TMA Spring Conference: Restructuring Plays in the Recovery

CHICAGO, April 13, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The former CEO of General Growth Properties, the second largest U.S. mall owner before trekking through one of the thorniest commercial real estate bankruptcies ever, will join other CEOs recounting lessons from turnarounds at the 2011 TMA Spring Conference, April 27-29, at the JW Marriott Chicago.

The CEO panel and six other sessions will bring clarity to a whirl of issues affecting businesses trying to retool in a U.S. economy that still is giving off mixed signals as it struggles to recover.  Leading discussions are bankruptcy attorneys and judges, corporate restructuring experts, academics and others in the fray — whether untangling complicated restructurings, new federal mandates or routes to financing distressed asset deals.

Panels on Thursday, April 28, include:

--  Turnarounds at the Outset of Recovery

Speakers discuss how the battle-scarred economy pushed more restructurings outside of court, how low-interest rates and high-yield debt allowed companies to delay fixing problems, and more.

--  The Affordable Care Act

Panelists scope out business consequences of the new healthcare law.

--  Implications of Today's Financing Markets on Distressed Investing

Speakers review historical data on credit defaults and capital market activity to identify market trends.

--  CEOs Leading Turnarounds

Executives recap their roles in the restructurings of Conseco Finance, General Growth Properties, Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. and Electronic Data Systems.

--  Evaluating the FDIC as a Player in the Restructuring Process

As failing banks are seized, restructuring professionals face a maze of bureaucracy and emerging Dodd-Frank regulation; speakers discuss a way through it.

--  Managing Risk, Maximizing Value and the Role of Restructuring Professionals

General Counsels review fiduciary responsibilities and other procedures triggered when a company becomes distressed.

--  Judges' Forum: Views from the Bench

Bankruptcy judges from Delaware, Western District of Texas, Southern District of New York, Central District of California and Northern District of Illinois hold court.

On Friday, TMA will present MBA in a Day, a crash course on essential topics for restructuring professionals led by professors from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management, University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and Harvard Business School.  

Chicago-based TMA, www.turnaround.org, has more than 9,000 members in 47 chapters worldwide, including turnaround practitioners, attorneys, accountants, investors, and lenders.

SOURCE Turnaround Management Association