Partner
Eric Johnson is a partner at Spencer Fane and is the co-practice group leader for the Banking and Financial Services Group and practice group leader for the Bankruptcy, Restructuring, and Creditors’ Rights Group.
Eric represents clients in bankruptcy, non-bankruptcy insolvency proceedings, such as receiverships and foreclosure proceedings, out of court workouts and restructurings, and other related insolvency matters. As an experienced litigator, he also represents clients in complex insolvency related litigation, including bankruptcy avoidance actions and other adversary proceedings and contested matters. Eric also is a member of the panel of Chapter 7 trustees for the Western District of Missouri and is currently serving as a federal equity receiver.
With a strong commitment to the bar and legal education, Eric is currently serving as a board member of the Kansas Bar Association Bankruptcy and Insolvency Section. In the past, he has served as the chair of the Missouri Bar’s Business/Corporate Division, the co-chair for the Missouri Bar’s Bankruptcy Creditor-Debtor Rights Committee, president and board member for the Kansas City Bankruptcy Bar Association, and the president of the Kansas Bar Association Bankruptcy and Insolvency Section, and as a member of the Bench Bar Committees for the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts for the District of Kansas and the Western District of Missouri. Eric has also served on various subcommittees for the Missouri Bar including the subcommittee related to the Missouri Commercial Receivership Act.
Eric is a fellow of The American College of Bankruptcy, Class XXXII (2021). His selection for the College recognizes his professional excellence and contributions to the fields of bankruptcy and insolvency.
Eric is also very active in the American Bankruptcy Institute, the nation’s largest association of bankruptcy professionals. He currently serves on the ABI Board of Directors. In the past, Eric served as co-chair and advisory board member for the Midwestern Bankruptcy Institute, an annual program jointly sponsored by the ABI and the University of Missouri – Kansas City, the co-chair, education director and communications director for the Secured Creditors Committee, and as the membership director for ABI’s Bankruptcy Litigation Committee. Eric served on the 2019 Steering Committee for ABI’s 40 under 40 program.
Eric is a frequent author and speaker on insolvency related topics. Recently, he has been a panelist/presenter or authored articles on the following topics:
- Everything Equipment: How to Value, Finance and Liquidate Types of Equipment, and Restructuring Methods, ABI Winter Leadership Meeting, December 2022
- Fees, Compensation, and Disclosures, MoBar 2022 Annual Bankruptcy Institute, March 2022
- Off to the Races: Procedural and Substantive Implications of § 557 and Grain Storage Facilities, XLI ABI Journal 40-41, 71, December 2022 (with Andrea M. Chase and James A. Lodoen (Spencer Fane LLP))
- Beware Collateral Pitfalls In Agricultural Loans, Missouri Independent Bankers Association (MIBA), Show-Me Banker Magazine, October 2022 (with Camber Jones (Spencer Fane LLP))
- Construction Lending and Bankruptcy: What Lenders Need to Know to Protect Their Interests Before and After a Borrower Files Bankruptcy, Spencer Fane Webinar Series, May 2021
- Evaluating Bankruptcy, Receivership, and Assignment For the Benefit of Creditor Alternatives to Protect Lender, Buyer and Borrower Interests, Strafford CLE, May 2021
- Island of Misfit Toys: Infrequently Used and Misunderstood Provisions of the Bankruptcy Code and Rules, KBA Spring 2021 Virtual Bankruptcy Conference, April 2021
- Liquidity Crisis! Dealing with the Cash-Starved Chapter 11 Debtor Prior to and Through Chapter 11, ABI Annual Spring Meeting, April 2021
- Chapter 7 Panel Trustee Perspective, Kansas City Bankruptcy Bar Association Kansas Judges’ Roundtable Webinar, January 2021
Distinctions
- American College of Bankruptcy, Fellow
- Michael R. Roser Excellence in Bankruptcy Award – presented by the Missouri Bar to an individual who manifests the highest standard of excellence in bankruptcy practice, who has contributed distinctively to the development and appreciation of bankruptcy law, and/or who has made an outstanding contribution in the field of bankruptcy administration or practice, 2020
- Best Lawyers in America, Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law; Litigation – Bankruptcy, 2010-2023
- Best Lawyers in America, Lawyer of the Year, Litigation – Bankruptcy, 2017, 2023
- Best Lawyers in America, Lawyer of the Year, Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law, 2023
- Lawdragon 500 Leading U.S. Bankruptcy and Restructuring Lawyers, 2020, 2022
- Missouri and Kansas Super Lawyers, 2014-2022
- Missouri and Kansas Super Lawyers, Rising Star, 2009, 2011-2013
- Missouri Lawyers Media, POWER List, 2021-2o22
- IFLR1000, Restructuring and Insolvency, 2022
- Kansas City Business Journal, Best of the Bar, 2010-2016
- Board-certified in business bankruptcy by the American Board of Certification. The American Board of Certification’s Business Bankruptcy certification program is accredited by the American Bar Association. (Please note that neither the Supreme Court of Missouri nor the Missouri Bar reviews or approves certifying organizations or special designations. Colorado does not certify attorneys or specialists in any field.)
Memberships
- American Bankruptcy Institute
- Commercial Receivers Association
- Kansas City Bankruptcy Bar Association
- Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association
- Kansas Bar Association
- Missouri Bar Association
- National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees
- The Agricultural Business Council of Kansas City
- University of Northern Iowa Kansas City Alumni Club – Club Leader
- University of Iowa Alumni Association
Contact Eric Johnson at 816.292.8267 or ejohnson@spencerfane.com.