MEDIA ADVISORY

WHAT: Wayne State University's Forum on Contemporary Issues in Society (FOCIS) is presenting "Bankruptcy: What does it mean for the city? Voices from Other Places," the story of other communities that are in or emerging from significant financial stress up to and including bankruptcy.

WHEN: 8 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 21

WHERE: Spencer M. Partrich Auditorium at Wayne State University's Law School, 471 W. Palmer, Detroit.

MORE INFO: Detroit is not the first American municipality to seek protection under Chapter 9 of the Federal Bankruptcy Code -- just the largest and most recent. Since 2010, more than a half-dozen municipalities have traveled the same rocky path.

One panel will feature elected officials and an educator whose cities went through the anguish of bankruptcy. They were the mayors, commissioners, council members or candidates who supported or opposed such a drastic step. Others on the panel are now managing their cities' transitions under the burden of bankruptcy.

The second panel comprises advocates for the various players in those municipalities. They were the lawyers who represented the pensioners, bondholders, city officials, ordinary citizens and the municipalities themselves in federal court. They are the few experts in this relatively new area of law, for what is known as Chapter 9 clearly is different from other forms of bankruptcy.

For more information about FOCIS and the "Voices from Other Places" event, visit focis.wayne.edu.

MEDIA INTERVIEW OPPORTUNITY:

Irvin D. Reid, director of FOCIS and Wayne State University President Emeritus, will be available for media interviews 7:30-8 a.m. preceding the conference opening.

• Please notify Tom Reynolds in advance if interested: treynolds@wayne.edu; 313-577-8093.

Wayne State University is a premier urban research institution offering more than 370 academic programs through 13 schools and colleges to nearly 28,000 students.