Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2024

Abstract

Over the course of a few days, Judge Christopher M. Klein agreed to sit down, figuratively speaking, with Professor Nancy Rapoport and answer a few questions about how he approaches his job as a bankruptcy judge.

By way of background, Judge Klein was appointed to the bench in 1998 as a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Eastern District of California. He was a member of the Bankruptcy Appellate Panel of the Ninth Circuit from 1998 through August 2008, serving as Chief Judge from 2007 to 2008. Prior to 1988, after service in the Marine Corps as an artillery officer in Vietnam and judge advocate, Judge Klein was a trial attorney in the United States Department of Justice; in private practice with Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton; and deputy general counsel-litigation of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation.

During his time on the bankruptcy bench, Judge Klein has presided over thousands of bankruptcy cases—both individual and business—and interacted with countless debtors, creditors, and professionals. He also was a member of the Advisory Committee on the Federal Rules of Bankruptcy Procedure and the Advisory Committee on the Federal Rules of Evidence; he has spoken on many panels and participated in likely as many roundtables; and he has written articles on bankruptcy law and practice. His vast experience, including his time as a nonbankruptcy attorney and in public and private practice, offers unique insights and food for thought for the bankruptcy community.

Publication Citation

98 Am. Bankr. L.J. 603 (2024).

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