Law and Society Association Annual Meeting The Law and Society Association Annual Meeting took place in Chicago, Illinois, on May 22–25, 2025, and featured a number of College of Law faculty and JSD students as presenters. Illinois Law professors presenting included Kenworthey Bilz, Bob Lawless, Jennifer Robbennolt, and Verity Winship; affiliated faculty presenting included Jose […]
“It’ll just be a steady drip, drip, drip of companies trying to game the system and nickel and dime people via aggressive practices,” Professor Robert Lawless told the Illinois News Bureau about changes to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. He noted that laws preventing actions like those taken by banks preceding the subprime mortgage crisis […]
Tara Twomey’s tenure as executive director of the U.S. Trustee Program was recently terminated by the Trump administration, drawing criticism from Professor Robert Lawless. In a blog for Credit Slips, Lawless writes that “Under Twomey’s leadership the US Trustee Program did dozens of things that make the system work just a little bit better for […]
When struggling with debt, many people delay filing for bankruptcy as long as possible; however, delaying may be more harmful than many realize. “People misunderstand bankruptcy and wait too long to see a bankruptcy lawyer. Most people would benefit by going earlier,” Professor Robert Lawless told CBS in a new article about the timing of […]
Research on overindebtedness and household incomes represents “low-hanging fruit,” according to Professor Robert Lawless. In a new article published in the Annual Review of Law and Social Science, he and his co-authors review current literature about who files bankruptcy, what causes bankruptcy, what happens in bankruptcy court, and what happens after cases conclude. They also […]
Though the results of the November elections in the United States will represent a mandate for one group, there are several issues the Biden administration will likely seek to address in its last few months in the White House. The Wall Street Journal compiled a list of some of these policy priorities, including student-loan discharges. […]
“For any court process to be seen as fair, people must see the judge as unbiased and believe the judge based the decision only on the evidence presented,” Professor Robert Lawless writes in an opinion article published by Bloomberg Law. Though this statement seems uncontroversial, the practice of “venue shopping” for bankruptcy proceedings undermines the […]
Professors Bob Lawless and Jennifer Robbennolt co-authored a blog post for Psychology Today, titled “Purdue Pharma, Bankruptcy, and Procedural Justice.” In the post, they discuss how the Sackler family sought a release in the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy case that would protect them from facing opioid lawsuits, despite not having declared bankruptcy themselves. Many claimants were […]
In the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, Judge Craig T. Goldblatt relied heavily upon the scholarship of Professor Robert Lawless in his opinion for Yellow Corporation’s Chapter 11 plan. Citing “Reframing Arbitration & Bankruptcy,” Judge Goldblatt ruled that Yellow Corp. must resolve issues in bankruptcy court rather than in arbitration. Speaking to […]
Judge Arthur Engoron dealt a significant legal and financial blow to former President Donald Trump’s business empire, including a staggering $355 million fine and temporary removal of Trump and his sons from business leadership roles. Professor Robert Lawless, speaking to ABC News, explained what may happen to Trump and his businesses if his appeal fails […]