Municipalities in Peril: The ABI Guide to Chapter 9

by H. Slayton Dabney, Patrick Darby, Daniel G. Egan, Marc A. Levinson, George B. South III

Overview

Cities and other local governments are under unprecedented financial stress, burdened with massive infrastructure costs as well as often-crushing employee compensation and benefits obligations at a time of declining sales and property tax revenues. Commentators predict levels of municipal insolvency unmatched since the Great Depression. Chapter 9 differs from the other reorganization chapters of the Bankruptcy Code because municipality debtors are different from other debtors, with special rules and practices for fundamental issues of governance, credit and debt adjustment. Municipalities must conduct their business in public, and are subject to intense scrutiny by the press, yet even the hint of a potential chapter 9 filing may have a devastating effect on their credit ratings. This Guide, written by H. Slayton Dabney, Jr., Patrick Darby, Daniel G. Egan, Marc A. Levinson and George B. South III, provides a resource to insolvency professionals addressing relevant issues and the many unique problems that arise under chapter 9--from eligibility requirements, pros and cons of filing, and pre-filing considerations through case administration, confirmation and beyond. It includes a convenient summary of all state statutes authorizing (or not authorizing) municipalities to seek chapter 9 relief and a comparison of key features of chapter 9 and chapter 11. It is a must-have for bankruptcy professionals contemplating entering a burgeoning practice area, and is an excellent resource for municipal finance personnel and counsel.

Product Details

BN ID:	2940014268097
Publisher:	American Bankruptcy Institute
Publication date:	03/26/2012
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	130
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

H. Slayton Dabney, Jr. is principal at Dabney, PLLC, in New York, where his focus is on commercial bankruptcy, insolvency-related litigation and corporate restructuring. Prior to forming his own practice, he was a partner in the New York office of King & Spalding LLP. He has served as debtor’s counsel in many large chapter 11 cases and has served as chapter 11 committee counsel in numerous cases. For the last few years, he has served as counsel to Financial Guaranty Insurance Company and Syncora Guarantee Inc. in connection with $3.2 billion of credit insurance issued to back fixed, variable and auction rate sewer debt of Jefferson County, Ala. Mr. Dabney is a Fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy, has been listed in Best Lawyers in America since 1991 and has been selected to New York Super Lawyers since 2005. He is a member of ABI’s Executive and Publications Committees and is an Executive Editor of the ABI Journal. Mr. Dabney received his J.D. in 1974 from the University of Virginia.