2017 Bankruptcy Inn Alliance Distinguished Service Award

Judge W. Homer Drake, Jr. to Receive American Inns of Court Bankruptcy Inn Alliance Distinguished Service Award

ALEXANDRIA, VA—The American Inns of Court is pleased to announce that the 2017 recipient of its Bankruptcy Inn Alliance Distinguished Service Award is Judge W. Homer Drake, Jr., of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Georgia.

The award will be presented at the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (NCBJ) annual meeting on Tuesday, October 10, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A reception honoring Drake will also take place during the conference.

Drake is the namesake of the W. Homer Drake, Jr. Georgia Bankruptcy American Inn of Court in Atlanta, Georgia, which was formed as a direct result of the Alliance's affiliation with the NCBJ. Drake’s long-standing dedication to professionalism and civility made him a natural choice for this honor.

Drake has been a U.S. Bankruptcy judge since 1964. He served as president of the NCBJ from 1972 to 1973, is the founder of the Southeastern Bankruptcy Law Institute, and was the first chair of the Georgia State Bar Association’s Section of Bankruptcy Law from 1976 to 1977.

Drake earned his undergraduate and law degrees from Mercer University. In 1996, the Southeastern Bankruptcy Law Institute established the Walter Homer Drake Professor of Bankruptcy Law at Mercer University, which became an Endowed Chair in 2007.

Formed in 2011, the American Inns of Court Bankruptcy Inn Alliance seeks to be a catalyst in the formation of new bankruptcy-focused Inns and a vehicle for the sharing of meeting and program information among members of the 12 bankruptcy law American Inns of Court. The Bankruptcy Inn Alliance Distinguished Service Award was developed as a way to recognize ongoing dedication to the highest standards of the legal profession, rule of law, and demonstration of personal ethics and integrity as expressed in the professional creed of the American Inns of Court and is presented to a judge or attorney who has practiced in the field of bankruptcy law.