Workshop on Bankruptcy

May 17–19, 2001
St. Louis, Missouri

Back to Workshop Program

Alan N. Resnick ¹

Professor Lawrence P. King died on April 1, 2001. As a teacher, lawyer, consultant, law reformer, and scholar, he had an enormous impact on the bankruptcy world during the past half century. He dedicated his professional life to the continuing improvement of the bankruptcy system and, through both his teaching and writing, to the education of thousands of law students, judges, lawyers, legislators and other government officials regarding bankruptcy law and practice. He was one of the true giants in the bankruptcy field and will be sorely missed by his friends and colleagues in the profession. Most importantly, millions of individuals, entrepreneurs, employers, and others who in the future will need relief from undue financial burdens lost a true friend and zealous advocate.

Professor King was the Charles Seligson Professor of Law at New York University School of Law, where he taught in the bankruptcy and commercial law areas for more than 40 years. He served as N.Y.U.’s Associate Dean in the 1970's, and taught as a Visiting Professor at the University of California at Berkeley, Temple University, University of Houston, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Tel-Aviv University, and Haifa University.

Professor King’s teaching career cannot be adequately described by merely listing his formal teaching positions. He was always willing and eager to educate audiences at all levels and in many different contexts. He taught at numerous professional seminars and educational programs, including seminars sponsored by the Federal Judicial Center for judges of the U.S. Courts of Appeals, District Courts, and Bankruptcy Courts. He also was a frequent speaker at the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges. He created, administered, and taught in NYU’s Annual Workshop on Bankruptcy and Business Reorganization, which provided three-day high quality basic and advanced educational programs to thousands of lawyers over the past 26 years. He also taught in informal sessions, such as when he would educate small groups of Congressional staff members. Professor King always saw his primary mission as being that of a teacher, and he did it extremely well, always with an insightful sense of historical context and a healthy dose of humor. But that was only one part of his enormous contribution to the bankruptcy field.

Professor King was also a highly respected and influential scholar, both on bankruptcy and Uniform Commercial Code issues. His most influential written work was through his role as Editor of Collier on Bankruptcy. He was a hands-on editor who carefully edited and influenced the writings of contributing authors. The quality of Collier, the leading treatise in the bankruptcy field during the past 40 years, was very much a product of Professor King’s work. The impact of Collier on the development of bankruptcy law under the Bankruptcy Code, as well as under the former Bankruptcy Act, is immeasurable. He was also the author, co-author, or editor of many other books, including a casebook used in law school courses on creditor’s rights and bankruptcy. Professor King also wrote significant articles in law reviews and other professional publications, including his 1985 article in Vanderbilt Law Review on “Jurisdiction and Procedure Under the Bankruptcy Amendments of 1984," which was cited in more than 40 judicial decisions, including the decision of the Supreme Court in Granfinanciera, S.A. v. Nordberg.

Professor King was never content to just sit in the ivory tower of academia. Rather, he valued his experience as a high-level practitioner. During most of his tenure as a professor at NYU, he was Of Counsel to Wachtel, Lipton, Rosen & Katz in New York City. He regularly consulted with lawyers and clients on some of the most challenging and complex legal issues relating to bankruptcy and insolvency. In addition to providing extraordinary legal services aimed at solving difficult problems for clients, Professor King’s experiences in practice were valuable to his own professional development and learning, and added significantly to his effectiveness as a teacher, scholar, and law reformer. Through his practice, as well as his close personal friendships with the leading practitioners in his field, Professor King’s work in all capacities was grounded in reality.

Professor King’s influence on the development of bankruptcy law goes well beyond his teaching, writing, and consulting in private practice. He served in many influential advisory positions with U.S. and foreign governmental organizations. He served as Reporter, Associate Reporter, and member of the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules of the Judicial Conference of the United States, having been appointed to those positions by Chief Justices Earl Warren, Warren Berger, and William Rehnquist. Nobody had a greater influence in the formulation of the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure after the enactment of the 1978 Bankruptcy Reform Act than its chief reporter, Prof. Lawrence P. King. His contributions to the procedural side of bankruptcy were truly monumental.

In virtually all Congressional action regarding the Bankruptcy Code, Professor King had a significant role. He often testified before committees of the Senate and House of Representatives on bankruptcy legislation, and was often sought out by members of Congress and their staff for his expertise and views. He also played key roles in the work of both Bankruptcy Commissions. He served as a consultant to the pre-Code Commission on the Bankruptcy Laws of the United States in 1971-1973, and as an advisor to the National Bankruptcy Review Commission in 1996-1997. He also played important advisory roles outside the United States. He advised the Ministry of Justice of Israel and a committee of the Knesset of Israel, the Commission on Bankruptcy Laws of Sweden, and German legislative committees regarding reorganization laws.

Professor King’s influence on bankruptcy law and practice also resulted from his active participation in the National Bankruptcy Conference, a voluntary organization of approximately 60 lawyers, judges, and professors dedicated to the improvement of the bankruptcy system. He was prominent in his impact on the NBC. Through his formulation of NBC position papers, his persuasive advocacy in the organization’s debates, and his leadership roles as Chairman of the Legislative Committee and then Vice Chairman of the Conference, Professor King was a major force in that organization’s work during the past 40 years.

Professor King also influenced the shape and direction of bankruptcy law through his participation in other professional organizations. He was a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy, and was a member of the American Law Institute and the American Bar Association Business Bankruptcy Committee. It is not surprising that Professor King was highly recognized by his peers, having won numerous awards. He received the American College of Bankruptcy Distinguished Service Award, was selected in 1969 as Man of the Year of the Commercial Law League of America, won the Excellence in Education 2000 Award by the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, and was honored by the Bankruptcy Lawyers Division of the UJA-Federation.