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Pre-Pandemic 9th Circuit Retreat!
David Shemano, Shemano Law
One of the most enjoyable benefits of membership in the College is the opportunity to socialize with colleagues and their spouses. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 crisis has required the cancellation of
all social events, including the annual induction ceremony in March. Fortuitously, the Ninth Circuit Fellows had scheduled a Circuit retreat for mid-February, which went forward in blissful ignorance.
The weekend of February 13-15, 2020, the attendees and spouses met at Mountain Shadows Resort in Scottsdale, Arizona. The retreat commenced on a Resort patio, where we enjoyed cocktails while taking in the beautiful sunset with a view of Camelback Mountain, followed by a delicious buffet dinner. Only in Scottsdale, with help from several heat lamps, could we eat dinner outdoors in February.
We then gathered Saturday morning for educational sessions. Cynthia Nelson started us off with a presentation entitled How Regional Mall Owners Are Responding to Evolving Retailer and Consumer Needs. While very thorough, Cynthia somehow failed to anticipate that a global pandemic would soon shut down all malls.
Following Cynthia’s presentation, Susan Boswell, Rob Charles, Jim Stang, and Gregg Zive participated in a panel entitled God and Non-Profits: Does Chapter 11 Work For Either of Them? Very interesting to learn about the unique challenges presented by these non-traditional chapter 11 cases.
Next, Professor Gary Marchant of the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law gave a presentation entitled Hold On To Your Assets: Emerging Technologies and The Future of Bankruptcy Practice. Prof. Marchant talked about how developing technology is impacting the practice of law. Based on the trends identified, I hope that I will be able to practice another ten years before being replaced by artificial intelligence.
Finally, we were entertained over lunch by Randy Haines, who told us The Untold Story of the Ultimate Creditor's Remedy. We learned about the “Pitkin Affair,” an early 18th Century bankruptcy fraud scheme that had more than enough unbelievable twists and turns to warrant its own binge-worthy television series.
After an afternoon break designed to permit Peter Benvenutti, Richard Holley and me to play the Resort golf course, we gathered for cocktails and dinner at the Musical Instrument Museum, a Phoenix institution that displays more than 7,000 musical instruments from all over the world. Our group was provided exclusive access to the Artist Gallery, which contained audio and video displays of performances by various artists. Thanks to the help of Steve Berger, we were entertained throughout the evening by the upbeat piano playing of Beth Lederman and her band Jazz con Alma, to which we danced the night away.
The success of the retreat was the result of the contributions of a great committee including Steve Berger, Rob Charles, Susan Freeman, Richard Holley, Eve Karasik, Randy Newsome, and Tom Patterson, and the sponsorships of Bush Kornfeld, Engelman Berger, Foley Lardner, FTI Consulting, Holley Driggs, Klee Tuchin, Lewis Roca and Pachulski Stang. Hopefully, we will be a position to have another retreat sooner rather than later.