Bess Creswell was appointed to serve as United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Middle District of Alabama on April 16, 2018 and became Chief Bankruptcy Judge for the Middle District of Alabama on October 17, 2020. Prior to her appointment to the bench, she was a partner in Burr & Forman LLP’s Creditors’ Rights & Bankruptcy Group where she represented debtors, creditors, and committees in workouts, debt restructuring, and bankruptcy cases. She earned her J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law, her M.B.A. from the Lundy-Fetterman School of Business, and her B.A. from Campbell University. After law school, she served as law clerk to the Honorable Ray C. Mullins in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Georgia. She presently serves on the Policy and Procedure Committee and the Endowment Committee for the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges and is a member of the Alabama Bankruptcy Assistance Project Advisory Board.

Judge Crawford was appointed to serve as a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the Northern District of Alabama on September 1, 2016. Judge Crawford previously served as a Chapter 13 Standing Trustee in the Northern District of Alabama from 2004 until his appointment as a bankruptcy judge. Judge Crawford earned his B.A. from the University of Alabama and his J.D. from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University. He is currently a member of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, the American Bankruptcy Institute, and the Alabama State Bar. He has served on the Bankruptcy Judges Advisory Group (BJAG) and the Human Resource Advisory Council (HRAC) that provide advice to the Administrative Office of the United States Courts. He is currently serving as the bankruptcy-judge representative to the Committee on Codes of Conduct for the Judicial Conference of the United States.

Mr. Conte practiced law for almost 20 years with Helmsing Leach Herlong Newman & Rouse PC in Mobile before being appointed the Chapter 13 Truestee for the Southern District of Alabama in 2022.  He received his BA with Honors from the University of South Alabama and his J.D. from Cumberland School of Law.

Amy concentrates her law practice in the area of consumer bankruptcy law. On April 30, 1999, she was admitted to the Alabama State Bar and has practiced with the Bond and Botes firm since 1999.  Amy has been a member of the National Association of Consumer Bankruptcy Attorneys (NACBA) since 2004. In 2012, Amy was selected by the NACBA executive board to serve as the Alabama State Chair for all consumer bankruptcy attorneys in Alabama and served in this position through November 2015. As the Alabama Chair for NACBA, Mrs. Tanner served as a liaison between NACBA and attorneys, bankruptcy judges, and other court officials, as well as serving as a primary contact for local media regarding consumer bankruptcy issues.  Amy has been a featured speaker at the People’s Law School in Huntsville, Alabama for the past several years. This local program is recorded and airs on local access television channels throughout the State. In addition, Amy has been a speaker at several seminars sponsored by the local bar association, and she recently served as Chair of the Bankruptcy and Commercial Law Section of the Alabama State Bar for 2023-2024.