Board Certified -- Business Bankruptcy Law -- The American Board of Certification (1993-present)
Certified Specialist -- Bankruptcy Law -- State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization (1994-present)
Rated "AV Preeminent" by Martindale-Hubbell (AV rated 1991-present)
Selected as Southern California "Super Lawyer" in Bankruptcy & Creditor/Debtor Rights (2004-present)
Adjunct Professor of Law, Loyola Law School, Los Angeles -- bankruptcy law, debtor-creditor law, and Uniform Commercial Code (1982-1987)
Mediator, Bankruptcy Mediation Program, United States Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California (1995-present). Tied for most frequently selected mediator (Los Angeles Division, 1999-2000, Northern Division, 2012-2013). Contributing editor, Bankruptcy Mediation News (U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, 2019-present)
Author, "Why my Associate Should Become a Mediator," Bankruptcy Mediation News (U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, 2021)
Author, "Billing Tips from a Fee Examiner: An Interview with Prof. Nancy B. Rapoport" ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2021)
Author, "Meeting a Bankruptcy Judge’s Expectations: An Interview with the Hon. Barry Russell," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2020)
Author, "Bankruptcy Mediation Snacks," Bankruptcy Mediation News (U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, 2019)
Author, "The Lighter Side of Mediation," Bankruptcy Mediation News (U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, 2019)
Author, "American Board of Certification Names 2019 Officers, Directors and Emeritus Director" ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2019)
Author, "It’s Only Au Revoir: War Stories and Missteps in Advocacy," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2018)
Author, "These are a Few of my Favorite Things: Treasured Possessions of Bankruptcy Judges," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2018)
Author, "Dusting Off the Western Union '92 Code to Shorten Bankruptcy Briefs," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2018)
Author, "40 Years of Electronic Music: An Interview with the Hon. Marc Barreca," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2018)
Coauthor, "The Hon. Calvin K. Ashland and his Big Book of Bankruptcy Funnies," Consumer Bankruptcy Journal (National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, Winter 2018)
Contributing editor, Norton Bankruptcy Law and Practice 3d (2008-2017)
Coauthor, "The Bankruptcy Crisis in Chicago," Consumer Bankruptcy Journal (National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys, Summer 2017)
Author, "Great pick-up lines from American Bankruptcy Institute Conferences," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2017)
Author, "Travels and Adventures in Ham Radio with the Hon. John T. Laney, III," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2017)
Author, "Amusements Off the Bench: Hobbies of the Hon. Scott C. Clarkson," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2016)
Author, "Judicial Perspectives on Life, Bankruptcy Law, and All That," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2016)
Author, "On the Dangers of Asteroids and Other Disclosure Statement Lessons," ABI Journal (American Bankruptcy Institute, 2016)
Speaker, Federal Bar Association, 18th Annual Bankruptcy Ethics Symposium, "Technical Competency and Ethical Pratfalls: ‘I am Not a Cat’ and Much More" (scheduled, 2021)
Master of Ceremonies, Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association, 2021 Hon. Calvin Ashland Awards Dinner (scheduled, 2021)
Planning committee and breakout facilitator, Conference of Ninth Circuit Chief Bankruptcy Judges and Bankruptcy Lawyer Representatives (2021)
Speaker, American Bankruptcy Institute, "Crossfire: §1129(a)(9)(A) and Confirmation of Chapter 11 Plans" (2021)
Speaker, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "Attacking the Adversary Proceeding Complaint: Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12" (2021)
Speaker, Federal Bar Association, 17th Annual Bankruptcy Ethics Symposium, "Attorney Competence 101: The Latest Scams And Technical Dangers For Lawyers And Other Human Beings" (2020)
Speaker, Beverly Hills Bar Association, Taxation and Bankruptcy Law Sections, "Taxperson at the Door: Exemption Planning, Collection Powers, Liens, and Horror Stories" (2020)
Speaker, Beverly Hills Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "Business Appraisal and Real Estate Valuation in 2020: Application of the Federal Rules of Evidence in a Free Fall Economy" (2020)
Speaker, Century 21 Discovery, "Bankruptcy Basics for Real Estate Professionals: the Automatic Stay; Getting Employed by Bankruptcy Trustees and Debtors in Possession; and the Magic of Bankruptcy Sales" (2020)
Speaker, Central District of California Judicial Conference, Bankruptcy Judges And Bankruptcy Lawyer Representatives Roundtable, "Local Bankruptcy Procedures and Rules -- Three Easy Fixes" (2020)
Speaker, Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum, "A Few Words About Attorney Joe Bernfeld -- Co-Founder of the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum" (2020)
Speaker, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "11 U.S.C. §523: Meeting the Bankruptcy Judge's Expectations" (2020)
Speaker, Federal Bar Association, 16th Annual Bankruptcy Ethics Symposium, "Bankruptcy Lawyer Trip Ups: Law Firm Technology; Less Than Perfect Law Firm Practices; and The Very Best of Those Gosh Darn Solicitations That Land in My In Box Every Single Morning" (2019)
Moderator, Central District Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association, "2019 Hon. Calvin Ashland Awards Dinner" (2019)
Speaker, American Bankruptcy Institute, "Consumer Bankruptcy Evidence Workshop" (2019)
Speaker, Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, Bankruptcy Judges Education Program, "Bankruptcy Breakout: Six Hot Topics" (2019)
Speaker, American Board of Certification/American Bankruptcy Institute, "Ain't Misbehaving: 11 U.S.C. §707(b)(4) and Federal Rule of Bankruptcy Procedure 9011" (2019)
Speaker, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "Dude! How to litigate cases under 11 U.S.C. §727" (2019)
Speaker, American Bar Association, Center for Education and Accreditation, National Specialization Roundtable, ʺUnplugged! Marketing Tricks and Tips for Certified Specialists and Legal Specialization Programsʺ (2019)
Speaker, Beverly Hills Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "Drafting Rock Solid Declarations in Federal Court: Presenting Evidence for Motions and Trials" (2019)
Speaker, Federal Bar Association, 15th Annual Bankruptcy Ethics Symposium, "The Ethical Lawyer’s Dilemma: Information Technology in the Era of the iPhone, Software as a Service, and the Internet of Things" (2018)
Volunteer, Constitutional Rights Foundation, 38th Annual California Mock Trial Competition (2018)
Speaker, Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference, Bankruptcy Judges Education Program, "Equal Access to Bankruptcy Justice" (2018)
Speaker, Beverly Hills Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "Use and Abuse of Experts and Expert Testimony in Federal Court" (2018)
Speaker, American Bar Association, Center for Professional Responsibility, National Specialization Roundtable, "The Future of Legal Specialization: Professional Association or Mark of Merit?" (2018)
Speaker, Conference of Chief Bankruptcy Judges, "How to Raise a Lawyer: Gender Bias; Bullying; and The Formal Rules of Civility" (2018)
Speaker, Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum, "A Conversation with Attorney Christine Steiner: War Stories from the Smithsonian, the Getty, and the Broad -- and How Artists’ Rights and Ownership Claims Can impact on Consignments and the Attachment, Perfection, Priority, and Foreclosure of Security Interests in Works of Art" (2018)
Speaker, American Board of Certification/American Bankruptcy Institute, "Professionalism! Competence! Certification! Best Practices! Bankruptcy Judges Sound Off on the Best (and Worst) Behavior of our Bankruptcy Brothers and Sisters" (2018)
Speaker, Los Angeles County Bar Association, "Bridging the Gap 2018: From Books to Billables" (2018)
Speaker, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, “Weight of the Evidence: Bankruptcy Litigation on a Shoestring Budget” (2018)
Speaker, South Pasadena High School, Bildungsroman, "The Bankruptcy Court System" (2018)
Speaker, Pacifica High School, "The 14th Amendment and Equal Protection" (2018)
Speaker, Narbonne High School, "The 14th Amendment, Equal Protection, and a Lawyer's Life" (2018)
Speaker, Federal Bar Association, 14th Annual Bankruptcy Ethics Symposium, “A Mixed Bag of Ethical Issues Related to Client Retention, Client Management, and Termination of the Attorney‐client Relationship" (2017)
Speaker, Los Angeles County Bar Association, Commercial and Bankruptcy Law Section, "Hon. Ernest M. Robles: Pet Peeves and Best Practices in his Bankruptcy Courtroom" (2017)
Speaker, Beverly Hills Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "The Uncomfortable Intersection of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, California's Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and Bankruptcy Law" (2017)
Speaker, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "Litigating Fraud Cases under 11 U.S.C. §523(a)(2)(A)" (2017)
Speaker, Central California Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys Association, "Bankruptcy Mediation in Consumer Cases" (2017)
Speaker, American Bankruptcy Institute, Winter Leadership Conference, "Nuts and Bolts of Evidentiary Hearings" (2016)
Speaker, American Bankruptcy Institute, Winter Leadership Conference, "Marketing Your Bankruptcy Practice Today: SEO Optimization; Social Media; or the Phone Book" (2016)
Speaker, Federal Bar Association, 13th Annual Bankruptcy Ethics Symposium, "The Emergence of Robot Lawyers: California State Bar No. 93548 vs. Legal Zoom, the Cloud, and You Tube" (2016)
Speaker, United States Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California, annual mediation program lunch, "Three Things They Didn't Teach you in Mediation School" (2016)
Speaker, Bar Association of San Francisco, "Federal Rules of Evidence" (2016)
Speaker, Orange County Bar Association, Commercial Law and Bankruptcy Section, "Common Evidentiary Mistakes in Bankruptcy Court" (2016)
Speaker, American Bar Association, Center for Professional Responsibility, National Specialization Roundtable, "Legal Certification Examinations -- Efficient and Effective Examination Creation and Preservation" (2016)
Speaker, American Bar Association Standing Committee on Legal Specialization, Annual National Roundtable on Lawyer Specialty Certification, "Legal Specialization Workshop: Certification Hypotheticals (Saturday Morning Players)" (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2016)
Speaker, California Bankruptcy Forum, Insolvency Conference, "The Chapter 7 Trustee Received the Gold Mine and the Debtor got the Shaft: Exemptions and Such" (2016)
Speaker, American Bankruptcy Institute, Bankruptcy Battleground West, Judicial "Hot buttons in the Bankruptcy Shark Tank: Discharge of Student Loans" (2016)
Speaker, Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum, "Inside the Judge's Studio with the Hon. Alex Kozinski" (2016)
Speaker, Beverly Hills Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "Admit What (Evidence) You do not Know: Common Evidentiary Mistakes in Bankruptcy Court" (2016)
Speaker, Mississippi Bankruptcy Conference, "Hot Topics in Chapter 11 (Structured Dismissals, Gifting, and More)" (2015)
Speaker, Federal Bar Association, 12th Annual Bankruptcy Ethics Symposium, "Leveraging Technology in the Small Law Office: Tips and Ethical Missteps" (2015)
Los Angeles County Bar Association, Trial Practitioner Section, Inn of Court, "How to Overcome Objections and Get Your Evidence In" (2015)
State Bar of California, Young Lawyers Association, “How to Prepare for a Career as a Legal Specialist” (2015)
Speaker, Central California Bankruptcy Association, Central California Bankruptcy Institute, "Defending Nondischargeability Litigation" (2015)
Speaker, Central California Bankruptcy Association, Central California Bankruptcy Institute, "15 Minutes with a Bankruptcy Humorist" (2015)
Commercial Law League of America, "Where the Rubber Hits the Road on Enforcement of Judgments" (2015)
Speaker, California Bankruptcy Forum, "Exemptability of Retirement Plans" (2015)
Speaker, California Bankruptcy Forum, "Hardship Discharge of Student Loans in Bankruptcy" (2015)
Speaker, American Board of Certification, "Certification Review Course -- American Board of Certification: Chapters 1 through 5; Consumer Bankruptcy Overview; and Hot Topics in Business Bankruptcy" (2015)
Speaker, Beverly Hills Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Section, "The Middle Game in Adversary Proceedings: Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26 and Crafting the Pre‐Trial Order" (2015)
Speaker, Loyola Law School (Prof. Joel Weinberg -- Bankruptcy Law Seminar), "Fraudulent Transfers and Setoffs" (2015), "Preferences" (2013), Automatic Stay" (2006, 2009, 2011), and "Claims, Bankruptcy Discharge, and Dischargeability" (2010)
Speaker, San Fernando Valley Bar Association, "Dischargeability of Claims" (2015)
American Board of Certification: Director (2009-present); Standards Committee (2009); State Bar Liaison Committee (2010); Chair, State Bar Liaison Committee (2011-2014); Faculty Committee (2014-2018); Secretary (2015); Treasurer (2016); President-elect (2017); President (2018); Chair (2019)
United States District Court, Central District of California: Lawyer Representative, Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference (2018-2022)
United States Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California: Bench/Bar Judicial Variance Committee (1994-1997); Guest, Judgeship Survey Team, Administrative Office of United States Courts (2011); Legal Specialist Speakers Series (2011); Information Technology Committee (2012-present)
State Bar of California, Committee of Bar Examiners: Member (2011-2014); Subcommittee on Operations & Management: Member (2011-2013), Chair (2013-2014); Subcommittee on Examinations: Member (2011), Chair (2012-2013); Subcommittee on Moral Character (2011-2012, 2013-2014); Subcommittee on Educational Standards (2011)
State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization: Commissioner (2001-2004); Chair, Subcommittee on Publicity/Public Awareness (2001-2004); Chair, Subcommittee on Rules (2004-2005); Vice-Chair (2004-2005); Chair (2005-2006); Member, California State Bar Affinity Administrator Evaluation Working Group (2006); Advisor (2006-2007); Council of Past Chairs (2007-2010)
Personal and Small Business Bankruptcy Law Advisory Commission, State Bar of California, Board of Legal Specialization: Commissioner (1997-2001); Vice-Chair (1999-2000); and Chair (2000-2001)
Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum: Secretary (1997-1998); Program Chair (1998-1999); Vice-President (1999-2000); President (2000-2001); Director (1994-2001); ex officio Director (2001-present); Webmaster, labankruptcyforum.org (1998-2013); Webmaster, bankruptcydog.com (2007-present)
California Bankruptcy Forum: CBF Director (1998-2001, 2008-2009); Co-chairman (Education), CBF Insolvency Conference (2001); Co-Conference Chair, CBF Insolvency Conference (2004); Sponsor, Bankruptcy Poetry Competition, CBF Insolvency Conference (2011-2012); Co-chairman, Consumer Bankruptcy Program, CBF Insolvency Conference (2013); Sponsor, Bankruptcy Joke Contest, CBF Insolvency Conference (2013); Sponsor, Bankruptcy Photography Contest, CBF Insolvency Conference (2014, 2015, 2016); Sponsor, Bankruptcy Cartoon Caption Contest, CBF Insolvency Conference (2017); Sponsor, Bankruptcy Flash Fiction Contest, CBF Insolvency Conference (2018); Sponsor, Modern Maxims of Insolvency Contest, CBF Insolvency Conference (2019)
Financial Lawyers Conference: Board of Governors (2003-2006); recording engineer for selected dinner programs (2006-2007)
CEB Continuing Education of the Bar: Member, CEB Business and Intellectual Property Law Advisory Committee (2004-2008)
American Bar Association, Standing Committee on Specialization: Accreditation Review Panel (2012)
Federal Bar Association: planning committee, bankruptcy ethics seminar (2011-2021)
Los Angeles County Bar Association, Commercial Law and Bankruptcy Section: Ad Hoc Subcommittee on Proposed Official Revisions to Local Bankruptcy Rules (1997-1998)
Los Angeles County Bar Association: Commercial and Bankruptcy Law Section
American Bankruptcy Institute: Member (1990-present); Coordinating editor, ABI Journal (2014-present)
Staff, National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (2021)
Producer, "A Short Film About the Hon. Robert N. Kwan" (2021)
Producer, "Meet Joe Bernfeld: A Short Film About One of the Founders of the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum" (2021)
Staff, National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (host and producer of 2019 NCBJ videos)
Guest, "Columnists Disclose History and Outlook for Chapter 8" (American Bankruptcy Institute podcast, 2018)
Staff, National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (moderator of 2018 NCBJ streaming presentation; host and producer of 2018 NCBJ videos)
Guest, radio talk show, "Your Legal Rights," KALW 91.7 FM (NPR affiliate), San Francisco (1999, 2001-2006, 2011, 2015)
Recurring guest, radio talk show, "Bob McCormick's Money 101" on KNX 1070 AM, Los Angeles (2008-2012) and KFWB 980 AM, Los Angeles (2011-2014)
