facility and its environmental impact on the soil and water in the surrounding area has beenunder scrutiny of the EPA for many years.

The plant was idled in 2013. An adjacent facility is still operating a plastics recycling operation with a small number of employees.

Berks County Public Relations Officer Stephanie Weaver said the county is still reviewing the judges bankruptcy ruling with its counsel and consultants, and the effect the ruling may have on the local Exide property.

"The County stands by the position outlined in our recent letter to EPA that the Laureldale site needs to be cleaned up and properly closed to protect public health and safety," Weaver said in an email statement.

In September, Berks County commissionershad challenged a proposed cleanupand asked the EPA for a public hearing and for a new evaluation. The county said the EPA should conduct a new risk assessment in light of recent science and lack of monitoring of children's blood-lead levels in the area.

"As an overarching issue, the commissioners have grave concerns that EPA is proceeding to implement and finalize a cleanup in 2020 that was designed and based on 1990 science," consultant Fred Osman wrote to the EPA on behalf of the county.

Exide's American assetswere sold in July.A judge approved the sale in August. Affiliates of Atlas Holdings LLC paid $179 million in a transaction for seven battery plants and two lead recycling and recovery facilities. Not included in the sale were 16 so-called "nonperforming properties," that were abandoned and/or environmental liabilities.

Bankruptcy court documents list several Berks properties that will be abandoned by Exide and placed in the trust. In addition to the Muhlenberg Township plant, there are properties surrounding the Bernhart Reservoir: several residential properties on Spring Valley Road and a vacant plot at Isabelle Court and Josephine Drive. Also mentioned is a site near Hamburg.

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Bankruptcy court allows Exide to back away from polluted properties - Reading Eagle

It takes a lot of perseverance and adaptability to weather the kinds of cultural, economic and technological changes that happen in 50 years, much less a century or two. Retailers like Target (founding owner Dayton's department stores launched in 1902) and Macy's (established in New York in 1858) had to get past depressions, world wars, social upheaval, changing norms, pandemics and sometimes their own bankruptcy in order to be in business today.

For several legacy retailers around their age or even older, however, 2020 was the breaking point. This year has already set records for the number of retail bankruptcies 27 by Retail Dive's count at press time with yet more possible.

Some of these brands will survive their latest challenge, and emerge from the bankruptcy process ready to write their post-pandemic chapter. For the others, it will at long last mean "goodbye."

Brooks Brothers calls itself the oldest apparel retailer in the U.S. Its first store debutedthe same year the White House reopened after burning down in the War of 1812. For nearly two centuries the retailer thrived in a society that held on to fairly strict dress codes for men for work, worship and special occasions. With the white-collar workplace growing increasingly less formal, that has changed, to the point where last year even venerable financial firm Goldman Sachs opted to dress down. Brooks Brothers did work to keep up with the times giving Ralph Lauren his start,tapping Zac Posenas its creative director for women's and leveraging its store networkfor fulfillment well before the pandemic but sales continued to ebb. Before its Chapter 11 filing this year, the brand was briefly owned by U.K. retail giant Marks & Spencer, then bought by Retail Brand Allianceled by Claudio Del Vecchio. The label is now in the hands of mall owner Simonand brand management firm Authentic Brands Group, which snapped it up at its bankruptcy auction for $325 million.

Lord & Taylor is the oldest department store in the U.S. or make that was. The once innovative retailer weathered all sorts of challenges in nearly two centuries, expanding from a fashion hub in New York to a chic suburban destination for stylish middle-income women across the U.S.Arguably what it couldn't get beyond was the lack of attention from parent Hudson's Bay Co., which sold off key properties and finally the retailer itself, to apparel rental site Le Tote. All the while HBC lavished $250 million on a renovation of its other New York-based department store, Saks Fifth Avenue. The Le Tote tie-up was strange, but did seem to be the first time in a while that Lord & Taylor had an owner interested in its future. Alas, the pandemic cut short whatever plansLe Tote had in store, beyond the early signs of integration in some locations. Without a buyer and now in bankruptcy, Lord & Taylor is in the midst of liquidatingentirely. Its New York City flagship on Fifth Avenue, once famous for its holiday windows, is being converted intoan East Coast tech office for Amazon.

Morris Modell opened his first store on Cortlandt Streetin lower Manhattan in 1889, and the retailer stayed in the family for four generations, eventually expanding to more than 150 locations on the East Coast. After filing for bankruptcy in March, the company has permanently shut all stores and as of press time says it's still unable to take online orders. The company came to depend mightily on local teamsdoing well in big games in order to move merchandise, a tricky situation for a sector also competing with Amazon. With CEO Mitchell Modell, Morris's great-grandson, at the helm, the company turned to consultants for restructuring advice more than once, but ultimately wasn't able to overcome the troubled market, which also felled rivals Sports Authority and Sport Chalet.

The temporary outdoor cafe at Bergdorf Goodmanat 58th and 5th in New York is a sign of hope for the city, where streets remain strikingly empty of tourists, office workers and shoppers as the pandemic continues its disruption. The department store, founded in 1899 by a tailor who was later joined by his apprentice, was acquired in 1972 by Neiman Marcus, which reportedly promised thennot to open a competing flagship in the city (a promise later broken, if only fleetingly, when Neiman Marcus closed its Hudson Yards store after barely a year in operation). Bergdorf has never strayed from its luxury focus and maintains a high level of loyalty. Post-bankruptcy, both Neiman and Bergdorf unleashed a waveof layoffs, however, in part to redirect focus to e-commerce.

James Cash Penney built his first dry-goods store in Wyoming in 1902, but there are few retailers whose fate is so closely tied to the rise and fall of the American mall. Anchoring a mall was a boon in the 1960s when it represented progress, economic expansion and prosperity. But it's a very different story today, and Penney has struggled for years to get customers through the door. In the past decade, during an endless turnaround, the company welcomed four CEOs in turn, and even its bankruptcy has been a slow and painful grind. Its deal to sell its operations to developers Simon Property Group and Brookfield Property Partners is seen by some observers as a desperate attempt by those mall owners to salvage downstream leases, rather than a true sign of hope.

Neiman Marcus opened in 1907 with one store in Dallas, founded by Herbert Marcus and his sister, Carrie Marcus Neiman, and established itselfon the forefront of fashion, acquiring New York's Bergdorf Goodman in 1972. The founding family ceded control of the business in the 21st century, and a couple of leveraged buyouts, one in 2005 and the next in 2013, heaped on a massive debt load, eventually nearing its $5 billion or so in annual revenue. This year's bankruptcy filing came as little surprise, but the company exited fairly smoothlyin a matter of months. The department store previously shrank its Last Calloff-price banner to focus on luxury, which it says it can do even online, thanks to a robust digital effort. It leaves bankruptcy with a smaller footprint, including the closure of its year-old namesakeflagship at Hudson Yards, its first in New York. With a pandemic ongoing, the economy in recession and the department store sector in decline, however, its future remains cloudy.

Stein Mart was founded in 1908 by Sam Stein and became known asan off-price department store with a mission to provide "the customer with unique quality products at excellent prices." At the start of 2020,Kingswood Capital Management agreed to acquire the Jacksonville, Florida-based retailer and take it private.That came about two years after the company signaled it was exploring "strategic alternatives," following plummeting sales every year since fiscal 2016. But while Stein Mart was moving to improve merchandise, reduce inventory and cut costs, things started to unravel.As COVID-19 hit the U.S. this spring,the takeover was canceleddue to "unpredictable economic conditions"and "uncertainty regarding Stein Mart's ability to satisfy the conditions to closing." By mid-July the virus was surging in locations like California, Texas and Florida home to nearly 40% of its stores. In August the company filed for Chapter 11 with plans to liquidate its stores. As of October, the retailer has closed its e-commerce operations, is selling off store fixtures and is promoting up to 80%off its lowest ticketed prices.

While the apparel company was known as "Popular Merchandise" at its founding and employed an in-home sales model, it became a catalog mainstay after its name change to J. Crew in 1983. Its high-water mark came in that decade and into the nineties, when "preppy" was not just for country clubs and country day schools. But the 21st century would mark its downfall. J. Crew CEO Mickey Drexler developed Old Navy for Gap when he led that American fashion icon,and in 2004 snapped up Madewell's dormant intellectual property(once a New England workwear manufacturer, itself founded in 1937) to forge a similar growth plan for J. Crew. But too many stores in too many malls, a huge pile of debt, and J. Crew's wild departure in fashion and quality (under creative chief Jenna Lyons) drained profits and tanked sales. The company went in and out of bankruptcyin just a few months this past summer, but faces a long uphill climbamid uncertainty about J. Crew's ability to right itself, and its healthier but smaller brand's capacity to grow.

Kaarin Vembar contributed to this story.

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8 legacy retailers that wound up in bankruptcy this year - Retail Dive

RAVENSWOOD Band of Bohemia is closing its doors after filing for bankruptcy and a tumultuous few months for the Ravenswood gastropub.

The gastropub and restaurant, which opened in 2015 at 4710 N. Ravenswood Ave. and has been lauded as the first Michelin-starred pub in the country, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy Oct. 16, court records show.

Band of Bohemia is more than $1.3 million in debt and has property assets of about $223,000, according to court records.

The pub owes money to more than 10 companies and contractors for items such as ice, tea, wine, kegs, linen, artwork, membership dues and plant rentals. The owners also owe almost $1,000 to Swedish Covenant Hospital for a hospital bill, records show.

Documents also show that the pub owes $100,000 in rent and taxes to Megara Properties, which is being disputed.

Co-founders Michael Carroll and Craig Sindelar could not be reached for comment, but they told the Chicago Tribune in an email that the pandemic has forced them to close and file for bankruptcy. The Tribune first reported the brewpubs closing.

Scott R. Clar, an attorney with Crane, Simon, Clar & Goodman representing the restaurant owners, declined to speak about the case but said it shouldnt be surprising that a brewpub and restaurant like Band of Bohemia is closing during a pandemic.

Carroll and Sindelar opened Band of Bohemia after a long career in the restaurant industry. Sindelar was part of the opening team behind Alinea, Chicagos only three-star Michelin restaurant, according to the pubs website. Carroll was also part of Alineas service team as a food runner and back waiter before becoming the restaurants only baker in Alineas 10-year history. Sindelars personal accolades include the 2006 Jean Banchet Best Sommelier and the 2007 Mobil Travel Guide Best of the Best Service Award.

But the last year has been difficult for the pub, aside from the pandemic that has hit the restaurant industry hard. A slew of anonymous allegations published on Instagram alleged former chef Ian Davis engaged in sexual misconduct and alleged owners failed to prevent a toxic work environment and mishandled operations and relief funds. As the allegations surfaced, the restaurant temporarily closed at the end of June to reflect on our faults, our deaf ears and the feelings of those who we have caused harm, according to a since-deleted Instagram post.

Following misconduct claims, in February 2019, Davis resigned as chef at Michelin-starred restaurant Entente.

In a now-deleted Instagram post from July 10 that was also shared on Facebook, Band of Bohemia owners said in a statement that the allegations against ownership were false, misleading and out of context.

Carroll and Sindelar wrote that the team has always followed strict guidelines regarding fairness in the workplace, adhered to equal opportunities when hiring and listened to all sides of a story or allegation before making any irreversible decisions.

At no time in our existence as a brewpub have we neglected the welfare of our staff, who have remained the backbone of our establishment since opening our doors, the statement reads. We cannot begin to assume the reasoning behind these few employees allegations against our business, but hope we can reach a point of mutual understanding in the future.

The owners went on to say that contrary to allegations of not paying employees on time and improperly distributing GoFundMe relief funds, all employees were paid in full and all funds were properly distributed. But laid-off anonymous employees alleged the owners were not transparent in how they distributed the money.

We apologize to our staff and guests who may have read these allegations and have found themselves confused or angry, as we share the same feelings, the owners continued. To anyone who we have unintentionally caused pain or grief, we are deeply and immeasurably sorry.

Accusations of misconduct against the restaurants management first broke in 2019, according to Chicago Eater, when at least eight women came forward to speak up about their experience toward former chef Davis, saying he acted sexually inappropriate with women in several incidents. One incident was allegedly caught on video.

Court records show Band of Bohemia is liquidating items ranging from office supplies and computer equipment valued at $10,000; kitchen and brewery equipment valued at $160,000 and artwork by Logan Square artist Elizabeth Weber worth $1,000.

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Band of Bohemia, Nation's Only Michelin-Starred Gastropub, Closes After Filing For Bankruptcy - Block Club Chicago

A medical worker wearing a mask walks near the AMC movie theater in Times Square amid the coronavirus pandemic on May 7, 2020 in New York City.

Alexi Rosenfeld | Getty Images

AMC has agreed to sell as many as 15 million shares of its stock, but equity in the company could soon be worthless if the largest theater chain in the world files for bankruptcy.

On Tuesday, AMC continued to warn investors about its dwindling cash pile and said it may have to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy if it is unable to secure additional sources of liquidity.

Shares of the company tumbled more than 11% on the news. AMC's stock, which has a market value of around $387 million, has plunged 56% so far this year.

Chapter 11 bankruptcy would likely allow AMC to stay in business while it reworks its debts and sorts out new lines of liquidity.

Movie theater chains in the U.S. have been slammed by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, which first shuttered theaters and then drove away customers and major Hollywood blockbusters.

AMC was particularly vulnerable because of the more than $4.75 billion in debt it had amassed before the crisis from outfitting its theaters with luxury seating and from buying competitors such as Carmike and Odeon. AMC has around 1,000 theaters and more than 11,000 screens globally.

"We will require significant amounts of additional liquidity and there is substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern for a reasonable period of time; holders of our Class A common stock could suffer a total loss of their investment," the company wrote in the SEC filing.

While New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo gave movie theaters hope over the weekend when he announced that theaters outside of New York City could reopen. Studios had told movie theater operators that they would withhold major releases if New York remained closed.

Also on Tuesday, AMC released a preliminary earnings report. The company said it had earned around $119.5 million in revenue during the three-month period ended Sept. 30. That's a steep fall from the $1.32 billion AMC tallied during the same period last year.

For the first nine months of 2020 AMC took in revenue of $1.08 billion, a fraction of the $4.02 billion it garnered during the same period last year.

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AMC warns bankruptcy is on the table as cash runs low - CNBC

One of the biggest worries that people have, when they are filing for any kind of bankruptcy, is the possibility of losing their vehicle. The fear of losing a car often holds people back from filing for bankruptcy, and its easy to understand why.

For most debtors, keeping a reliable car is crucial after bankruptcy, whether you need it to take your kids to school, to drive to work or to drive your parents or loved ones to and from doctors appointments. And lets be real, Broward County does not have the best public transportation. Luckily, there are a number of options out there for keeping your car during and after your bankruptcy case has been filed.

The722 redemption processis an excellent option that enables you to decrease the amount of money that you owe on your car. During a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can undergo a722 redemptionprocess, which enables you to decrease the balance of your car loan to the current market value of the car or vehicle. This is a great opportunity, since most cars have depreciated well below what is owed on the vehicle loan.

During the722 redemption process, you seek out a court order that enablesyou to pay your loan company one big payment that is aroundthe current value on the market foryour car, meaning that if your car loan is $30,000 and the market value of the car is only $18,000, then the722 redemption processenables you to pay off and fully own your car by giving the loan company a lump sum of $18,000. One problem with this is that most people going through bankruptcy do not have enough money to pay off their car. Another option is to find a company that works on 722 redemptions, who can finance the lump sum payment for you.

722 redemption loans are available through a number of different sources, including banks and credit unions. You can also get a personal loan through family, friends or relatives. Keep in mind that most 722 redemption loans have very high-interest rates, so it is crucial to review the terms of the 722 redemption loan to figure out whether the decreased loan balance is still a good option if the interest rate is increased. Its probably still a good idea is the reduced loan balance is low enough to reduce your monthly payments and the payment period.

You need to apply for a 722 redemption loan or get a loan from family or friends before a motion is submitted to the court. The loan company will simply review your situation to figure out if they are willing to provide you with a 722 redemption loan. If you are approved for the loan, then a 722 redemption motion will be filed in court.

The bankruptcy code enables you to pay one huge paymentto get your personal property, usually vehicles, back from a secured lien holder. You need to pay the retail value of the personal item in one lump sum, rather than over a long period of time. While the 722 redemption process is usually used for cars, the process can also be used for electronics, jewelry and furniture. Unfortunately, you cannot use redemption to reduce the value of your home. The process only applies to personal property, not real estate.

Under 11 USC 722 of the Bankruptcy Code, you cangettangible personal property, like your car or laptop, backby paying a lump sum to a secured creditor. The secured creditor then needs to release the lien held on the secured personal property. In order for the 722 redemption process to apply, the property needs to be tangible personal property used mainly for household, personal or family use, including cars, household furniture, household appliances, jewelry and tools. The property must be paid off in a lump sum payment, based on the current retail value. For cars, this retail value is offeredby NADA, Kelley Blue Book or Edmunds.

You need to apply for a 722 redemption loan if you want to get your car back during a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The interest is usually higher since the risk for the lender is higher. Once you have received the loan and are in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, a motion is filed in court to redeem the vehicle. If the court grants the motion, then the secured creditor is paid a lump sum amount based on the current retail value of the car. The secured creditor then needs to release the lien held on the car.

Keep in mind that your loan company might not agree with the basis of your valuation and might choose to object to the motion by filing an answer that outlines the basis for their objection. It is crucial that you submit evidence supporting the basis for figuring out the value of your car. It might be helpful for you to includea copy of the valuation that outlines all of the features of yourvehicle and mileage.

If you need to file a Chapter 7 bankruptcyand are considering using the722 redemption process to retain your vehicle or other personal property, the Van Horn Law Group can help here.

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How Does The 722 Redemption Process Work In Bankruptcy? - South Florida Reporter

Anna Helhoski, NerdWallet

Student loan borrowers who seek to have their debt canceled in bankruptcy what's known as discharge typically find it an expensive process with standards that can be difficult to meet. But recent bankruptcy court rulings and lawmakers' support of relief for overburdened borrowers may signal a change is coming.

In January, a New York court discharged over $200,000 of student loan debt for one borrower. Then, in August, a federal appeals court ruling eliminated $200,000 for a Colorado couple who held 11 private student loan accounts. And inSeptember, a New York judge ruled to enforce a prior bankruptcy discharge of a borrowers $400,000 of federal student loans that a servicer had failed to carry out.

These decisions could serve as a precedent for future bankruptcy cases involving student loans, says John Rao, an attorney with the National Consumer Law Center.

"A lot of people, even some of the lawyers who represent consumers, thought for years that you really shouldnt even try because there's not a chance youll win, but I think everyone is looking at it now with sort of a fresh look," Rao says.

Courts arent the only example of potentially easing standards. The House of Representatives recently took up a bill that would expand bankruptcy relief to more student loan borrowers. And the platform of former Vice President Joe Biden, the Democratic presidential candidate, included a bankruptcy reform proposal to end rules that make it "nearly impossible" to discharge private student loan debt.

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Is Student Loan Discharge in Bankruptcy Now Within Reach? - Mooresville Tribune

Photographer: Alessia Pierdomenico/Bloomberg

Photographer: Alessia Pierdomenico/Bloomberg

Over half of Europes small and medium-sized businesses say they face bankruptcy in the next year if revenues dont pick up, underscoring the breadth of damage wrought by the Covid-19 crisis.

One in five companies in Italy and France anticipate filing for insolvency within six months, according to a McKinsey & Co. survey in August of more than 2,200 SMEs in Europes five largest economies. Such businesses are key to the region, accounting for more than two-thirds of the workforce and more than half of the economic value-added.

The pandemic has hit European firms hard, with 70% reporting lower revenues. That level was even higher in Italy and Spain, reflecting the severity of the virus and lockdown measures in those countries.

About four in five European SMEs think the economy is weak

Source: McKinsey survey

Theres little optimism, with the vast majority describing the economy as weak. Thats leading to worries about loan defaults and the need for layoffs. The governments of all the surveyed nations have now announced further support for jobs in efforts to limit unemployment amid a resurgence of the virus.

Before it's here, it's on the Bloomberg Terminal.

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Half of Europes Smaller Businesses Risk Bankruptcy Within Year - Bloomberg

Oct. 21, 2020 23:09 UTC

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- In response to the pharmaceutical giant Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticalsbankruptcy filing last week, Delaware Valley Health Care Coalition, Inc. (DVHCC) President John Heenan said, Its crucial for our members to have a seat at the table for the bankruptcy proceedings.

The DVHCC is a non-profit voluntary association comprised of multi-employer trust funds, governmental entities, labor unions, schools and school districts in over fourteen states and the District of Columbia.

Three of DVHCCs members have sued Mallinckrodt for their pricing scheme of the drug H.P. Acthar Gel. The drug cost just $40 a vial in 2001 and today costs $46,000 per vial.

H.P. Acthar Gel is a hormone used to treat conditions such as multiple sclerosis. It can reduce the symptoms but it is not a cure for these conditions.

Last week, Mallinckrodt filed for bankruptcy putting a stay on the current lawsuits in an attempt to avoid liability for its pricing scheme. Henry Donner, DVHCC Counsel said, We are asking the Bankruptcy Trustee to include a representative from our litigation on the bankruptcy committee which will decide, among other things, how unsecured creditors are paid.

Among the DVHCC members who have sued Mallinckrodt and are owed hundreds of millions of dollars are the Steamfitters Local 420, Operating Engineers Local 542 and Plumbers Local 322.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20201021006085/en/

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Pharmaceutical Giant Mallinckrodt Bankruptcy Threatens Lawsuit Filed by Local Unions and Delaware Valley Health Care Coalition, Worth Hundreds of...

I love NABT and its members, and am deeply committed to making our organization even stronger and healthier in the next year, building on the great success of my predecessor presidents."

ATLANTA (PRWEB) October 24, 2020

The National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees (NABT) welcomed its newly inaugurated President, Neville Reid, during the 2020 Virtual Annual Conference. Mr. Reid will continue his efforts with his fellow board members in guiding NABT to a successful future.

Echoing his opening remarks from the annual conference, Neville commented: I love NABT and its members, and am deeply committed to making our organization even stronger and healthier in the next year, building on the great success of my predecessor presidents. In addition to continuing to fight for our well-deserved raise, I will diligently seek to expand member participation in committees and NABT initiatives at all levels, whether we get the raise or not, so that members continue to perceive and experience increased value to their investment in NABT. I am grateful for the eagerness of the respective NABT committee chairpersons to join me in achieving that goal of perpetuating NABT well into the future.

Neville is a 1984 magna cum laude graduate of Harvard College and 1987 graduate of Harvard Law School. As a veteran bankruptcy trustee for 26 years, he has acquired extensive experience either serving as a trustee or receiver, or representing receivers and trustees, in numerous cases of all sizes and complexity. His most recent representation of the chapter 7 trustee in the bankruptcy case of Johnson Publishing Company (N.D. Ill., Case No. 19-10236), in which he led the legal negotiation and structuring of a highly publicized auction of a rare collection of 4 million iconic media items of African American history from the past 70 years, enabled the estate to realize $30 million for creditors and ensured that the collection will be safely on display in public museums. Neville has been an active member of NABT for nearly 10 years, and a member of its board for 6 years, and his accomplishments include representing NABT as an amicus in the seminal appellate case In re Rowe, 750 F.3d 392 (4th Cir. 2014), an opinion which is cited by trustees across the country for the proposition that the trustee Section 326 fee is to be treated as a commission.

Neville also represents investors, secured and unsecured creditors and debtors in workouts and restructurings both inside and outside of bankruptcy court, giving him a broad command of insolvency laws that significantly augments his skills and effectiveness as a trustee. The NABT Board of Directors is currently comprised of esteemed members of the chapter 7 Trustee panel and professionals with which they work.

Elected positions for chapter 11 and subchapter V Trustees is expected during the next election, following their new membership status. 2020/2021 Officers include:

The complete list of the Board of Directors can be found at https://nabt.com. For any questions regarding NABT or the newly appointed board of directors, please contact Jennifer Brinkley at (678) 269-6566 or jbrinkley@nabt.com.

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National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees Announces 2020/2021 Board of Directors - PR Web