Susan N. K. Gummow Partner

Transcription

1 Susan N. K. Gummow Partner Susan N. K. Gummow is a partner in the Chicago, Illinois office of Butler Pappas. She handles general commercial matters including bankruptcy, business litigation and insurance law. Ms. Gummow has significant experience in bankruptcy, insurance coverage, and litigation. This combination of experience has resulted in a unique practice area where she represents insurance companies with various bankruptcy issues with which they are confronted. Her experience includes environmental, asbestos, mass tort, general liability, first-party property (complex mortgage and loss payee issues), legal malpractice, professional liability (E & O including architects and engineers), and Director & Officer liability. Other matters she has advised insurers on include various settlement and release issues; deductibles and self-insured retentions including the impact of bankruptcy; and the rights of co-insureds and additional insureds. Ms. Gummow has extensive experience in general commercial matters, including litigating financial institutions and consumer fraud disputes, the defense of cases involving commercial and professional liability and contractor disputes. She has represented creditor and third party interests in bankruptcy proceedings including the defense of preference actions. Early in her career Ms. Gummow served as corporate in-house counsel providing her with experience in various corporate issues including negotiating and drafting commercial contracts. Ms. Gummow obtained a Bachelor of Business Administration from Baylor University and a J.D. from Louisiana State University. She also attended the Universite de Provence Aix-Marseilles in Aix-en- Provence, France where she studied international law and constitutional law under the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist. Ms. Gummow served as a Judicial Law Clerk for the honorable Henley A. Hunter in the United States Bankruptcy Court. Ms. Gummow is frequently asked to speak on the topic of bankruptcy related insurance issues at national and regional conferences in both the insurance and insolvency industry. She also presents in-house

2 conferences to insurance companies in areas such as Director & Officer liability, asbestos and mass tort, environmental, general liability, property and legal malpractice. Ms. Gummow is the author of the Bankruptcy and Insurance Law Manual published by the American Bankruptcy Institute, currently in its Third Edition. The Manual provides the basics of insurance law for the bankruptcy practitioner and the basics of bankruptcy law for the insurance practitioner. A copy of the Manual is available through the ABI web site at Publications First-party Insurance and Bankruptcy, the American Bar Association, Committee News, Property Insurance Law Committee, Fall 2010 Bankruptcy and Insurance Law Manual 3 rd Edition, the Basics of Insurance Law for the Bankruptcy Professional and the Basics of Bankruptcy Law for the Insurance Professional, published by the American Bankruptcy Institute, (First Edition 2004, Second Edition 2007). Available at Suing the Debtor: Examining Post-Discharge Suits Against the Debtor, the American Bankruptcy Law Journal, Volume 83, Issue 3, Insurance Companies Need To Be Vigilant When An Insured Files Bankruptcy, Insurance Settlements and Negotiations: Leading Lawyers on Structuring Insurance Contracts, Negotiating Policy Disputes and Formulating Litigation Strategies, Aspatore Books, October Director and Officer Liability Insurance: How Bankruptcy Transforms the Rights of the Various Parties, Journal of Bankruptcy Law and Practice, Thompson West Publications, January, 2006 (Vol. 14, No. 6). What is the Difference Between an SIR and a Deductible and What is the Impact of Bankruptcy? The Federal Bar Association Newsletter, Chicago Chapter, Volume 2, Deductible vs. SIR: Who Gets Stuck Paying When Insureds Files for Bankruptcy, American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, Vol. XXIV, No. 3, April D & O Insurer Beware: Payment Defense Costs May Be Required Pending The Stay Of Claims For Rescission And Determination Of Exclusion. American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, November 2004, (Vol. 23, No. 9). Credit Card Debt: The Creditors Burden Of Providing Nondischargeability Under 11 U.S.C. 523 (a)(2)(a). Journal of Bankruptcy Law and Practice, West Publications, September/October 1999 (Vol. 8, No. 6).

3 Earnings Exception, Commercial Law Journal, Commercial Law League of America, Fall 1993 (Vol. 98, No. 3). Speaking Engagements Bankruptcy Law Meets Insurance Law: How Does An Insured's Bankruptcy Impact A First-party Policy?, L.E.A. 80th Spring Meeting & Educational Conference, Newport, Rhode Island, June 8-10, Back To The Future: A New Wave of FDIC Litigation, Professional Liability Underwriting Society Annual International Conference, San Antonio, Texas, November 10-12, First-party Claims When An Insured Is In Bankruptcy, American Bar Association, Property Insurance Law Committee Annual Spring CLE Meeting, Half Moon Bay, California, April 29-May 1, 2010 Broke, Busted and Bankrupt-A Claims View, Excess/Surplus Lines Claims Association, New York, New York, June 4, Impact of Bankruptcy on Environmental Insurance Claims, New Jersey State Bar Association, New Brunswick, New Jersey, March 12, Insurance Issues in Bankruptcy: Policy Proceeds in Consumer Cases, 2007 Mississippi Bankruptcy Conference, December 6-7, Bankruptcy and Insurance Law Seminar / Mass Tort and Asbestos Bankruptcies, New York, New York, September 15, Director and Officer Insurance Issues in Bankruptcy, American Bankruptcy Institute, Southeast Conference, Kiawah Island, South Carolina, July 27-30, The Impact of Bankruptcy on Insurance Companies, Current Issues Impacting Insurance Defense Practice in Illinois-National Business Institute Seminar, Oak Brook, Illinois, June 28, Whose Money Is It Anyway? The Battle Over D & O Insurance Proceeds. American Bankruptcy Institute, Winter Leadership Conference, Scottsdale, Arizona, December 3, Bankruptcy and Insurance Law Seminar. Chicago, Illinois, November 5, 2004; New York, NY, November 12, Illinois Foreclosure and Related Bankruptcy and Title Issues, National Business Institute Seminar. Chicago, Illinois, February 18, Emerging Issues In Toxic Tort Coverage Litigation. New York, NY, October 29, 2003.

4 Susan has given numerous in-house presentations on the topic of bankruptcy and insurance law at various insurance companies throughout the country. Representative Cases Represented sub-contractor in successful recovery in multi-million dollar construction litigation. Represented insurer in General Motors and Chrysler bankruptcy proceedings for dealer and insurance related claims. Negotiated settlement of multi-million dollar litigation involving excess carrier, debtor-insured and 300 plus injured plaintiffs. Successfully represented insurance company in bankruptcy court and on appeal where courts held that plaintiff s default judgment was taken in violation of the automatic stay and post-confirmation injunction, and was therefore void and unenforceable. Represented insurer when insured engineering company closed its doors and left 30 suits/claims under architect and engineer policy pending. Representation included defense, litigation and settlement of numerous claims/actions as well as coverage issues (including SIR and drop down) in multiple jurisdictions. Successfully represented insurer of an additional insured in bankruptcy court and on appeal to overturn the bankruptcy court ruling that the rights of additional insured under the policy were subject to the jurisdiction of the bankruptcy court. Successfully argued an appeal that injuries sustained on golf course were due to an open and obvious condition. Represented insurance company in litigation related to application of a maintenance deductible in a first-party policy amongst multiple insureds and secured creditors. Represented major carrier in Kmart bankruptcy and in the Bally bankruptcy, filing objections to the proposed plans which in both instances resulted in the debtors including insurance-neutral language in the plans. Successfully negotiated allowance and subsequent sale of multi-million dollar environmental clean-up claim. Represented major insurer in litigation relating to whether court approval of a sale under Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code barred successor liability claims against the purchasing entity.

5 Advised insurer on coverage issues and implications of the Fruit of the Loom bankruptcy proceedings involving environmental claims, bankruptcy trust funds, settlements with the EPA and multiple government entities for claims under CERCLA, and various releases and covenants. Advised numerous insurers on environmental liability issues in bankruptcy proceedings. Reported Decisions Raymond Professional Group, Inc. v. William A. Pope Co., 2010 WL (Bankr. N.D. Ill. 2010) Raymond Professional Group, Inc. v. William A. Pope Co., 2010 WL (Bankr. N.D. Ill. 2010) In re Heating Oil Partners, (D. Conn. 2010) In re Heating Oil Partners, 2009 WL (D. Conn. 2009) St. Paul v. Home Depot, 2004 WL (N.D. Ill 2004) Comdisco v. Federal Insurance Company, 2004 WL (N.D. Ill. 2004) Cited in, In re Powell, 187 B.R. 642 (Bankr. D. MN 1995) Organization Affiliations Illinois Bar Association Louisiana Bar Association Texas Bar Association Federal Bar Association American Bankruptcy Institute Defense Research Institute Professional Liability Underwriting Society The Lawyers Club of Chicago - Board of Directors, (President ; Vice President ; Secretary/Treasurer ) Court Admissions United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division