Business Law News 2 - College of Law

New paper from Lawsky: “Constructing Deductions”

Professor Sarah Lawsky, along with co-author Leandra Lederman, published the paper “Constructing Deductions” on SSRN.com. The abstract follows:

This Essay identifies drafting “building blocks” that are present in the Internal Revenue Code and that are used to construct many of the deductions available to individuals. The Essay represents these building blocks using mathematical formulas and graphically, and it then shows how the building blocks are combined to create complex deductions. These formalizations and visualizations yield insight into statutory drafting choices. They also reveal “negative space”–that is, ways that federal income tax deductions could be drafted but are not.

Download the full paper at ssrn.com.

Lawless speaks to New York Times about Spirit Airlines shutdown

After struggling financially for years and failing to secure a government bailout, Spirit Airlines announced that it would begin the process of shutting down in early May. Investors were strongly opposed to the government bailout, especially those that had made Spirit debtor-in-possession loans. Such loans have high interest rates, and the investors who own them are paid back before other creditors. The investors also have the right to object to changes, including new loans, that could hurt their interests.

Speaking to the New York Times, bankruptcy expert and professor Bob Lawless compared the rights of these lenders to an oft-cited metaphor of hikers standing on a hill. “The new lender says, ‘We’re on this mountain trail, and there’s plenty of room for you to go out and stand out there closer to the edge of the cliff,’” Lawless said. “And the existing lender has a good response, which is that if there’s so much room, why don’t you go stand out there?”

Read the full story at nytimes.com.

Kaplan says Trump’s recent remarks about pulling back on federal funding of Medicare are result of “fundamental misunderstanding” of how the program works

Professor Kaplan teaches in front of a blackboard

According to the New York Sun, President Trump suggested during remarks at a private luncheon that the federal government may no longer support essential care programs and that states should instead rely on state-level funding to do so.

Professor and tax law expert Richard Kaplan says that the president’s remarks about Medicare, in particular, rest on a fundamental misunderstanding of how the program is financed.

“Medicare is almost entirely funded by the federal government through payroll taxes paid by almost all employees, the great majority of self-employed persons, and most employers; premiums paid by program enrollees; and general federal funds,” Kaplan said. “States have no role of any consequence.”

Read the full article at nysun.com.

Lawless quoted in Bloomberg on arbitration’s rising role in bankruptcy disputes

As consumer bankruptcy filings continue to rise, the role of arbitration has also increased. Because the Federal Arbitration Act and the US bankruptcy code can be at odds with each other and that tension has not yet been tested by the Supreme Court, experts expect that the matter will eventually make its way there.

Professor and bankruptcy expert Bob Lawless, who has written a paper on arbitration and bankruptcy, says that unless amended or repealed, courts should follow both statutes.

Speaking to Bloomberg, he said, “You’ve got to look and say, ‘For this matter in this arbitration agreement, is this subject to arbitration, and does the arbitral demand conflict with a command in the bankruptcy code?’”

Read the full story in Bloomberg.

Winship invested as Edwin M. Adams Professor of Law

Amy Santos, Verity Winship, and Jamelle Sharpe gather for a photo prior to Professor Winship's investiture ceremony

On February 10, 2026, Verity Winship was invested as the Edwin M. Adams Professor of Law in a ceremony honoring her commitment to scholarship, teaching, and public engagement.

An expert in business law and complex litigation, Professor Winship has been a vital part of the College of Law since 2010, twice earning the Carroll P. Hurd Award for Excellence in Faculty Scholarship as well as serving as Interim Dean of the College of Law and the Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs. She has also served as fellow in the Academic Leadership Program in the Big Ten Academic Alliance and chaired the Securities Regulation section of the American Association of Law Schools during her time at Illinois. Her full bio is available on her faculty profile page.

Professor Winship’s endowed position was made possible through a generous gift from the late Edwin M. Adams, a well-known lawyer and actor, who earned his law degree at Illinois in 1939. Joined by her family, Winship was honored with speeches from Dr. Amy Santos, associate provost for faculty development and professor in the Department of Special Education, as well as Dean Jamelle Sharpe.

Watch the ceremony on our YouTube channel.

Verity Winship speaks at a podium during her investiture ceremony.

Amy Santos and Jamelle Sharpe talk and laugh together in a classroom

Brubaker and Lawless add commentary to ABI post on Texas Two-Step bankruptcies

Professors Ralph Brubaker and Robert Lawless were both featured in the commentary featured on the American Bankruptcy Institute’s blog, Rochelle’s Daily Wire. Their commentary discussed the most recent decision in the ongoing controversy over the propriety and legitimacy of so-called “Texas Two-Step” mass-tort bankruptcies. The decision, from the Fourth Circuit, continues to stoke opinion and Lawless writes that it sets up “a Supreme Court decision in the coming years.”

Read their commentary in Rochelle’s Daily Wire.

Lawless joins Ballard Spahr Consumer Finance Monitor Podcast to discuss consumer debt and bankruptcy through the lens of his latest book

Professor Bob Lawless and co-authors Pamela Foohey and Deborah Thorne recently joined the well-regarded Ballard Spahr podcast Consumer Finance Monitor to discuss their book “Debt’s Grip: Risk and Consumer Bankruptcy.”

In the episode, they discuss why people actually file for bankruptcy, the role of debt collection and litigation, potential policy reforms, and much more.

Listen to the episode.

Lawless discusses bankruptcy, the student debt crisis, and more on The UIUC Talkshow

An audio recording studio with microphone and chair

Leading bankruptcy law expert and professor Bob Lawless recently sat down with the students behind the independent, student-run production The UIUC Talkshow. Lawless discussed the student debt crisis, the history of bankruptcy law, and some proposed solutions.

View the full conversation on youtube.com.

Lawless and co-authors discuss their book “Debt’s Grip: Risk and Consumer Bankruptcy” in 2-part series with Law360

Professor Robert Lawless, along with co-authors Pamela Foohey and Deborah Thorne, recently sat down with Law360 for an in-depth interview on their book “Debt’s Grip: Risk and Consumer Bankruptcy.” The book is the latest to come out of the Consumer Bankruptcy Project, a long-term interdisciplinary research project on consumer bankruptcies in the U.S. that began in 1981. The authors discussed what they were hoping to learn (and what surprised them), how the data on who is filing for bankruptcy has changed over time, and what they want lawmakers to take away from the book.

Read Part 1 and Part 2 of the interview.

Brubaker featured on Harvard Bankruptcy Roundtable

Professor Brubaker speaks during a live podcast recording at the College of Law

A new paper from Professor Ralph Brubaker, “Assessing the Legitimacy of the ‘Texas Two-Step’ Mass-Tort Bankruptcy,” was recently featured on the Harvard Law School Bankruptcy Roundtable. Brubaker’s article analyzes the “Texas Two-Step” maneuver as courts grapple with legal challenges to the fundamental legitimacy of it. The paper was also listed on SSRN’s Top Downloads for Bankruptcy, Reorganization & Creditors eJournal and for Law & Society: Private Law-Financial Law eJournal.

Read the article online.