Banking Law

Experienced bankruptcy attorneys must be rolling their eyes at this news from Market Watch.

[Monday's] financial meltdown on Wall Street and the unprecedented bankruptcy filing of Lehman Brothers has had a ripple effect in the Continuing Legal Education arena. With the market closing down 500 points, attorneys around the country have made Bankruptcy courses their #1 priority.

Lawline.com, a leading provider of online CLE, started seeing a record number of Bankruptcy courses being taken early Monday morning and continuing at an increasing pace since that time.            

David Schnurman, President of Lawline.com stated, "In the 10 years that we have been providing Online CLE, I cannot recall another time when the events of the real world crossed over into the courses attorneys chose to complete their mandatory requirements."

I can imagine the surprise with which such an unprecedented sudden spike in registrations for bankruptcy courses must have been greeted by Mr. Schnurman and others at Lawline.com. On the other hand, who would have thought that one of the beneficiaries of an economic meltdown would be a provider of continuing legal education services? As I've exclaimed many times: is this a great country, or what?

Perhaps the sudden interest in such course work might be generated by transactional and M&A lawyers looking to "retool" their skill set in light of the economic meltdown that appears to be worsening by the hour. That's just being intelligently "proactive," don't you think? I doubt that bankruptcy practitioners who've been practicing their craft for years will welcome the influx of Johnny-Come-Latelys. Yet, the newcomers won't be able to match the old pros on experience, although they might be able to impede the oldsters' deployment of their expertise by stealing their walkers, wheelcairs, and canes.

As for this old bank lawyer, I know that I'm dusting off and updating my copy of Banks and Thrifts: Government Enforcement and Receivership. After news stories appeared today of an expected push from both sides of the aisle of Congress for the creation of "RTC II," I'm also digging out my materials from the seminars I gave from 1990 to 1992 with titles like "Buying, Managing and Dealing with RTC-Owned Properties," "Acquisitions of Savings Associations with RTC Assistance," and "Acquiring Insolvent Institutions." I'll have to retrieve them from the bottom of the parakeet's cage, but they should still be legible. Who would have thought that everything old would be new again?

A friend of mine who worked with me the last time the financial system melted down told me recently, "I think I've got barely enough energy left in me for one more down-cycle. After that, I'm cashing out. Or maybe I'm buying the ranch, if my ticker gives out."

I feel his pain. I also share his sense of opportunity. As, apparently, do those attorneys who are rushing to become bankruptcy experts.