[author: Stephanie Slater]

On April 6, 2021, J. Kate Stickles was sworn in as a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Delaware. According to an Announcement issued by the Delaware Bankruptcy Court, Judge Stickles fills the seat vacated by former Judge Kevin J. Carey, who retired in 2019. With Judge Stickles’ appointment, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court now has seven total members on its bench. Judge Stickles has practiced in Wilmington, Delaware for 30 years and has been recognized as a leading bankruptcy practitioner in Chambers USA since 2010, Best Lawyers in America, and Best Lawyers Business Edition, 2017-2020.

The Delaware Bankruptcy Court is one of the busiest bankruptcy courts in the nation. In 2020, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court recorded 1,666 chapter 11 filings, surpassing all other bankruptcy courts’ chapter 11 totals. This high number of cases is due in large part to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. This historic number of cases before the then six-member Delaware bankruptcy bench added more to the judges’ case load who already handled the most cases per judge prior to the pandemic. For comparison, in 2019, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court recorded only 611 chapter 11 filings.

With the addition of J. Kate Stickles, the Delaware Bankruptcy Court now has a seventh member to assist in managing its hectic caseload.

Stephanie Slater is a Law Clerk, based in the firm’s Wilmington, DE office.

[View source.]