Editorial Review

Something strange happened to the Enron Corporation in the early 1990s: It went from a company that traded in tangible goods to one that dealt in pure abstractions, with shoddy accounting practices, astonishing compensation packages, and smoke and mirrors to obfuscate this new reality.Read more

Reviews (33)

The most important reason for this book is to make the layman aware of just what a travesty the Enron scandal was.....
The greatest reason to read this book is to get an appreciation for the scale of the collapse that was Enron.Also, you will get a description of what life was like at Enron on a personal level from an insider's view, as well as their view on what it had to do with the Company's downfall.Yes - this is one person's account, but there's enough factual information to back them up on the important points.
Chaser for "The Smartest Guys in the Room" - kind of Enron lite
I recommend reading these 2 books together because TSGITR gets really dense in places, making for draining reading, but since the story is too incredible to put down, Power Failure takes it to a lighter level. I do think Power Failure hones in more on Andy Fastow, as co-writer Sherron Watkins worked directly with him, and the photograph of his little art project is downright chilling (you'll see what I'm referring to). Power Failure still has some great meat to chew on however; the proximity that Sherron Watkins had to the main players, particularly Lay and Fastow, lends itself to the amazing characterizations of these guys on paper. The two books follow a similar chronology and highlights, so it is interesting to compare the slight variations of the same episodes. Even though Sherron Watkins makes the most of her edge, being a primary player in the saga, the tip of my hat goes to TSGITR's writers for their downright nasty investigative reporting.

The fall of Enron in all its glory....
Power Failure is not a book I would normally read.I'm a straight fiction reader, but picked up this book for some research I was doing.This is a good book that sheds a lot of light onto one of the biggest corporate scandals in history.Now, I'm a pro-business, right-wing Republican and I'm always leary of criticism of big business because many times it is politically motivated and really has no merit.Businesses that make money employ people, businesses that lose money lay off people.No one ever gets a job from a poor person.However, this book shows no political bias, and really doesn't comment on the American system that allowed Enron to fail.Power Failure just lays out the incredible decline of Enron.
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Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business History    5. Business/Economics    6. Corporate & Business History - General    7. Corporate Finance    8. Industries - Energy Industries    9. Management Accounting    10. Current Events / American   

Reviews (5)

You'll ease your stress if you use the advice in this book
Jim and John have a wonderful way of making you feel like you're sitting down at your kitchen table with a bankruptcy attorney who only has your best interests at heart. They don't pull any punches, and sometimes what they tell you isn't what you really want to hear, but you know they're giving you solid advice. Your anxiety level will plummet if you are thinking of filing bankruptcy and are looking for someone to hold your hand through the process.
Absolutely Incredible
Very solid, down-to-earth advice, and they make you feel a little bit better about yourself.

Good Book
Good book although some aspects are very general. See also Surviving Financial Disasters By Tiffany R. Love it comes with a CD ROM. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Accounting - General    2. Bankruptcy    3. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    4. Business / Economics / Finance    5. Business/Economics    6. Consumer Finance    7. Law    8. Personal Finance    9. Personal Finance - Financial Planning    10. Personal Finance - General    11. Popular works    12. Tax Law    13. Taxation    14. United States    15. Business & Economics / Personal Finance / General   

Subjects:  1. Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice    2. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    3. Law    4. Legal Reference / Law Profession    5. Constitutional & administrative law   

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    2. Law   

Reviews (1)

A "user friendly" instructional introduction and guide to the new 2005 Bankruptcy Act
This completely updated fourth edition of Personal Bankruptcy by bankruptcy attorney Daniel Sitarz is a "user friendly" instructional introduction and guide to the new 2005 Bankruptcy Act and the process of properly proceeding a declaration of bankruptcy. Providing readers with official files and forms, checklists and questionnaires, sample completed forms, and particular state exemption lists, Personal Bankruptcy is the essential reference tool as a legally valid production for all fifty states for the non-specialist general reader considering the invocation of bankruptcy to set in order their financial affairs. Personal Bankruptcy is very strongly recommended, especially for those hoping to correctly and lawfully engage in the process of filing for bankruptcy and are searching for a thorough and reliable study on how to proceed.
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Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy    2. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    3. Business & Economics    4. Forms    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Personal Finance    7. Personal Finance - Financial Planning    8. Personal Finance - General    9. Popular works    10. United States    11. Business & Economics / Finance   

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    2. Divorce    3. Families of military personnel    4. Law    5. Law (Specific Aspects)    6. Law and legislation    7. Legal Reference / Law Profession    8. Legal status, laws, etc.    9. Military spouses    10. United States    11. Law / General   

Subjects:  1. Bank failures    2. Banking    3. Bankruptcy    4. Banks & Banking    5. Banks and banking, Central    6. Banks and banking, Internation    7. Business & Financial    8. Business Law    9. International    10. International Banking    11. Law    12. Law and legislation    13. Legal Reference / Law Profession    14. Banking law    15. Law / General   

Reviews (10)

Don't Bother
The author should have stuck with sociology or at least taken an accounting class before writing this book. Overall, the book is what you would expect from a sociologist writing about business.

Corporate bankruptcy can be a STRATEGY!
I wanted to learn more about the asbestos problem and the bankruptcy filing of John-Mansville since I knew someone who had lung problems from asbestos.I heard about this book and got it. This is the first thing that I have read that really helped me to understand what happened when Mansville, the biggest asbestos company went bankrupt.The book is clear and explains complicated bankruptcy cases to the lay person.Now, I finally understand why people with asbestosis ended up going through years of delay in BANKRUPTCY court of all places!What is most amazing is how people who get asbestos end up being treated like "unsecured creditors"as if they lent their life to the corporation like a bank loan!Truly amazing.

Great book
I read this book for a college class.I expected it to be boring because it was about bankruptcy but instead it was really interesting... The cases do come alive and you realize bankruptcy means something different than you thought it did.This book has me interested in taking bankruptcy classes in law school, something I thought I'd never do! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Corporate & Business History - Strategies    6. Corporate Finance    7. Bankruptcy & insolvency law    8. Business strategy    9. Credit & credit institutions    10. English law: bankruptcy & insolvency    11. Organizational theory & behaviour    12. Political science & theory    13. Social Science / Sociology / General   

Reviews (1)

Excellent overview of the bankruptcy process
This is an excellent book for the non-lawyer that needs to get up to speed quickly on the bankruptcy process.I found myself as the business person managing the creditor side of a bankruptcy and this book helped me become fluent in the process with minimal delay.Read more

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business Law    4. Business/Economics    5. Corporate reorganizations    6. United States    7. Bankruptcy & insolvency law    8. Business & Management    9. Finance & Accounting   

Reviews (27)

This is the thinnest book on Enron that I read; it covers the whole affair very superficially.
I don't get the impression from reading the book that the authors have even tried to analyzed the financial holdings that was set up. It is the thinnest book on Enron that I read, for very good reason.

When Too Much is Barely Enough

Thin
Let's start with the positives:Read more

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    2. Business & Economics    3. Business / Economics / Finance    4. Business/Economics    5. Corporate & Business History - General    6. Corporate Finance    7. Energy industries    8. Energy industry    9. Enron Corp    10. Finance    11. History    12. United States    13. American history: from c 1900 -    14. Business & Economics / Finance    15. Petroleum & oil industries    16. USA   

Reviews (2)

Great Book
This book was exactly what I was looking for: learn about the bankruptcy process and the rules.The author is a bankruptcy lawyer and some parts can be detailed and difficult to read... the bankruptcy process is not simple.If you are trully interested in the bankruptcy process though, you will like the details. Great Book
This book was exactly what I was looking for: learn about the bankruptcy process and the rules.The author is a bankruptcy lawyer and some parts can be detailed and difficult to read... the bankruptcy process is not simple.If you are trully interested in the bankruptcy process though, you will like the details.Read more

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy    2. Business / Economics / Finance    3. Business enterprises    4. Corporate reorganizations    5. Law and legislation    6. Mergers & Acquisitions    7. Purchasing    8. United States   

Subjects:  1. Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice    2. Bankruptcy    3. Business & Economics    4. Business / Economics / Finance    5. Consumer Finance    6. Debtor and creditor    7. Personal Finance    8. Personal Finance - General    9. Popular works    10. United States    11. Bankruptcy & insolvency law    12. Business & Economics / Personal Finance / General    13. USA   

Reviews (1)

A thorough, well-written history of US bankruptcy law
Mr. Skeel's book is an excellent description of the meandering history of bankruptcy legislation in the United States, linked to the conflicting reactions bankruptcy legislation has always provoked (debtors are expected to pay; but those who for, reasons beyond their control, become unable to do it, are morally entitled to relief and to a fresh start). The book'sintroductory chapter explains well the basic legal concepts underlying subsequent chapters and makes the book quite accesible to non-specialists. Besides factual information about legislative changes since the beginning of the XIX century - I found particularly interesting Chapter 2, on how judges created de facto a regimen akin to modern Chapter 11 to deal with bankrupt railroads-, the book frames some of those changes in terms of "public choice" theory. For instance, I found interesting Mr. Skeel's view that the conflicting preferences of the various political groups represented in Congress led to a pattern of cyclical majorities among three alternatives (i.e. a)no bankruptcy law b)strict, "complete" pro-creditor bankruptcy code, and c)lenient, "voluntary-only" pro-debtor bankruptcy legislation) which might explain the instability of US bankruptcy law up to 1898. Chapter 4, on legislative changes introduced in the 30s in the backlash against the previous excesses in Wall Street, sheds significant light on some outstanding and recently-discussed differences between US and British bond legislation (e.g. the prohibition in the US, under the 1939 Trust Indenture Act, of many "collective action clauses" allowing bondholders to accept by majority -as oppposed to unanimity- changes in the terms of the bonds). Some short passages of the book -e.g., those explaining changes in the internal pecking order within the legal professions- will appeal primarily to US practitioners and academics, not so much to a wider audience. The book covers lots of ground and is highly recommendable as written. But if Mr. Skeel were willing to expand its scope, it is easy to think of additional areas which he might usefully explore, at least briefly, in future editions (e.g.lessons from Enron's debacle; recent international debates on "collective action clauses" or even Chapter 11-like "Sovereign Debt Restructuring Mechanism" to deal with the bankruptcy of sovereign borrowers; a more detailed description of Thomas Jackson's characterization of bankruptcy as a "prisoner's dilemma" for creditors;or, finally, to highlight the relatively lenient US bankruptcy law, some passing reference to the traditional, British-style debtors' gaol so well described by Dickens and other authors). ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice    2. Business & Economics    3. Business Law    4. Business/Economics    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Business & Economics / Business Law    7. Economics    8. Political Science and International Relations   

Reviews (3)

Specific paralegal advice on building the biz
HOW TO START A BANKRUPTCY FORMS PROCESSING SERVICE is packed with knowledge needed to set up and perform a freelance bankruptcy forms processing service for attorneys: it holds nearly three hundred pages of specific paralegal advice on how to build such a business, provides the knowledge needed to draft the forms and understand how bankruptcy schedules work, and includes instructions on the Chapter 13 plan. Victoria Ring has given seminars and training on her business and these three packages represent the sum of her extensive background and experiences: invaluable training for paralegal efforts.
Good ideas, good opportunity
The meat of this info is well written and is a great idea.Gives a good background and she is definately knowlegable. There is a lot of filler, such as how to buy office supplies, etc.I would have liked more marketing info, that is available on a seperate ($$) CD.

A solid guide with everything the reader needs to know
Author and paralegal Victoria Ring (one of the first paralegals in the country to set up an internet-based service dedicated to aiding bankruptcy attorneys), How To Start A Bankruptcy Forms Processing Service is a solid guide packed with everything the reader needs to know about improving one's skill as a bankruptcy paralegal or bankruptcy forms processor, and get a freelance bankruptcy forms processing business off the ground. Chapters address the beginning steps of setting up a business from ground zero, including structuring one's client base and selecting the right office supplies, to the nuts and bolts of performing one's jobs, assessing one's clients (for example, recognizing when a debtor could be hiding assets), marketing chapter 13 services to bankruptcy attorneys, managing one's business, tips, tricks, techniques, and insights, and much more. An absolute "must-have" for anyone seeking to organize, promote, or improve the service of their own bankruptcy forms business.
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Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy    2. Business & Economics    3. Business & Economics / Small Business    4. Business / Economics / Finance    5. Business/Economics    6. Careers - Other Specific Fields    7. Forms    8. Forms management    9. Handbooks, manuals, etc    10. Law / Bankruptcy    11. Law / Paralegals & Paralegalism    12. Legal assistants    13. New Business Enterprises    14. United States    15. Law    16. Paralegals & Paralegalism    17. Small Business   

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy    2. Business failures    3. Corporate reorganizations    4. Law and legislation    5. United States    6. Business & Management    7. Commercial law    8. Finance & Accounting    9. International Law    10. USA   

Reviews (1)

This book is a must have!
This is a top-notch book by a pioneer in the field of bankruptcy law.It is a definite must have for any bankruptcy practitioner. Not only does Tabb clearly and effectively explain fundamental as well as esoteric bankruptcy principles, but he also provides excellent practical examples of the Bankruptcy Code in action.Hands down the best book I have seen on bankruptcy. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Law   

Reviews (1)

For accurately assessing one's financial options
The Business Turnaround & Bankruptcy Kit is a solidly presented guide for accurately assessing one's financial options when considering the possibility of declaring bankruptcy. Written by professional bankruptcy attorney John Ventura, The Business Turnaround & Bankruptcy Kit offers signs for recognizing serious business trouble, advice for finding quality professional help with one's business financing (recommending that one should never attempt to handle a turnaround or a bankruptcy by oneself), techniques for dealing effectively with insistent creditors and anxious employees, and much more. If you are contemplating bankruptcy for your business enterprise, then give serious attention to John Ventura's The Business Turnaround & Bankruptcy Kit. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Accounting - General    2. Bankruptcy    3. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    4. Business & Economics    5. Business / Economics / Finance    6. Business Communication - General    7. Business Law    8. Business failures    9. Business/Economics    10. Law and legislation    11. Popular works    12. United States    13. Bankruptcy & insolvency law    14. Business & Economics / General    15. Business strategy    16. Commercial law    17. USA   

Subjects:  1. General    2. Legal Reference / Law Profession   

Reviews (2)

Donkey Balls X 2
What Alex said, I second:"There are so many typos in this book is pathetic. The book includes all these wonderful "real world" problems you can't find the answer to, so you spend all your time looking through a crappy supplement trying to figure out what the answer is when there isn't one. Half of the problems do not have citations to statutes. Finally, the jokes are not even that funny."

This book sucks donkey balls
There are so many typos in this book is pathetic. The book includes all these wonderful "real world" problems you can't find the answer to, so you spend all your time looking through a crappy supplement trying to figure out what the answer is when there isn't one. Half of the problems do not have citations to statutes. Finally, the jokes are not even that funny. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice    2. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    3. Law    4. Legal Reference / Law Profession   

Reviews (5)

Well Told Story About An Intriguing Subject But Analysis Could Be Better
Eat What You Kill:The Fall of a Wall Street Lawyer is the story of John Gellene, the only attorney to ever go to jail for making an incomplete disclosure of "connections" to creditors and parties in a bankruptcy case.While it is clear that Gellene committed an ethical lapse, the fact that he was prosecuted, convicted and served time is truly surprising. Others have failed to disclose much more and have suffered much lighter consequences.As a result, the question of why this particular case resulted in a prison sentence rather than a slap on the wrist is really interesting, particularly to lawyers.
Spellbinding and hugely educational
Hats off to Professor Regan for his prodigious research and painstaking, vivid recreation of the saga of a prominent lawyer's startling rise and fall --an all-the-more remarkable achievement given Gellene's refusal to cooperate in this project. This is an amazing look-behind-the-curtain as to: how large law partnerships reward and penalize their producers and non-producers; how complicated bankruptcy negotiations unfold; how investment bankers and vulture investors exploit weakened corporations; how a brilliant professional succumbed under pressure to career-ending ethical blunders; and much more. An extremely valuable reading experience for practioners and students of law and business that deserves to be a best-seller.

Important book about ethics
Great book showing what can go wrong when law firms let top lawyers get away with violating common practices. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Bankruptcy & Insolvency    2. Corporate    3. Ethics & Professional Responsibility    4. Law    5. Legal Reference / Law Profession    6. Bankruptcy & insolvency law    7. Law / Corporate    8. Legal profession    9. USA