Laura Coordes
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Phone: 480-965-8976
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SDOC College of Law 111 East Taylor Street 582 Phoenix, AZ 85004
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Mail code: 9520Campus: Dtphx
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Laura Coordes's research focuses on bankruptcy and financial distress and includes commercial law, large corporate reorganizations, international and comparative insolvency law, and local government finance and policy. She teaches Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, Advanced Bankruptcy, Secured Transactions (in-person and online), and Contracts. Professor Coordes is an active member of the American Bankruptcy Institute (ABI) and was honored as a member of the ABI's 40 Under 40 in 2020. Professor Coordes served on the board of the American Bankruptcy Law Journal from 2019 until 2022 and is an Honorary Master of the Arizona Bankruptcy American Inn of Court. She also serves on the Education Committee for Credit Abuse Resistance Education (CARE). Professor Coordes is currently serving as the Reporter for the Uniform Law Commission's Drafting Committee on Assignments for the Benefit of Creditors. With Charles Tabb and Kara Bruce, she is author of The Law of Bankruptcy (6th ed.). She is also a contributor to SLoGLaw Blog and a contributing editor for Bankruptcy Law Letter. Professor Coordes received her J.D. with honors from The University of Chicago Law School, where she was a Bradley Fellow and served on The University of Chicago Law Review. She completed a legal fellowship at the Student Press Law Center after receiving her degree. Before coming to the College of Law, Professor Coordes practiced in the Business, Finance and Restructuring Department at Weil, Gotshal & Manges in New York.
- J.D. (Honors), University of Chicago Law School 2010
- B.A., summa cum laude, New York University 2006
Access to bankruptcy, municipal bankruptcy, large corporate reorganizations
Books
Municipalities in Financial Distress: An ESG Critique (Edward Elgar Publishing, expected 2024) (with Eugenio Vaccari, Yseult Marique, and Geo Quinot).
Law of Bankruptcy, Sixth Edition (West Academic, expected 2023) (with Charles Jordan Tabb & Kara J. Bruce).
Article 9 Plainly Stated (West Academic, 2022) (with Adrian Cohen).
Scholarly Articles
Toward a Model Law for the Treatment of Distressed Local Public Entities, Chicago-Kent L. Rev. (forthcoming 2023) (with Yseult Marqiue & Eugenio Vaccari).
Uncovering Municipal Fiscal Distress in the United States, 21 Public Finance & Management 86 (2023) (with Thom Reilly, Erin Reinisch & David Schlinkert).
Bankruptcy Overload, 57 Georgia L. Rev. 1133 (2023).
Global Trends in the Treatment of Local Public Entities in Distress: A Principled Approach, 32 Int’l Insolvency Rev. 93 (2023) (with Yseult Marique & Eugenio Vaccari).
A Path Forward for the Postal Service, 37 Emory Bankr. Dev. J. 581 (2021).
A Proactive Approach to Hospital Financial Health, 95 Am. Bankr. L.J. 33 (2021).
Unmasking the Consumer Privacy Ombudsman, 82 Mont. L. Rev. 1 (2021).
Bespoke Bankruptcy, 73 Fla. L. Rev. 359 (2021).
Reviewing Redwater: An Analysis of the U.S. and Canadian Approaches to Environmental Obligations in Bankruptcy, 64 Canadian Bus. L.J. 151 (2021).
Necessity or Overreach? Weighing the Costs and Benefits of State Law Interpretation in Oil and Gas Bankruptcy Cases, 6 Oil & Gas, Nat. Resources & Energy J. 1 (2020).
Narrowing Equity in Bankruptcy, 94 Am. Bankr. L.J. 303 (2020).
Reorganizing Health Care Bankruptcy, 61 B.C.L. Rev. 419 (2020).
Beyond the Bankruptcy Code: A New Statutory Bankruptcy Regime for Tribal Debtors, 35 Emory Bankr. Dev. J. 363 (2019).
When Borders Dissolve, 93 Chi-Kent L. Rev. 649 (2018) (symposium piece).
Formalizing Chapter 9's Experts, 116 Mich. L. Rev. 1249 (2018).
Gatekeepers Gone Wrong: Reforming the Chapter 9 Eligibility Rules, 94 Wash. U.L. Rev. 1191 (2017).
New Rules for a New World: How Technology and Globalization Shape Bankruptcy Venue Decisions, 17 Asper Rev. Int'l Bus. & Trade L. 85 (2017).
Predictors of Municipal Bankruptcies and State Intervention Programs: An Exploratory Study, 105 Kentucky L.J. 493 (2017; with Thom Reilly).
Restructuring Municipal Bankruptcy, 2016 Utah L. Rev. 307 (2016).
The Geography of Bankruptcy, 68 Vand. L. Rev. 381 (2015).
Courses
2025 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
2024 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 735 | Teaching Assistant |
| LAW 515 | Contracts |
| LAW 515 | Contracts |
2024 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 655 | Chapter 11 |
| LAW 661 | Advanced Bankruptcy Law |
2023 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 735 | Teaching Assistant |
| LAW 515 | Contracts |
| LAW 622 | Secured Transactions |
2023 Summer
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
2023 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
2022 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 735 | Teaching Assistant |
| LAW 661 | Advanced Bankruptcy Law |
2022 Summer
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
2022 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
2021 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 735 | Teaching Assistant |
| LAW 515 | Contracts |
| LAW 622 | Secured Transactions |
2021 Summer
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
2021 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 622 | Secured Transactions |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
2020 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
| LAW 735 | Teaching Assistant |
| LAW 515 | Contracts |
| LAW 622 | Secured Transactions |
2020 Summer
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 784 | Internship |
| LAW 622 | Secured Transactions |
2020 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| LAW 781 | Independent Study |
| LAW 770 | Law Journal |
| LAW 622 | Secured Transactions |
| LAW 655 | Chapter 11 |
| LAW 791 | Seminar |
Selected Presentations and Conferences
Business Law Case Update, Federal Judicial Center webinar (expected September 5, 2023).
Droit Comparé des Contrats en France et aux Etats-Unis (with Rafael Amaro, Université de Caen May 24, 2023).
Panel Chair, Resolving Torts Through Chapter 11: Voting, Cramdown, and Third-Party Releases (GW Law Bench, Bar & Bankruptcy Complex Litigation Forum, Nov. 18, 2022)
Local Public Entities in Distress, INSOL Talks Podcast (November 2022)
Making Class Work for You, Advance Pre-Orientation Program (Fall 2021, 2022)
Mediation During US Insolvency Proceedings, Training on Mediation for Insolvency Professionals (August 5, 2022)
How to Prepare for Law School, Admitted Students Virtual Session (Summer 2021, 2022)
ABI Diversity Working Group Mentorship Panel (May 26, 2021)
Legal Considerations After Marijuana Legalization, Legal-Ease Podcast (May 20, 2021)
Commentator, Junior Consumer Law Works-in-Progress, AALS Annual Meeting (January 6, 2021)
Bankruptcy & Covid-19 Working Group Status Conference (August 27, 2020)
ASU Law Alumni Event (May 27, 2020)
- Presenter, Bankruptcy and COVID-19
Kutak Rock Partner Retreat (February 24, 2020)
- Speaker, Business Bankruptcy Trends
Arizona Bankruptcy American Inn of Court Meeting (September 11, 2019)
- Speaker, Helping Health Care Providers “Fail Better”
Marijuana Bankruptcy Episode, Legal-Ease Podcast (June 30, 2019)
Bankruptcy Basics, NCBJ Webinar (April 25, 2019)
ABI Winter Leadership Conference, Scottsdale, AZ (December 7, 2018)
- Panelist, Access to Justice Revisited: Getting Chapter 7 Debtor Counsel Paid
Southeastern Association of Law Schools Annual Meeting, Fort Lauderdale, FL (August 5, 2018)
- Panelist: Restructuring Puerto Rico’s Debt: Implications for the Territory and Beyond
Commercial Case Law Update Panel, Arizona State Bar Convention, Chandler, Arizona (June 29, 2018)
The 2nd Cross-Border Corporate Insolvency and Commercial Law [CI&CL] Research Group Conference, City University of London (April 27, 2018)
- Presenter, Restructuring Municipal Bankruptcy: Challenges and Opportunities
Enforcing Environmental Sustainability in the face of Business Failure and Distress, University of Oslo (January 9, 2018)
- Invited Speaker, Harmonizing Insolvency and Sustainability in the Courtroom and the Boardroom
Southeastern Association of Law Schools Annual Conference, Boca Raton, Florida (August 2017)
- Discussion Group Participant, Entrepreneurship Initiatives in Poor Communities: Economic Inclusion or Exclusion?
Law & Society 2017 Annual Meeting, Mexico City, Mexico (June 22, 2017)
- Roundtable Participant, Entrepreneurship Initiatives in Poor Communities: Economic Inclusion or Exclusion?
2017 AALS Annual Meeting, San Francisco, California (January 3-7, 2017)
- Panelist, The Supreme Court’s Bankruptcy Jurisprudence
ASU Business & Finance Meeting, Phoenix, Arizona (October 13, 2016)
- Speaker, Resolving Cities’ Fiscal Distress with Municipal Bankruptcy
Federal Administrative Law Judges Conference, Scottsdale, Arizona (Sept. 27, 2016)
- Presenter, When Bankruptcy and Administrative Law Collide: Recurring Issues in Administrative Law Cases
Arizona State Bar Convention, Chandler, Arizona (June 17, 2016)
- Panelist, Recharacterization of Debts in Bankruptcy
American Law and Economics Association Annual Meeting, Columbia Law School (May 16, 2015)
- Discussant, Alan Schwartz et al., Contracting Externalities and Mandatory Menus in the U.S. Corporate Bankruptcy Code
National Conference of State Liquor Administrators, Washington, DC (June 21, 2012)
- Invited Panelist, Now that Alcohol is Legal Again—How Should it be Regulated?
ABI 40 Under 40 (2020)
2018 American Bankruptcy Law Journal Academic Fellow
Bankruptcy Law Letter (contributing editor)
ABI Volo (volunteer editor)
New York State Bar; United States District Court for the Southern District of New York; American Bankruptcy Institute; The American Bankruptcy Law Journal; Arizona Bankruptcy American Inn of Court; Credit Abuse Resistance Education (CARE) Education Committee; American Bankruptcy Institute Veterans Task Force; Arizona Foundation for Women
Co-Chair, Municipalities Committee, Bankruptcy & COVID-19 Working Group
Organizer of roundtable faculty teaching workshops
Faculty co-advisor, Corporate and Business Law Journal, Corporate and Business Law Society, Business Legal Assistance Program