Donald H. Steckroth
Title: Bankruptcy
Birth Place: Newark, NJ
Born in Newark, NJ, Judge Steckroth earned his J.D. with honors from his alma mater, Seton Hall University. Before his appointment to the Bench, Judge Steckroth was appointed by the New Jersey Supreme Court to serve on the New Jersey Bar Examiners Committee on Character for 12 years and chaired the Committee’s oversight of all out-of-state applicants to the New Jersey Bar. Furthermore, Judge Steckroth worked in private practice with Gibbons, P.C. and its predecessors for twenty-eight years, where he made partner while specializing in bankruptcy law and creditors’ rights. From 2001-2015, Judge Steckroth served as the United States Bankruptcy Judge for the District of New Jersey. During this time, he also served on the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (NCBJ) Benefits and Finance Committees and the NCBJ Board of Governors as the Third Circuit Governor.
Judge Steckroth presided over notable bankruptcy matters such as the successful Chapter 11 of Hudson Healthcare, Inc., the liquidation of NJ Affordable Homes, Corp., the largest Ponzi scheme in the history of New Jersey, and the confirmed Chapter 11 of Tarragon Corporation, a company in over $1 billion in debt.
Judge Steckroth currently serves Of Counsel in the Bankruptcy and Corporate Restructuring department of Cole Schotz and has been actively involved in complex financial matters, such as by mediating the financial crisis in Atlantic City which involved assisting the City’s Emergency Manager and the operating casinos in resolving outstanding tax revenue issues and the negotiation of a reorganization Plan.
Judge Steckroth is a frequent speaker in the practice area, remaining active in the NCBJ, the American Bankruptcy Institute, the American Bar Association, the Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Advisors, the Turnaround Management Association, the New York Institute of Credit, the New Jersey Institute of Continuing Legal Education, the New Jersey Bar Association Bankruptcy Law Section, the Bankruptcy Inn of Court, and Seton Hall Law School.
