William L. "Bill" Norton III

Bill Norton focuses his practice in the business bankruptcy area, dealing in all aspects of bankruptcy cases, creditor rights and insolvency. He first became familiar with the bankruptcy law from his Dad who was a noted scholar and Bankruptcy Judge in Atlanta, Georgia. Bill went to Vanderbilt Law School intending to practice in bankruptcy law and has done so since 1984. Over more than 25 years of practice of bankruptcy and insolvency law, Bill has represented just about every kind of client interest you can expect in bankruptcy cases. His main focus now is Chapter 11 business cases – representing debtors, secured creditors, unsecured creditors, committees and trustees.

Bill is the Managing Editor of Norton Bankruptcy Law and Practice 3d, which is a premier 13 volume treatise on bankruptcy law published by Thompson Reuters and is the co-author of a handbook entitled Norton Creditors’ Rights Handbook (2012 Thompson Reuters). Bill is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy. He is an adjunct professor at Vanderbilt Law School and is a frequent speaker at seminars on bankruptcy, creditors’ rights, real property foreclosure and the Uniform Commercial Code. He is the Institute Manager of three national seminars focusing on advanced bankruptcy issues sponsored by Norton Institutes on Bankruptcy Law (www.NortonInstitutes.org). Bill has written numerous manuscripts for seminar presentations, including presentations for the American Bar Association, the American Bankruptcy Institute, the National Association of Credit Managers, the Mid-South Commercial Laws Institute, the Memphis Bar Association Annual Bankruptcy Conference, North Carolina Bar Foundation Institute, Stetson Law School Institute, the Norton Bankruptcy Litigation Institutes, the Western Mountain Norton Bankruptcy Law Institute, the Conference on Finance Law, the Nashville Bar Association, the Tennessee Bar Association, the National Business Institute, the Association of Subcontractors, Lorman Education Services, the Southeastern Business Institute, and the U.S. Department of Justice Education Program.

Bill is past-President and past-Board Member of the American Board of Certification, which certifies attorneys who specialize in the areas of creditor rights and bankruptcy law. He is a leader in the Business Bankruptcy Committee of the Business Section of the ABA and currently is Chair of the Subcommittee on Individual Chapters IIs. Bill is the founder, former President and current Board Member of the Tennessee Turnaround Management Association and is a past President and current Board Member of the Mid-South Commercial Law Institute.

In addition to his bankruptcy experience, Bill is an experienced mediator. He is a member of the AAA Commercial Arbitration Panel, the past Chair of the ADR Committee for the Nashville Bar Association, and the current Chair of the Board for the Nashville Conflict Resolution Center. He is a Tennessee Rule 31 Mediator.

Bill has been listed in The Best Lawyers in America®, for his bankruptcy and creditor/debtor rights practice for more than 10 years; he is included in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business for litigation: bankruptcy; Mid-South Super Lawyers for bankruptcy and creditor/debtor rights; and, he is listed in The International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers for insolvency and restructuring. Business Tennessee selected him as one of the “150 Best Lawyers” for his Bankruptcy (Business) practice. He also was listed in Nashville Business Journal’s “Best of the Bar” and theLawdragon 3000.

Bill is a member of the Nashville, Tennessee, and American Bar Associations; the American Bankruptcy Institute; and the Downtown Rotary Club of Nashville.