ABI will celebrate its 25th Anniversary in 2007, and events commemorating this milestone will begin during our Annual Spring Meeting in April. One way that we will look forward to our next 25 years will be to look back to recognize the people and events that have made us what we are.

ABI's primary missions are research and education. In fact, the American Bankruptcy Institute is the largest multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency. Our Endowment is a central component of our mission. Since many of our members may be unfamiliar with all that the Endowment Fund has accomplished thus far, it is appropriate to remind all of us of the good works it has funded.

The ABI Endowment Fund was created in 1989 to provide resources for research and education relating to bankruptcy and insolvency issues. The policy set by our Board of Directors is to use the earnings from the Fund and to never invade its principal. Our Board shows its support for the Endowment with their substantial contributions to the Fund.

During its relatively short existence, more than $1.2 million has been contributed to our Endowment, and its earnings added another $225,000. Projects that are eligible for funding include research relating to bankruptcy or insolvency and surveys or other analytical analysis. It is also available to be used for the education of judges, court personnel, other governmental personnel and the general public, as well as scholarships or other educational grants. Finally, it can be used for projects providing a material research or educational benefit to the bankruptcy and insolvency community.

The Endowment's first grant funded an empirical study of the repayment capacity of chapter 7 debtors under the means test then under consideration by Congress (a variation of which was included in the 2005 overhaul of the Bankruptcy Code). It has also recently awarded grants on both consumer and business bankruptcy issues. Examples include grants to study the rates of serial filing in chapter 13 and a comprehensive empirical study of professional fees in chapter 11 cases. (Scholars seeking funding should consult www.abiworld.org for information on the grant application process and procedures.)

Among its most significant grants, the Endowment provides scholarships for selected students in the Bankruptcy LL.M. program offered by St. John's Law School. The Fund also supports the Robert M. Zinman Resident Scholar program, where distinguished bankruptcy scholars spend a semester at ABI's headquarters to assist in ABI's research and educational activities.

The Endowment's support for to education is also evident in its financial support for both the ABI Chief Judge Conrad B. Duberstein Memorial National Bankruptcy Moot Court Competition for law schools and the ABI/Houlihan Lokey Howard & Zukin Corporate Restructuring Competition for graduate business schools. These competitions help form the next generation of skilled insolvency and restructuring professionals.

As we look forward to celebrating our first 25 years and then look beyond to what ABI can do in its next 25, the Endowment Fund will most assuredly play a large role in our future. More than 4,200 of our members have contributed to the Endowment. If you have yet to do so, there is no time like the present. If you have already contributed, thank you for your contribution, and please consider increasing your support for bankruptcy and insolvency research and education.