On Thursday, March 4, 2010, Ralph Mabey, a Professor of Law at the University of Utah S.J. Quinney College of Law who was recently appointed the mediator in the Lehman Brothers Bankruptcy Cases, and Hiram Chodosh, Dean of the College of Law, will present a lunchtime lecture in Chicago, Illinois.
Titled, “Is Bankruptcy Law the Right Stimulus Package for Saving Jobs, Autos, Homes, Companies and Commercial Properties?”, the lecture will be held from 12:00-1:30 p.m. at the offices of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, 300 North LaSalle, 7th Floor, in Chicago. Lunch will be provided to attendees who RSVP by Wednesday, February 24 to karen.mcleese@law.utah.edu or call 801-581-6666.
Doubt, deep deficits, tax increases and politics surround past and proposed stimulus packages. In contrast, Mabey points out the efficiency and efffectiveness of bankruptcy laws in stimulating the economy. For example, Mabey notes, for a variety of reasons, the economics of going forward with a commercial project burdened by heavy debts and sinking values are likely much better enhanced by applying bankruptcy laws than by applying government stimulus money. And, with a simple amendment to the bankruptcy law, a homeowner’s mortgage could be adjusted to fit the home’s lower value and the homeowner’s means — without an infusion of regulatory influence and government money. Professor Mabey also discusses the effect of the automobile supplier and manufacturer reorganizations in this context. Mabey further notes that former “command” economies have moved to adopt modern bankruptcy laws for the very purpose of facilitating the efficient reallocation of capital (including human capital) in case of economic failure.
The presentation, which will combine candid conversation and lunch, is sponsored by the Justice Lecture Series: Bankruptcy and Recovery.
Chicago photo by Steven Vance