Ms. Anderson is a partner in Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell’s Bankruptcy & Restructuring Group. She has represented secured and unsecured creditors in bankruptcy cases and out-of-court restructurings throughout the country. Her clients include numerous lending institutions, including several large domestic and foreign banks. Ms. Anderson has experience advising buyers and sellers of assets of troubled companies. She also represents debtors and assignees for the benefit of creditors.
Ms. Anderson’s recent client representations include the following:
- Representing secured lender in chapter 11 case filed by issuer of extended vehicle services contracts;
- Representing aircraft financiers in the United Airlines case, including foreclosing out the equity interests in aircraft leased to United;
- Winning defendants’ motion to dismiss a preference complaint filed in In re TWA, Inc. against recipients of alleged preferential payments in excess of $2 million, resulting in a ruling setting heightened pleading standards for preference complaints;
- Representing a railcar parts manufacturer in connection with the contested sale of all of its assets in a chapter 11 case, conducting the sales auction only three weeks after the case was filed;
- Advising the assignee for the benefit of creditors of an employee health benefit plan;
- Representing the purchaser of an insurance brokerage company sold under section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code in the Conseco chapter 11 case; and
- Recovering a large break-up fee for a financial institution after its bid for the major assets of a chapter 11 debtor was topped by another bidder.
Ms. Anderson also has extensive experience advising insurance companies in bankruptcy cases. She frequently represents insurance companies in the collection of premium, deductibles, and other amounts owed to them by insolvent companies, especially with respect to amounts due on loss-sensitive policies. She has enforced insurers’ rights to collect amounts due from their bankrupt insureds, often involving claims by the insurers in the tens of million of dollars, in venues throughout the country, including the United States Supreme Court, in cases such as Howard Delivery, Wickes Furniture, Tweeter Home Entertainment Group, Automotive Professionals, Inc., ASARCO, Pacific Lumber, Delta, U.S. Airways, WorldCom, National Steel, The Fleming Companies, Piccadilly Cafeterias, Bethlehem Steel, Kaiser Aluminum, Owens Corning, and Payless Cashways.
Ms. Anderson also counsels insurers with respect to the handling of covered claims when their insureds are in bankruptcy. She has represented major insurers in coverage disputes in several prominent chapter 11 cases involving mass tort litigation, including in the Celotex, Dow Corning and Archdiocese of Portland cases. In addition, Ms. Anderson counsels insurers and reinsurers in connection with commutation agreements with troubled insurance companies. She has assisted purchasers of books of business from troubled insurance companies in minimizing their operational and financial risks in any subsequent insolvency proceeding involving the seller.
Ms. Anderson is Chair of the Claims and Priorities Subcommittee of the Business Bankruptcy Committee of the Business Law Section of the American Bar Association.
Reported Cases
Howard Delivery Serv. v. Zurich Am. Ins. Co., 126 S. Ct. 2105, 547 U.S. 651 (2006); reversing In re Howard Delivery Service, Inc. v. Zurich American Insurance Company, 403 F.3d 228 (4th Cir. 2005).
TWA Inc. Post Confirmation Estate v. Marsh USA Inc. (In re TWA Inc. Post Confirmation Estate), 305 B.R. 228 (Bankr. Delaware 2004).
In re Dow Corning Corp., 198 B.R. 214 (Bankr. E.D. MI 1996).
Speeches
- “How High is Your Proof?--Requirements of a Valid Proof of Claim”, ABA Section of Business Law Spring Meeting, Washington D.C. (March 16, 2007).
- “Non-Traditional Risk Transfer Options,” Mealey’s 5th Annual Advance Insurance Coverage Conference, Philadelphia, PA (January 22-23, 2007).
- “Bankruptcy Issues Faced by Insurers,” Insurance Society of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA (September 27, 2006).
- “The Insurance Litigator in Bankruptcy Court,” DRI’s Insurance Coverage and Claims Institute, Chicago, IL (May 4-5, 2006).
- “Class Conflicts: Struggles between Junior and Senior Debt Security Holders,” ABA Section of Business Law Spring Meeting, Tampa, FL (April 7, 2006).
- “Bankruptcy of the Policyholder,” Mealey’s 4th Annual Advance Insurance Coverage Conference: Top 10 Issues, Philadelphia, PA (January 23-24, 2006).
- Loras College, B.A., 1976, maxima cum laude
- Yale Law School, J.D., 1980
- U.S. District Court, N.D. Illinois, 1980
- U.S. District Court, S.D. Texas, 1983
- U.S. Court of Appeals (6th Circuit), 2001
- U.S. Court of Appeals (4th Circuit), 2004
- U.S. Supreme Court, 2006
- Chicago Bar Association
- American Bar Association
- Loyola Academy, Trustee (1993-1999)
- State Bar of Texas
- Cristo Rey Jesuit High School, Director (1999-2005)
- Charis Ministries, Director (2006 - Present)
- Chicago Hope Academy, Director (2007 - Present)