ABI Podcast

Conversation with Arthur T. Perkins
ABI Deputy Executive Director Felicia S. Turner talks with Arthur T. Perkins, the current president of the Turnaround Management Association (TMA) and co-head of Deloitte Financial Advisory Services' turnaround consulting and restructuring practice for the West Region. In addition to discussing the history of TMA, which celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, Perkins discusses the current climate of financial turnarounds for distressed companies during the current credit crunch and the increase in business bankruptcy filings.The views expressed in this podcast are those of the interviewee, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Deloitte Financial Advisory Services LLP.

Conversation with Mark Zandi
ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano talks with Mark Zandi, chief economist and co-founder of Moody's Economy.com. A witness before Congress and frequently quoted in the media, Zandi shares his views on the current mortgage crisis as well as his views on current legislative proposals looking to remedy the housing downturn, such as the Senate's housing assistance package and legislation that would allow a bankruptcy judge to modify the primary mortgage of a chapter 13 debtor.

Conversation with James Scurlock
ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano talks with James Scurlock the director, producer, screenwriter and author of the critically acclaimed documentary and book, Maxed Out: Hard Times, Easy Credit and the Era of Predatory Lenders. Scurlock, the guest speaker at ABI's Debt Symposium at the University of Illinois on May 2, discusses his powerful work that takes an in-depth look at the credit industry, some of the industry's practices and the effect that credit card debt has on consumers. Click here to listen to the podcast.

Conversation with Robert Sanderson
ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano talks with Robert O. Sanderson, the current president of the INSOL International and a senior partner with KPMG LLP's Transaction Advisory Services Group based in Toronto. A past president of the Insolvency Institute of Canada, Sanderson discusses some of the challenges faced by global insolvency practitioners in the current credit environment. Click here to listen to the podcast.

Conversation with Judge Thomas Bennett
ABI Deputy Executive Director Felicia S. Turner talks with Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Bennett of the Northern District of Alabama (Birmingham), the current president of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (NCBJ). Appointed to the bench in 1995, Judge Bennett discusses the effect of BAPCPA on the workload of bankruptcy judges. He also discusses current legislation addressing judicial pay raises and home mortgage modification. Click here to listen to the podcast.

Conversation with Profs. Amir Sufi and Paul M. Vaaler
The latest podcast features two of the speakers who will be featured at the upcoming Interdisciplinary Academic Symposium on Debt as ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano talks with Profs. Amir Sufi of the University of Chicago and Paul M. Vaaler of the University of Minnesota. Sponsored by ABI and the University of Illinois, the Symposium taking place May 2-3 will feature leading U.S. and international scholars talking about debt from a wide range of academic disciplines. Prof. Vaaler's presentation focuses on how and why credit assessors get it wrong when judging the risk of borrowers, while Prof. Sufi attributes the mortgage default crisis in large part to the degree of separation between borrower and lender via the securitization process.

Conversation with Samuel K. Crocker
ABI Deputy Executive Director Felicia S. Turner talks with Samuel K. Crocker, the current president of the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees and a partner in the firm of Crocker and Niarhos in Nashville, Tenn. Having served on the panel of chapter 7 trustees for the Middle District of Tennessee for almost 25 years, Crocker discusses some of the changes and challenges to the trustee practice due to BAPCPA. He also discusses the relationship of chapter 7 trustees to the debtor bar and the Office of the U.S. Trustees. Crocker concludes with his thoughts on some of the recent trends seen in bankruptcy filing numbers as well as a discussion of home mortgage modification legislation currently being considered by Congress. Click here to listen to the podcast.

Conversation with Congressman Brad Miller
The latest ABI podcast features a discussion between ABI Executive Director Samuel J. Gerdano and Rep. Brad Miller (D-N.C.) about the legislation that Miller is sponsoring to allow bankruptcy judges to modify the mortgage on the primary residence of a chapter 13 debtor. Miller was elected to Congress in 2002 and has established his reputation as an advocate for consumer-protection issues, especially those to protect consumers from predatory financial practices. Miller discusses H.R. 3609 as well as other congressional responses to troubles in the mortgage market.