Total Credits: 6.0 Self Study
You will receive course materials and recordings from both the Eastern District and Western District sessions.
Case law updates
Eastern District session:
Speakers: Hon. Bonnie L. Clair, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Missouri, St. Louis; Wendell J. Sherk, Attorney at Law, St. Louis; David A. Warfield, Thompson Coburn LLP, St. Louis
This session will be a review of recent cases.
Western District session:
Speakers: Hon. Brian T. Fenimore, United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Missouri, Kansas City; Dewanna L. Newman, Castle Law Office, Kansas City; Camber L. Jones, Spencer Fane LLP, Springfield
Chapter 13 hot topics
Eastern District session:
Speakers: Diana S. Daugherty, Ch. 13 Bankruptcy Trustee for the Eastern District of Missouri, St. Louis; Randall Oettle, R.O.C. Law, St. Louis; Daniel A. West, SouthLaw PC, St. Louis
A discussion of timely issues affecting Chapter 13 bankruptcy practice in the Eastern District of Missouri.
Focus points include:
Western District session:
Speakers: Dana M. Estes, Office of the Chapter 13 Trustee, Kansas City; Jonathan D. Bhend, Bhend Law Offices, Joplin; Hunter Gould, SouthLaw PC, Overland Park, KS
Updates on a variety of topics related to Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
New Article 12 and amended Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code
Eastern District session:
Speakers: Jaden G. Banks, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of Missouri, St. Louis; Brian J. LaFlamme, Summers Compton Wells LLC, St. Louis
This session covers proposed amendments to the Uniform Commercial Code, including a discussion of a new Article 12 on controllable electronic records and changes to
Article 9.
Western District session:
Speakers: Mark T. Benedict, Husch Blackwell LLP, Kansas City; Michelle Masoner, UMB Bank NA, Kansas City
During this session, we will review updates to the Uniform Commercial Code.
The roof, the roof, the roof is on fire…Landlords' and tenants' rights
Eastern District session:
Speakers: Christopher D. Lee, Sandberg Phoenix & Von Gontard, St. Louis; Angela M. Redden-Jansen, Gorman & Sandrini, Maplewood; Sarah E. "Shay" Tomlinson, Summers Compton Wells, St. Louis
A discussion of problems arising between landlords and tenants--both in and out of bankruptcy.
Western District session:
Speakers: Michael Wambolt, Anderson & Associates, Kansas City; Rachel L. Foley, Foley Law PC, Independence; Jesi N. Stanley, Stanley Law LLC, Blue Springs
The plans, they are a changin'…Plan modification
Eastern District session:
Speakers: Spencer P. Desai, Desai Law Firm LLC, St. Louis; Abigail B. Willie, Saint Louis University School of Law, St. Louis
This presentation will discuss best practices in plan modifications, focusing on statutory consideration, and common challenges and issues arising in the post-confirmation modification context. Case law developments and local rule expectations will be addressed.
Western District session:
Speakers: Holly N. Malone-Zukaitis, Office of Chapter 13 Trustee, Kansas City; Ryan A. Blay, WM Law, Lawrence, KS; Zach H. Hemenway, Stinson LLP, Kansas City
This presentation will discuss best practices in plan modifications, focusing on statutory consideration, and common challenges and issues arising in the post-confirmation modification context. Case law developments and local rule expectations will be addressed.
Civility in the practice of bankruptcy
Eastern District session:
Speakers: Hon. Kathy A. Surratt-States, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, St. Louis; Kimber Houpt Baro, Baro Law Firm, Florissant
We will review what bankruptcy courts across the country are doing in recent decisions regarding bankruptcy attorney fees and conduct.
Western District session:
Speakers: Hon. Cynthia A. Norton, United States Courthouse, Kansas City; Garrett Pratt, University of Missouri School of Law, Columbia
Opinions and positions stated by presenters of MoBarCLE programs are those of the presenters and not necessarily those of The Missouri Bar. This program is intended as information for lawyers in Missouri, in conjunction with other research they deem necessary, in the exercise of their independent judgment.
| 01 KC Case Law Update (1.2 MB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 01 STL Case Law Update (540.1 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 02 STL Chapter 13 Hot Topics (759.1 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 02 KC Chapter 13 Hot Topics (1.3 MB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 03 Article 12 (657 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 04 STL Landlord & Tenant Rights (399.4 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 04 KC Landlord & Tenant Rights (3.1 MB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 05 STL Plan Modification (675.5 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 05 KC Updated Plan Modification (681.9 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
| 06 Civility in the practice of law (1005.5 KB) | Available after Purchase | ||
Mr. Banks received his B.A. from Brigham Young University - Idaho and J.D. from University of Missouri - Columbia. After law school, he clerked for the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District and currently clerks for Judge Bonnie Clair of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.
Kimber practiced family law for ten years and specialized in bankruptcy law for the last 20 years. She is a member of NACBA and licensed in the U.S. District Court for the EDMO, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States.
With more than 25 years of experience, Mark uses his comprehensive understanding of the Bankruptcy Code to assist all parties involved in the restructuring process in achieving their business objectives, including debtors, bank and nonbank lenders, trade creditors, vendors and strategic buyers of distressed assets.
In debtor representations Mark has distinguished himself as a practical problem-solver capable of addressing all facets relating to his clients’ challenges in a coordinated and strategic manner, including Chapter 11 reorganizations and out-of-court restructurings. Mark has a demonstrated ability in helping clients tackle complexity in order to restage their business operations. Most recently, he advised the owner of several casinos in multiple states in an out-of-court debt restructure; he ran the Chapter 11 sale of a chain of retail and specialty pharmacies; and he negotiated a Chapter 11 plan for a yellow pages delivery company.
Jonathan Bhend was born and raised in Joplin, Missouri. He received his JD from University of Missouri, Kansas City in 2002. He owns his own practice in Joplin Missouri. The main focus of his practice is in bankruptcy law, specifically chapters 13 and 7. In addition to his private practice, Jonathan is also the Public Defender at the municipal court for the city of Joplin.
Ryan is a partner at WM Law, where he manages the firm's Chapter 11 and Chapter 12 department. He is currently the president of the Kansas City Bankruptcy Bar Association and serves as a laiason to the Attorney Advisory Group for the Western District of Missouri Bankruptcy Court.
Judge Bonnie L. Clair sits on the bench of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. Judge Clair previously spent many years in private practice representing creditors and debtors in bankruptcy, commercial, and consumer finance matters; she also spent time in-house at a large financial institution and served in the Attorney General’s Honors Program of the United States Department of Justice as an attorney with the Office of the United States Trustee.
Judge Clair currently serves on the Conference News and Elections Committees of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges. Before taking the bench, she served on the Region X Disciplinary Committee for the Missouri Bar, mediated and investigated proceedings for the Missouri Bar’s Fee Dispute Resolution Committee, and contributed to the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Seventh Circuit Volo updates. However, no one wants to talk about any of that once they find out that she was on Jeopardy! in 2006 and Who Wants to be a Millionaire? in 2002.
Judge Clair received her law degree from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis, where she was an articles editor for the Journal of Urban and Contemporary Law (now the Journal of Law & Policy) and a national competitor in the New York City Bar Moot Court Competition. She received her undergraduate degree from Duke University, where she served on the editorial and business boards of The Chronicle, debated varsity and camped in “Tent 2” in the Krzyzewskiville line during the 1989-1990 basketball season.
Diana Daugherty was appointed Standing Chapter 13 Trustee for the Eastern District of Missouri on March 1, 2017, and served as staff attorney for John V. LaBarge, Jr., the prior Standing Chapter 13 Trustee. Diana was the 2008 recipient of the Missouri Bar's Roser Award for Excellence in Bankruptcy Practice.
Spencer concentrates his practice in the areas of bankruptcy, business reorganization, business loan workouts and debtor/creditor rights. He has represented small business and individual borrowers in proceedings, workouts, defense of fraud and collection actions. Spencer addresses his client’s needs of today for them to capitalize on the opportunities of tomorrow.
Dana M. Estes has been a Staff Attorney for Richard V. Fink, the standing Chapter 13 Trustee for the Western District of Missouri since 2004. She received her undergraduate degree in Biology from William Jewell College in 1993 and her J.D. from Washington University School of Law in 1998.
Before becoming a bankruptcy judge on August 31, 2017, Brian T. Fenimore led the bankruptcy team at Lathrop Gage LLP for more than 20 years, representing debtors, creditors, and many other parties in interest. He graduated from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1988 with a degree in Agricultural Economics, and the University of Michigan Law School in 1990. After graduating from law school, he clerked for the Honorable Arthur B. Federman.
Rachel Foley began her bankruptcy career with the United Auto Workers representing GM and Ford employees in Chapter 13 and 7’s. Rachel was the only bankruptcy attorney for the Missouri auto workers and it was not unusual for her to manage 3 – 4 times the regular attorney caseload at any given time. This provided a vast array of case scenarios, experience and knowledge that Rachel continues to pull from today. Where ever the client was located, the Union ensured the auto worker would have representation, including but not limited to being incarcerated in Leavenworth Federal Prison.
Rachel has been recognized for her constant commitment to the representation of debtors. Rachel is the inaugural winner of the K. Colleen Nunnelly Award by the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys and recognized by her peers as being the Best of the Kansas City Bar in the area of bankruptcy. These recognitions are in addition to being named to the Pro Bono Wall of Fame by the Missouri Bar Association.
Hunter joined the Firm in May 2022 and is a Senior Attorney for the Bankruptcy Department located in the Overland Park, Kansas office. He is currently admitted to practice law in Missouri and Iowa and is also admitted to practice before the Federal District of Kansas and the Federal District of Nebraska. He obtained his B.A. in Journalism from the University of Missouri in 2009. He obtained his law degree from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Law School in 2012.
Hunter currently focuses his practice on representing financial institutions and creditors' rights in bankruptcy and related litigation.
Zach represents clients in bankruptcy proceedings and litigation, engaging fully on the most complicated issues to find solutions and strategies that are creative, practical, and elegant. He ensures that his clients can explore every available option to determine the best way to protect and pursue their rights.
In briefing and before judges, Zach presents make-or-break issues efficiently and effectively, both within these core litigation and bankruptcy cases and across a variety of matters where clients and colleagues benefit from his e-discovery expertise.
In addition to his bankruptcy and litigation work, Zach has assisted clients across a wide range of internal and external investigations, including negotiating with government agencies on scope and making internal presentations to boards, officers, and general counsels.
Camber Jones is a member of the firm’s Banking and Financial Services Group. Camber has experience representing debtors and creditors in bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings in multiple jurisdictions, including, initiating and defending adversary proceedings, investigating and conducting large-scale claims reconciliations, negotiating settlements, and negotiating, drafting, and reviewing commercial contracts.
Camber also represents her clients in non-bankruptcy insolvency proceedings, such as receiverships, out of court workouts and restructurings, and other related insolvency matters. With a background in litigation, Camber assists in the representation of clients in general commercial litigation matters.
Camber received her law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she served as a senior editor on the Journal of Constitutional Law and earned a Certificate of Management from the Wharton School of Executive Education at the University of Pennsylvania. Prior to his retirement, Camber served as an intern for the Honorable William A. Thorne, a judge on the Utah Court of Appeals.
Mr. Brian J. LaFlamme received his B.A. degree from Bradley University and his J.D. degree from University of Missouri-Columbia. He is a member of the firm Summers Compton Wells LLC in St. Louis, Missouri. Mr. LaFlamme represents individuals and corporate entities in need of assistance with a wide range of financial issues, in and out of bankruptcy court and state court. In particular, he represents Chapter 7 bankruptcy trustees, state court receivers, secured and unsecured creditors and corporate and consumer debtors. He occasionally lectures on bankruptcy and receivership issues at CLE seminars.
Christopher joined Sandberg Phoenix in 2022 and is part of the Business Litigation practice group. He focuses his practice in the areas of community association law, creditor’s rights, mortgage servicing law and bankruptcy. He has represented a large number of secured and unsecured creditors in both bankruptcy and general litigation settings. He understands that litigation can be a stressful and strives to give clear and thorough communications to put them at ease.
Christopher was selected as a local bankruptcy rules committee member, was an editor for the Saint Louis Pubic Law Review for which he was also selected for publication. He also has been chosen to speak at a number of CLEs by judges, the United State Trustee’s Office and the Missouri Bar.
Holly Malone-Zukaitis is a Staff Attorney for Richard V. Fink, the standing Chapter 13 Trustee for the Western District of Missouri. She has been with the trustee’s office since March 2008. She received her undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas and her J.D. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Michelle Masoner is Legal Counsel with UMB Bank N.A. She practiced primarily in the area of commercial litigation, corporate restructuring, bankruptcy, and debtor-creditor rights for over 20 years in private practice. She is an adjunct professor at the University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Law.
Dewanna was born and raised in rural mid-Missouri. She obtained her Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice with an emphasis in Legal Studies from Missouri Western State University in 2002. After years of working as a paralegal, she attended the University of Missouri- Kansas City School of Law, where she received her Juris Doctorate in 2011.
Dewanna began her legal career after undergrad working as a Debtor’s Bankruptcy paralegal and later transitioned to an associate attorney working on creditor’s rights, landlord/tenant issues as well as other Plaintiff’s cases. Her true passion; however, is to help others, and she is proud to be back at the place where she started her career over 17 years ago, Castle Law Office of Kansas City.
Dewanna is licensed to practice law in both Kansas and Missouri. She is also admitted to practice before the federal courts of Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri as well as the District of Kansas and Nebraska. She is also a member of The Missouri Bar, Jackson County Bar Association and the Volunteer Attorney Project.
Hon. Cynthia A. Norton received her law degree in 1984. She was appointed to the bench on February 1, 2013. She is the recipient of the Michael R. Roser Excellence in Bankruptcy Award, and the Robert L. Gernon Award for Outstanding Contribution to CLE.
Randall Oettle is an aggressive litigation lawyer who fights for his clients and seeks fair settlements at the least possible expense. He has over 28 years of experience, and he is a Missouri Bar lawyer.
He was admitted to the bar in three area federal district courts and has been aggressively handling family law issues, including child custody, child support, contempt actions, paternity judgment, legal separation, and asset distribution. His practice at ROC Law is especially attuned to the financial impact of a divorce decree on his clients.
Professor Garrett Pratt is an adjunct associate professor teaching Law of Tax Exempt Organizations. He is currently a senior attorney for the Large Business & International Division of the IRS Office of Chief Counsel in Kansas City where he litigates tax shelter and other complex tax cases before the U.S. Tax Court. Garrett is passionate about mentoring and advising law students as they navigate the process of becoming a lawyer.
Garrett began his legal career clerking for U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Brian T. Fenimore in the United States District Court for the Western District of Missouri. During his clerkship, Garrett earned his Tax LL.M. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law. He also co-authored a bankruptcy law review article that was cited by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
Following his bankruptcy clerkship, Garrett practiced law at Lathrop GPM LLP where he represented for-profit and tax-exempt organizations before the IRS handling a variety of income tax matters. He assisted dozens of nonprofit organizations obtain and maintain their 501(c)(3) status with the IRS and advised nonprofit officers and directors on corporate governance issues. He also supervised and mentored junior associate attorneys and summer associates in the firm’s business transactions practice group.
Mrs. Jansen provides top quality legal service in the area of debtors rights. She files bankruptcies on behalf of those clients that need that service, but she also represents her clients against overreaching banks and lenders ensuring that the borrower is on even footing with even the largest banks in the land.
Mr. Wendell J. Sherk is an attorney in St. Louis, practicing primarily in consumer bankruptcy and debtor representation. He graduated from Washington University in 1986 and Washington University School of Law in 1989. He is a principal of the firm Sherk & Swope, LLC as well as a member of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, American Bankruptcy Institute, the Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis, and The Missouri Bar.
Founder of Stanley Law, LLC., Jesi Stanley has spent over a decade protecting the rights of tenants. Jesi has achieved significant victories for her clients, both inside and outside of the courtroom. Jesi is a skilled and experienced trial attorney who will both defend tenants from improper claims against them and also seek damages against those who cause them harm. Jesi’s dedication to tenant defense and consumer protection forms the heart and soul of Stanley Law. Jesi’s expertise and extensive trial experience set her apart from other attorneys, along with her determination to advocate passionately and persistently for each and every client. Jesi believes that fighting for tenants with tenacity, honesty and courage can bring integrity to our communities, restore justice to our court system, and combat unfairness suffered by so many. Jesi fights passionately for every client through skillful, bold, compassionate advocacy.
Judge Surratt-States was sworn in as U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of Missouri on March 17, 2003 and appointed Chief Judge on February 1, 2013.
Judge Surratt-States received her B.A., cum laude, from Oklahoma City University and her J.D. from Washington University School of Law in St. Louis.
Sarah E. (Shay) Tomlinson is a litigation associate with Summers Compton Wells. Shay concentrates her practice on business litigation including employment matters, restructuring, bankruptcy, and government compliance.
Shay earned her law degree from Saint Louis University School of Law. Following graduation, Shay served as a judicial law clerk in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Missouri and served as a Trial Attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice. She is a contributing author to the ABI Journal and The Wyoming Lawyer.
Mike brings two decades of well-rounded litigation experience to cases in a wide variety of complex matters, including handling all aspects of numerous bankruptcy, foreclosure, and creditors’ rights proceedings.
Mike also has broad experience representing lenders in commercial loan defaults, fraud, and lender liability issues. He applies his extensive range of knowledge and experience to develop litigation strategies that minimize risk and protect our clients’ interests.
Mike earned his J.D. from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law, and a B.A. in political science from University of Nevada – Reno. Outside of work, Mike enjoys ocean kayaking and teaching confectionary.
David A. Warfield is a co-chair of Thompson Coburn's Financial Restructuring practice group.
Dan joined the firm in May 2000 and is a Shareholder and Managing Attorney over the St. Louis, Missouri operation. He is currently licensed to practice law in Missouri and is also admitted to practice before the United States District Court for the Eastern and Western Districts of Missouri and the Federal District of Kansas and the Federal District of Nebraska. He obtained his B.A. in Finance from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1994. He obtained his law degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia in 1997.
Dan has concentrated his practice of law representing secured creditors in bankruptcy and related litigation, primarily in the Eastern District of Missouri since 1997. He is a noted speaker at various industry conferences and an author in regional and national publications.
Professor Willie is a Visiting Assistant Professor at Saint Louis University School of Law.
