PRESS BRIEFING: BANKRUPTCY EXPERTS ANSWER QUESTIONS ON CHRYSLER BANKRUPTCY FILING (APRIL 30, 2009)

With the announcement that Chrysler Motors LLC is filing for chapter 11 protection on April 30, the American Bankruptcy Institute arranged for experts in automotive proceedings and business bankruptcy law to comment and assess Chrysler’s filing.

The expert panel includes:

• Deborah L. Thorne is a partner at Barnes & Thornburg LLP (Chicago). Ms. Thorne concentrates her practice in the areas of creditors’ rights, bankruptcy, financial restructurings, secured lending, and commercial transactions encompassing all phases of restructuring of corporate clients. Her clients have included financial institutions, corporations, and partnerships in a variety of industries including health care, truck manufacturing, food retail, advertising, and automotive supply. A member of ABI’s Board of Directors, Thorne has co-authored Auto Supplier Insolvencies and Bankruptcies and Preference Defense Handbook, both published by the American Bankruptcy Institute.


• Prof. Stephen J. Lubben is the Daniel J. Moore Professor of Law at Seton Hall University School of Law. Prof. Lubben specializes in corporate finance, particularly issues concerning corporate debt and financial distress. Professor Lubben was the principal investigator in an American Bankruptcy Institute funded study of professional fees in chapter 11 bankruptcy cases. His recent research has focused on professionals in chapter 11 and the effect of credit default swaps on chapter 11 reorganizations. Prof. Lubben Lubben formerly practiced at Skadden Arps in New York.


• Sheryl L. Toby serves as the co-chair of Dykema Gossett PLLC’s Bankruptcy and Corporate Restructuring Group in Detroit, where she is a bankruptcy and restructuring attorney with more than 20 years in the field. Her practice has included representation of a wide range of clients including manufacturing, retail, health care, real estate, financial institutions and creditors’ committees, and she has extensive experience in addressing problems associated with critical-supplier issues present in auto cases. A frequent national speaker and consultant, Ms. Toby serves on ABI’s Board of Directors and was co-chair of ABI’s Commercial Fraud Task Force Committee.

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