Thoughts on Zealous Advocacy: When Do Bankruptcy Lawyers Cross the Line? Part 1 History of Zealous Advocacy

Chief Judge Cynthia A. Norton graduated summa cum laude from the University of Kansas in 1981 with a double major in French and Art History. She received her law degree from the same institution in May 1984. She clerked for the Hon. John E. Rees of the Kansas Court of Appeals, and the Hon. James A. Pusateri, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge, and was a partner at Lewis Rice & Fingersh in Kansas City, before establishing her own law firm in 1995. As a member of Grimes & Rebein, Judge Norton practiced in bankruptcy and related fields in Kansas and Missouri until being sworn in as a bankruptcy judge in the Western District of Missouri on February 1, 2013. She is the recipient of the Michael R. Roser Excellence in Bankruptcy Award, the Robert L. Gernon Award for Outstanding Contribution to CLE, and the NCBJ Excellence in Education Award and is as well as a Fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy. Judge Norton has authored numerous articles and seminar papers, and has spoken at conferences all around the country. She is a past President of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges and currently serves on the Eighth Circuit’s Bankruptcy Appellate Panel.