Philadelphia Bankruptcy Attorney Bill Schorling Quoted on Most Influential Bankruptcy Cases of 2010

Bill Schorling, chair of Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney's Bankruptcy & Creditors' Rights Group, was quoted by Law 360 on January 1, 2011. The article "Top '10 Bankruptcy Rulings Show Devil's in the Details," highlighted the most influential bankruptcy cases of 2010.

Schorling spoke on the precedent setting Universal Building Products case, which involved questionable ethical practices regarding solicitation of non-client votes.

"In the Universal Building Products case," the article summarized, "the law firms Arent Fox LLP and Elliot Greenleaf & Siedzikowski PC were accused of using a third-party translator to solicit Chinese creditors who were not clients. The law firms wanted to convince the creditors to vote for the firms to serve as counsel to the creditors committee."

Such a practice was common but unethical, Schorling explained.

"Everyone was pretty sure it was going on, but no one would own up to it," he said. "It's the first case, that I'm aware of, where it was a matter of record."

The ruling indicates the courts will hold firms accountable for the work of their third parties.