Open World Leadership Program
Post Program Report
Visiting Delegation of Russian Judges to Los Angeles
November 8 – 15, 2003
Los Angeles-St. Petersburg Sister City Committee and
American Council (Judge Bufford)

The Special Delegation of Russian judges sponsored by the Open Society flew to Los Angeles on Saturday, November 8. Dr. Ellin Lieberman, President of the Los-Angeles-St. Petersburg Sister City Committee ( LASPSCC) and her husband Dr. Harry Lieberman, along with Board member Barry Gore and his Russian-born wife , Tatiana, met them at the airport and transported them to the Renaissance Biltmore Hotel, Los Angeles’ only top rated downtown historic hotel in Los Angeles. On Saturday evening the Liebermans and Barry Gore took them to dinner at Tesoro Restaurant, an Italian restaurant a block away from the hotel.

On Sunday morning the Liebermans started the day with a Dim Sum brunch at the Empress Pavilion Restaurant in Chinatown (a Los Angeles landmark). Following brunch they saw the Music Center built in 1967 and then went on to the newly opened (and already world renowned) Disney Hall designed by Frank Gehry.The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra was joined by the Los Angeles Chorale in a marvelous rendition of Haydn’s Creation. One judge commented that the music was better than any thing she had heard in St. Petersburg; the concert left her speechless.

After the concert the judges went to the Lieberman’s for dinner. Judge Bufford and his wife, Barry Gore and his wife were joined by Pat Evans from LASPSCC. In addition, the dinner included Darrel Menthe, Judge Bufford’s former law clerk (and his girlfriend) who speaks Russian, and Judge Bufford’s extern Leonora Gorelik who speaks Russian and was born in Minsk.

On Monday morning the Russian judges met with Judge Bufford in the visiting judge’s chambers next to Judge Bufford’s at the Roybal Federal Courthouse in downtown Los Angeles. After an orientation session, Dennis Tibayan led the Russian judges on a tour of the courthouse, its facilities, its file room and its automation systems.

After the courthouse tour the Russian judges went to the law offices of Kirkland & Ellis, an international law firm, to meet with lawyers and to see the operation of a large law firm. The Russian judges skipped a planned tour of the law office to spend their time meeting with partners of the firm, including Richard Wynne, a leading international insolvency specialist. The judges had a lively discussion with seven or eight law firm partners.

After lunch, the judges returned to the courthouse and met with Judge Maureen Tighe, who has served as United States Trustee for the region including the Central District of California for the last five years. In addition to discussing the supervisory responsibilities of a United States Trustee in the bankruptcy process, Judge Tighe also discussed the prosecution of bankruptcy crimes (Judge Tighe was the leading bankruptcy crime prosecutor in the United States before her appointment as United States Trustee).

After the meeting with Judge Tighe, the delegation met with Elga Sharpe, the Chief of Protocol for Mayor James K. Hahn ,at Los Angeles City Hall. She presented official “ Welcome Certificates” from the City to each judge, along with some mementos. In turn, the judges also gave Ms. Sharpe some gifts from Russia. Ms. Sharpe took the group to the Bradley Room in the top floor of City Hall, where they enjoyed a panoramic view of Los Angeles. They could see the world famous Hollywood sign. The day was fairly clear, and it was possible to see the San Gabriel and San Bernardino Mountains to the north, Catalina Island to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. In addition, there was a beautiful sunset.

Thereafter, Barry Gore, accompanied the group for a shopping expedition. . In typical fashion of visitors from eastern Europe, they had brought shopping instructions from friends and relatives. Barry Gore took them to dinner at a downtown restaurant.

Tuesday was Veterans’ Day, a United States holiday; all courts were closed. The group visited the Getty Museum, a world-renowned museum on a mountain top in the outskirts of Los Angeles. Thereafter, they went to a beach house in Malibu where they were entertained by Professor Judy Sloan, a bankruptcy law professor at Southwestern University Law School. After walking on the beach and having dinner, the Russians enjoyed a concert by a piano quartet including Dr. Bill Sloan, playing on his Guarnerius violin. It turned out that Judge Natalia Kuznetsova from St. Petersburg is an accomplished pianist (although a little out of practice); she played for the guests as well. The evening ended with a rendition of “Old Man River” from Showboat by Judge Bufford.

Wednesday was a busy day for the Russian judges at the courthouse. At 9:30 a.m. they attended the hearings in Judge Bufford’s courtroom on motions for relief from the moratorium resulting from the filing of a bankruptcy case. They saw one creditor sanctioned for violating the moratorium by delaying the return of a debtor’s automobile after the bankruptcy filing and telling the debtor that the automobile would not be returned.

At 10:00 a.m. the Russian judges went to see an extended cash collateral hearing in a new chapter 11 reorganization case before Judge Ernest Robles. This turned out to be a complicated hearing that lasted an hour. When it was finished they returned to Judge Bufford’s courtroom to attend his 11:00 a.m. hearing calendar. After the morning’s hearings, the Russian judges met with Judge Bufford for a discussion.

At noon the Russian judges had lunch with several bankruptcy judges sitting in Los Angeles. The lunch meeting included a lively discussion about bankruptcy practices in Russia and in the United States. After lunch the Russians attended the hearings on Judge Bufford’s afternoon calendar. Thereafter, they again met with Judge Bufford.

At 4:00 p.m. the judges were guests at a reception sponsored by the International Law Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association in the courthouse lobby. Approximately 30 people attended the reception, including lawyers, bankruptcy judges and a number of law clerks.

On Wednesday evening, the Russian judges attended a law class at Southwestern University on bankruptcy law, normally taught by Professor Sloan. On this evening Judge Bufford was a guest lecturer on the subject of professional responsibility in bankruptcy cases. After the class, the law school hosted a reception attended by many students in the bankruptcy class, as well as other law students at the university.

On Thursday Barry Gore hosted the group on a tour of Hollywood and Universal Studios, where they were treated to a VIP tour of the facilities and programs. Universal Studios was a hit. The judges enjoyed the guided tram tour but enjoyed even more the rides and attractions. The “Back to the Future” ride left them in disbelief, but they were rudely awakened when they got splashed at the Jurassic Park boat ride.

Dinner was hosted by Dr. Vladamir Zelman, Co-Chairman of the Department of Anesthesiology at the U.S.C. School of Medicine. In addition , Dr. Zelman has received many honors – most notably including being a member of the Russian Academy of Science.The Russian dinner was prepared by Tatiana Gore and Dr. Zelman’s housekeeper. The group was impressed by Dr. Zelman’s home, his hospitality and great warmth. Tatiana played the piano after dinner and everyone sang. The judges later commented that this night was one of the highpoint of their trip.

On Friday morning, the judges attended a hearing calendar in Los Angeles County Superior Court for Judge Judy Chirlin, a well-known jurist. The calendar consisted of hearings in civil cases involving a number of business disputes, and lasted an hour and a half. Thereafter, Judge Chirlin met with the them in her chambers, and discussed her travels and teaching and various places in Russia. In fact, it turned out that she had traveled many more places in Russia than any of the Russian judges themselves.

After the meeting with Judge Chirlin, the Russians returned with Judge Bufford to the Federal Courthouse for a final wrap up meeting. Thereafter, the Russians went to the Beverly Center for an afternoon of shopping. On Friday evening the group had a special treat by sitting in a skybox belonging to a local lawyer for a basketball game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Detroit Pistons in a at the new Los Angeles Staples Center.

On Saturday, the delegation returned to Russia – after a busy and successful visit.