The Bankruptcy Litigation Committee was established this year to study the rules of practice, evidence and procedure in bankruptcy court, as well as strategy when dealing with adversary proceedings and contested matters, for the purpose of enhancing the trial and oral advocacy skills of bankruptcy lawyers. The co-chairs are Hon. Barry Russell and Evan Slavitt, who intend to focus on litigation/dispute resolution of a broad variety of issues.

Hon. Barry Russell is Chief Bankruptcy Judge for the Central District of California in Los Angeles. Previously, he served on the Ninth Circuit Bankruptcy Appellate Panel from March 1998 to December 2001, and was its chief judge from September 1999 until December 2001. He was appointed a bankruptcy judge in 1974. Judge Russell has taught bankruptcy, evidence and ethics at UCLA, USC, Loyola and Whittier Law School, and has served as associate clinical professor of psychiatry (law) at the University of Southern California since 1975. In addition, he has been a member of the faculty of the Federal Judicial Center in Washington, D.C., since 1977, lecturing to other bankruptcy judges throughout the United States. Judge Russell published the Bankruptcy Evidence Manual in 1987 (West), is a contributing editor to Norton Bankruptcy Law and Practice and is the author of the column "Russell on Evidence" in the Norton Bankruptcy Law Adviser. In 1987, he was awarded the American Bar Association's Franklin N. Flaschner Judicial Award as the outstanding judge in the United States in a trial court of special jurisdiction, and in 1988 Judge Russell was the first American invited by the Supreme People's Court in the People's Republic of China to lecture on bankruptcy law. He was a former president of the Federal Bar Association (1990-91) and is a fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy. In addition, in June 1994, as chairman of the Bankruptcy Court's Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee, he began developing a bankruptcy mediation program for the Central District of California and was subsequently appointed as the mediation program administrator in 1995. In 1997, the Southern California Mediation Association awarded him the Judges' Award for distinguished service for promoting mediation in the courts. Judge Russell received his B.S. in engineering and his J.D. from UCLA.

Evan Slavitt is a founding partner of Bodoff & Slavitt LLP in Boston, where he concentrates on complex commercial litigation including contract disputes (both private and government/procurement), antitrust and trade regulation, eminent domain and environmental law. Mr. Slavitt's practice also includes conducting internal investigations of allegations of illegal and inappropriate corporate and agency conduct. Before entering private practice in 1987, Mr. Slavitt served as a trial attorney in the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (1981-83) and as an assistant U.S. attorney (1983-87), where he served as deputy chief of the Civil Division and led the effort to clean up New Bedford Harbor under the federal environmental laws. Mr. Slavitt also conducted the eminent-domain practice in that office as well as the entire range of civil litigation involving the United States.

Mr. Slavitt received his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1981, where he served as an editor of the Harvard Law Review. He received both a B.A. and an M.A. in economics from Yale University, writing his thesis on "Nonprofit Institutions and the Antitrust Laws."

Mr. Slavitt is a frequent author and lecturer on a variety of legal topics including evidence, trial practice and criminal law. He volunteers on the MCLE curriculum advisory committee as a Board of Bar Overseers hearing officer, and has worked on a variety of bar association task forces addressing issues such as volunteerism in the bar and the preservation of the attorney/client privilege. Mr. Slavitt also volunteers his time to be the general counsel and parliamentarian of the Republican Party in Massachusetts.

More Members in the News

he YWCA of Oahu has selected Louise Ing, a founding director and officer of Alston Hunt Floyd & Ing in Honolulu, as one of the honorees at the YWCA's 27th Annual Leader Luncheon. The luncheon recognizes outstanding individual women and organizations that have advanced the YWCA of Oahu's mission, which is to enrich and empower the lives of women and their families in Hawaii. The firm supports the efforts of its lawyers to give back to the community through pro bono activities, service to nonprofit organizations, and public interest and civil rights litigation.

Barnes & Thornburg LLP welcomed John Gregg to its Grand Rapids, Mich., office as an associate in November. Mr. Gregg's practice primarily focuses on bankruptcy and creditors' rights law. He frequently represents secured creditors, committees, debtors and purchasers of assets. Prior to joining Barnes & Thornburg LLP, Mr. Gregg served as an associate in the bankruptcy departments of two international law firms located in Chicago. In addition, he was an extern for Hon. Susan Pierson Sonderby in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Mr. Gregg received his B.A. from the University of Michigan and earned his J.D. from DePaul University College of Law. He is a member of the Chicago Bar Association.

Rebecca H. Simoni was promoted to principal associate at Briesen & Roper S.C. in Milwaukee. Ms. Simoni graduated cum laude in 1999 from the University of Minnesota Law School and is part of Briesen & Roper's banking, bankruptcy and business restructuring practice group.

The Turnaround Management Association (TMA) announced its 2004 Turnaround of the Year award recipients in October. For the first time, winners in two categories came from the same firm, with professionals from Quest Turnaround Advisors LLC earning both International Company and Large Company awards. The 2004 winners include:

• Mega Company Turnaround of the Year: John R. Boken, Kroll Zolfo Cooper LLC, Los Angeles, for the turnaround of NRG Energy Inc., Minneapolis.
• International Company Turnaround of the Year: Jeffrey A. Brodsky, Quest Turnaround Advisors LLC, Rye, N.Y., for the turnaround of PTV Inc., London.
• Mid-Size Company Turnaround of the Year: Frank Guidone, Corporate Revitalization Partners LLC, Dallas, for the turnaround of Measurement Specialties Inc., Fairfield, N.J.

"The individuals and firms that won awards this year were engaged to solve extremely complex financial and operational problems," said James Matthews, chair of the TMA Awards Committee and president of Prime Locations LLC in Dallas. "The record number of nominations and the effort put in by the individuals to bring the best possible resolution to these difficult corporate struggles was nothing short of spectacular. It made me proud to be part of this industry." "These award-winning professionals and all of our members are dedicated to the mission of corporate renewal and the value they can bring to the corporate world," said John Rizzardi, 2004 chairman of TMA and a partner in Seattle law firm Cairncross & Hempelmann. "Their skills, resources and contributions made—and continue to make—a positive impact on the economy by restoring profitability and jobs and inspiring customer, vendor and lender confidence in well-managed organizations." For more information, visit www.turnaround.org.