Friday, September 8, 2006

8:00–9:00 am

Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00–9:15 am

Opening Remarks

Ian G. Williams, Symposium Chair, ABI Director and International Committee Co-Chair, Geldards LLP, Nottingham, U.K.

Welcome by the President of the ABI

Hon. Wesley W. Steen, United States Bankruptcy Court, Houston

9:15–10:45 am

Chapter 15, The Model Law and the Statutory Instrument

Chapter 15-vs. Sec. 304; How good is the Model Law? Will the Anglo-US approach to cross-border restructuring continue to prevail in Europe?

10:45–11:00 am

Coffee Break

11:00–12:30 pm

International Insolvencies – The European Approach

How will greater Europe respond to developments in the U.S. and U.K.? What is the likelihood of other European countries following the U.K. and adopting the Model Law. What are the implications for the EU Regulation? Are the available systems in Europe as effective as the Model Law?

12:15 –1:00 pm

Guest Speaker – Tony Blankley

A native of London, Blankley is the Editorial page editor of The Washington Times and the author of The West’s Last Chance: Will We Win the Clash of Civilizations?

1:00 –2:30 pm

Lunch

Including an address by ABI Immediate Past President, John Penn, Haynes & Boone; Fort Worth, Tex.

2:00–3:15 pm

Sector Specialists – Automotive

The U.S. automotive industry in crisis and the “knock on” effect for Europe. The possibility of rehabilitating the industry through effective restructuring and available mechanisms . What does the future hold, and how will existing high-profile restructuring shape further thinking?

3:15–3:30 pm

Afternoon Tea

3:30–4:45 pm

Sector Specialists – Retail

The rise of the Internet: is it the total demise of retail as we know it? The future for retail and implications for s take holders and landlords. Restructuring techniques in the 21st Century.

4:45–5:15 pm

Sector Specialists – Aviation

Does chapter 11 give U.S.-based airline an unfair advantage? How effective are airlines restructurings? Lessons for Europe's major airlines. Anatomy of an airline restructuring.