Bernstein-Burkley, P.C. are business attorneys serving the Pennsylvania business market. We believe in integrity, ethics and professionalism. Please enjoy this series of articles on Ethics and Professionalism. Ethics and Professionalism: Inadvertent Disclosure of Documents Ethics and Professionalism: A New Look. Let’s See if We Can Avoid Boring! Ethics and Professionalism: But, She Was Only Supposed […]
Legal Ethics and Accountability By Robert S. Bernstein, Esq. Like most law firms, much use is made of junior lawyers and non-lawyer assistants in the collection and bankruptcy offices. The lawyers with supervisory or management responsibility are accountable under the ethics rules for the conduct of these subordinates. See Model Rules 5.1, 5.2 & 5.3. Rather than […]
By Robert S. Bernstein, Esq. I had the pleasure of conducting an ethics discussion with about 100 League members during the Friday of the New York meeting in November. The circumstances were unusual, but it was an opportune time to try out a few ideas on a sample audience. It wasn’t a particularly clever test, […]
By Robert S. Bernstein, Esq. Local Counsel can mean many things, just as “Of Counsel” has no single definition. Sometimes, when managing a case in a distant or foreign jurisdiction, client’s chosen counsel will engage a local lawyer to assist in making sure that the matter proceeds in accordance with local practice and rules. This […]
By Kirk B. Burkley, Esq. Published by the American Bankruptcy Institute’s “ABI Journal.” To view the printed article, CLICK HERE. In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court resolved a circuit split regarding whether the dischargeability exception set forth in § 523 (a)(4) requires any level of intent or scienter, and if so, to what scale. In […]
By Robert S. Bernstein, Esq. Most, if not all, commercial bankruptcy practitioners have dealt with “avoidance actions,” suits to avoid and recover preferential, fraudulent, and unauthorized post-petition transfers. While the majority of defenses to these actions are prescribed by statute, the interplay between and Congressional intent behind various sections of the Bankruptcy Code have given […]
By Robert S. Bernstein, Esq. Published by the Credit Research Foundation’s “CRF News.” To view the printed article, CLICK HERE. 1.) Chapter 11 Process A debtor commences a Chapter 11 case by filing a petition for relief under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code, along with its Schedules and Statement of Financial Affairs. Once the […]
I. THE COMMITTEE OF UNSECURED CREDITORS A. Rationale for Formation of Committee Congress, in enacting the Bankruptcy Code, envisioned a process which would be primarily driven by negotiation between the debtor, its creditors, and other interest holders. Chapter 11 is intended to be a temporary “safe harbor” while the debtor “works out” its financial (and […]
A Short Series On Security Interests For Credit Managers Part 5: Simple Steps To Better Security Interests by Robert S. Bernstein, Esquire Bernstein-Burkley, P.C. In the past few issues, we have covered some of the basic rules of security interests, as well as some of the pitfalls. Here are some tips that will help your […]
A Short Series On Security Interests For Credit Managers Part 4: Imperfect Perfection by Robert S. Bernstein, Esquire Bernstein-Burkley, P.C. Last week, we used this simple example of perfection by filing: You sell equipment on credit to a customer who only has one location, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. That customer is a Rhode Island corporation. Customer signs […]
Perfection By Filing by Robert S. Bernstein, Esquire Bernstein-Burkley, P.C. While this could be the title of a manual on manicures (sorry, I couldn’t resist), it is about the most frequent type of security interest perfection. Each state has a system of recording “financing statements” (not financial statements) that are used to give notice to […]
by Robert S. Bernstein, Esquire Bernstein-Burkley, P.C. As we saw last time, perfection is the concept of making a lien good against other people so they cannot get rights in the property higher than the party with the perfected lien. It is one thing to create a security interest with your customer. It is another […]