James A. Chatz

Of Counsel

James A. Chatz is of counsel in the Chicago and South Florida offices of the law firm of Arnstein & Lehr LLP. Mr. Chatz is also a certified mediator and arbitrator. He has substantial experience in the field of commercial insolvency and creditors’ rights law, representing clients throughout the United States. He also practices in the areas of corporate law and business law, mergers and acquisitions, financial planning and commercial litigation.

Mr. Chatz has more than 50 years experience in the practice of law and as a mediator. During mediation sessions he works with both parties, listening to the needs and concerns of all involved and helps to find common ground.

Mr. Chatz spends a portion of his time in the firm’s South Florida offices, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale, West Palm Beach and Tampa, lending his knowledge and experience as a resource to businesses and individuals with significant interests in Florida. Leveraging the skills of our Florida licensed attorneys, he works to help clients understand the available alternatives for resolving business and financial issues.

Professional Activities and Achievements
Mr. Chatz has served the Commercial Law League of America as president (1985-1986), vice president (1984-1985), Midwestern region representative (1987-88) and sat on numerous CLLA boards and committees. He is a former member of the Political Action Committee of the Illinois State Bar Association. From 1988 to 1998 he was a member of the Illinois State Bar Association’s General Assembly and also served on the Commercial, Banking & Bankruptcy Law Section Committee. Mr. Chatz served as chairman of the Bankruptcy and Reorganization Committee of the Chicago Bar Association and was a founder and former vice president of the American Bankruptcy Institute. He is a member of the American, Illinois and Federal Bar Associations and served as chancellor of the Abraham Lincoln Marovitz Inns of Court. Mr. Chatz served as chairman of the Hospital Rate Reimbursement Board of the State of Illinois and was a member of the Evanston Fair Housing Review Board. He is also Certified in Mediation Skills Training from the School of Continuing Studies at Northwestern University.  He is a member of Key Biscayne Yacht Club and of American Legion Post 374.

Recent Publications and Lectures
Mr. Chatz has written extensively on bankruptcy, creditors’ rights and the Uniform Commercial Code. His is a co-author of the Bankruptcy Reform Act Manual and editor of the Creditors’ Rights Manual. Mr. Chatz has lectured on bankruptcy and creditors’ rights before the American Bankruptcy Institute; Banking Law Institute; Commercial Law League Fund for Public Education; National Association of Credit Managers; Midwest Bank Group; Seibu Corporation, Tokyo, Japan; Missouri Bar Association; Association of Insolvency Accountants; State of Wyoming Ranchers’ Association; and Cooperative Electrical Power Associations. He has been a visiting lecturer in the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University and an adjunct professor of law at John Marshall Law School.  For the past seven years, Mr. Chatz has co-authored a chapter entitled “§305 Abstention” which appears in the Norton Annual Survey of Bankruptcy Law.

Education
Northwestern University Mediation Training Professional Development Program (2010)
Northwestern University (LL.B., 1958)
Oxford University, Oxford, England  (Continuing Studies, 1958)
Michigan State University and Northwestern University (B.Sc., 1956)

Bar Admissions
State of Illinois
United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
State of Colorado
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
United States Supreme Court