About IWIRC

Frequently Asked Questions

Who We Are

IWIRC members include over 2,400 of the world’s professionals in insolvency, restructuring and all related fields. Check out of member directory, searchable by name, city, state, country and profession.  You can also search our members’ individually customized profiles to find the expertise, experience and service you need.

The International Women’s Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation, (pronounced “I work”), is the first international professional association dedicated to enhancing the professional status of women in all disciplines of insolvency and restructuring. We pursue this goal through a simple but effective principle: to create an international networking organization that promotes communication, common interest and community among insolvency practitioners.

We have over 2,400 members globally who represent every discipline of restructuring: law, crisis management, financial advisory, banking, private equity, claims management, communications…and more.

Our focus on networking and building relationships with other professionals across disciplines differentiates us from other associations.  Our members want to expand their reach – some locally, others nationally or globally- for a variety reasons: business development, professional development, education and mentoring.

What new members are generally surprised to discover is that these goals are not only met, but also that the environment is welcoming, positive and full of opportunities to be involved.  New members are immediately asked to get involved at whatever level they feel comfortable and that meets their needs – whether that is at the local network level or at the international umbrella organization level.  IWIRC provides not only the opportunity for instantaneous involvement, but also a short path to leadership.

Our governance structure and bylaws were updated in 2010 to provide more leadership opportunities, to include more non-North America members in the leadership ranks, and to increase the number of people available to create, develop and execute the programs and benefits our members want.  It’s a lot of hard work, but it is a great way to get to know others and to get known.

IWIRC has four standing committees that manage the association’s major functions.  The committees welcome volunteers and new ideas.

IWIRC was founded in December 1993 by Selinda Melnik, Laureen Ryan and Martha Fetner, an attorney,  financial advisor and expert, and commercial banker, respectively.  It is a not-for-profit professional association incorporated in May 1994 under the laws of the State of New York, USA.  IWIRC held its first meeting in London, England in June 1994.  Its first Network, Central Ohio, was chartered in June 1995.

To honor our founders for recognizing the need for a professional organization dedicated to goals of women practitioners, IWIRC has established the Founders’ Awards – one in each name – as a way to pay tribute to members whose achievements have an equally significant impact.  It’s an award worth aspiring to!

Members pay annual dues that entitle them to all rights and benefits on a global basis.  Those benefits include reduced rates at IWIRC events and sometimes at the events of our partner organizations, a customized professional profile in our publicly searchable member directory, opportunities to develop leadership skills, speak, write and otherwise contribute to the combined knowledge and growth of the organization.  But, our members say it best… see members’ comments to see why this is the best investment you can make in YOU.

IWIRC also enjoys the support of a host of sponsors, who provide financial support at an event, network and/or international level.  Our sponsors recognize our organization as providing a unique and valuable package of benefits to its members, who also happen to represent key constituents of their own firms.

Everywhere we can be!  IWIRC is a global organization, with regional connections and local networks.  We have over 55 networks in North America, South America, Europe, Africa, Australia and Asia.  Each network (and sometimes regional groups of networks) holds a variety of events throughout the year which all IWIRC members are welcome to attend.  Most events are open to non-members as well, so bring a friend!

The international board organizes three meetings every year: the annual Spring Meeting, held in Washington D.C. just prior to the Annual Spring Meeting of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the Leadership Summit, usually held in July in a different network city, and the Fall Conference, held immediately prior to and in the same venue as the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges.

We have found that hosting meetings just prior to those of other related organizations makes travel easier and facilitates greater networking opportunities.  Our local networks also hold events in conjunction with the regional events of other organizations, making local networking, mentoring and substantive educational  programs more effective from both a cost and exposure standpoint.  It is far easier to experience the vibrancy and warmth of an IWIRC event than to describe it in words, so please see our calendar of global events and join us… we’d love to meet you.

Membership

The benefits of IWIRC membership are many:

  • IWIRC provides its members with leadership opportunities, at both the global and local level, on a relatively fast track;
  • IWIRC develops and presents programs that foster national and cross-border relationships and education;
  • Because IWIRC has members and networks all over the world, IWIRC provides an easy way to meld business travel with business development – you can attend any IWIRC event taking place at your next destination;
  • IWIRC helps its members promote their expertise through its speaker’s bureau;
  • IWIRC’s local networks develop and present both substantive and social programs that foster business development and professional networking within the community;
  • IWIRC creates opportunities for young professionals to polish their networking skills, meet and learn from senior professionals, and develop a strong foundation for business development

Establishing a membership is easy. Complete the registration form with credit card information and click submit.  You can elect to enter your full profile when you join or at a later date, but we do suggest that you complete the information at your earliest convenience to get the full benefit of IWIRC’s referral and networking opportunities.

We have over 2,400 members globally who represent every discipline of restructuring: law, crisis management, financial advisory, banking, private equity, claims management, communications…and more.

In the upper left hand corner, if you are already logged in, you will see “Account”, click on that to go to your account. If you’re not logged in, you will see “Login”, and after doing so will take you to your account.

The initial landing page is your Account, where you can edit account details, change your password, and manage additional things like billing info, subscriptions (membership), payment methods, privacy settings, etc. Makes sure to save any changes from each section!

You can also access your Member Profile by clicking your avatar or “View Profile”.

This is an opportunity to put your best foot forward! In addition to providing your demographics, title and type of practice, you can include short descriptions of clients successes, specific credentials that set you apart, or other information that your target market will be searching for. You are free to update your profile as often as you like. The IWIRC directory can be a powerful tool in your practice development strategy.

To update your Member Profile, follow these steps (remember to click “Update Profile”!):

  1. In the upper left hand corner, click “Account”.
  2. Click on “View Profile” to get to the profile section.
  3. To make changes, click on the settings cog icon in the top right, and then “Edit Profile”.
  4. Click on the camera icon over your avatar to add or adjust your profile image.
  5. Under your name is your Biography section.
  6. Under the “About” tab is:
    1. Primary Network, which is required for membership, is your intended primary network affiliation.
    2. Alternate Network, optional, are other networks you wish to be affiliated with and receive communications from. Your member profile will show up in both Primary and Alternate Network selections.
    3. Personal information such as how to greet you, birth date, location, numbers, etc.
    4. Professional information such a occupation, profession, firm details, website, etc.
    5. Practice Area and Industry selections, which are important for filtering members in our directory.
  7. When you’re finished editing, click “Update Profile” or the checkmark icon in the top right corner. 

Additionally there is a Speaker Profile section with fields to display your profile in our Speakers Bureau area— an educational and informational resource for connecting insolvency and restructuring professionals with potential speakers willing to make presentations on restructuring. 

If you’re not displaying in both the Member Directory or on Network pages, your membership has probably expired. Members must be current and have an active membership subscription to be included in the public portion of the site.

If you’re displaying in the Member Directory but not on Network pages, much sure you’ve properly selected your Primary Network and any Alternate Networks you wish to be affiliated with from your Profile.

Check Your Membership Subscription:

  1. In the upper left hand corner, if you are already logged in, you will see “Account”, click on that to go to your account. If you’re not logged in, you will see “Login”, and after doing so will take you to your account.
  2. On the left sidebar, click on “Subscriptions”. 
  3. If you have an active subscription it will be displayed.
  4. If you do not have an active subscription, click “Browse Products” to select your membership type and follow through with the subscription purchase. This will reinstate your Member account so that you can fully utilize the major benefit of membership of a worldwide referral and networking base.

Check Your Network Selections:

  1. In the upper left hand corner, if you are already logged in, you will see “Account”, click on that to go to your account. If you’re not logged in, you will see “Login”, and after doing so will take you to your account.
  2. Click “View Profile” to access your profile section.
  3. If you have Primary and/or Alternate Networks selected, they will display under the “About” tab.
  4. If you have no Primary and/or Alternate Networks selected, or would like to edit them, click on the settings cog icon in the top right, and then “Edit Profile”, make your changes and click “Update Profile” or the checkmark icon in the top right to save.

INSOL is the International Association of Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy Professionals.  INSOL’s mission is to facilitate the exchange of information and ideas, encourage greater international co-operation and communication amongst the insolvency profession, credit community and related constituencies.  By joining IWIRC, you have the opportunity to join INSOL at a reduced rate.  This is strictly an option, it is not required that you join INSOL when you join IWIRC.

To join INSOL select the add-on option during registration or contact us.

Our members join the international organization and select one network as their “Primary” affiliation (for record-keeping, voting, etc.). However, members are free to select additional “Alternate” networks for secondary affiliations so that they can be on their mailing lists and otherwise be connected to those additional networks.

You can manage both your Primary and Alternate Networks from your Member Profile.

Yes, we have male members.

Payment Information

Membership dues are on a 12-month rolling basis, depending on when you join, so if you join on March 31, 2026, your membership expiration would be March 31, 2027.

Secondary Rate Networks

Because of the economic structure in Africa, Asia, Mexico, Central and South America, the rates for those networks are as below.

  • Standard Annual Membership $100
  • New Practitioner Annual Membership (< 3 years in practice) $50
  • Government & Academic Annual Membership $40
  • Student Annual Membership (limited to 4 years) $20

Primary Rate Networks

  • Standard Annual Membership $250
  • New Practitioner Annual Membership (< 3 years in practice) $125
  • Government & Academic Annual Membership $100
  • Student Annual Membership (limited to 4 years) $35

When you registered for membership, your membership subscription should be set to auto-renew, unless it was turned off or your payment method lapsed.

Manually Renew or Check Your Membership Subscription Status:

  1. In the upper left hand corner, if you are already logged in, you will see “Account”, click on that to go to your account. If you’re not logged in, you will see “Login”, and after doing so will take you to your account.
  2. On the left sidebar, click on “Subscriptions”. 
  3. If you have an active subscription it will be displayed, and you can click “View” review your subscription settings.
  4. If you do not have an active subscription, click “Browse Products” to select your membership type and follow through with the subscription purchase. This will reinstate your Member account so that you can fully utilize the major benefit of membership of a worldwide referral and networking base.
 

Update Payment Method for Automatic Renewal:

  1. In the upper left hand corner, if you are already logged in, you will see “Account”, click on that to go to your account. If you’re not logged in, you will see “Login”, and after doing so will take you to your account.
  2. On the left sidebar, click on “Payment Methods”. 
  3. If you have a payment method saved, you can delete it.
  4. If you need to add a new payment method, click “Add Payment Method”.

Due to the cost of bank fees for foreign currency checks, we require that all payments be made in U.S. Dollars drawn on a U.S. bank by either check or credit card.

IWIRC accepts American Express, VISA, MasterCard and Discover.

Events

The incredible breadth of our organization and the diversity of our membership means there is something new going on every day!  Browse our website for the latest, and be sure to get our latest newsletter for interesting stories on members, networks and articles on the latest developments in the practices.

We hold three IWIRC International Conferences each year. IWIRC @ ABI is held in April of each year, typically in Washington, D.C. Our Flagship International Conference is held in June, and the location varies around the globe. Finally, IWIRC @ NCBJ is held in October of each year in  different locations around the U.S.

Click on the network you are interested in and upcoming events will be listed.  Also, the events tab lists ALL upcoming events that have been submitted by the networks or headquarters.  Also, the homepage lists the next 5 events around the world for your easy viewing.

Yes! All members are welcome to attend any event they choose.

Due to the cost of bank fees for foreign currency checks, we require that all payments be made in U.S. Dollars drawn on a U.S. bank by either check or credit card.

Becoming Involved

There are leadership opportunities on many levels of IWIRC. While there is no formal path, most members who have held leadership positions have started out by leading or playing a key role in a Network or by serving on and leading a committee of the International board.

All IWIRC members are welcome to apply to serve on a committee.  Click below to apply via online form. Please feel free to contact us should you have any questions.

We are glad you asked!  New networks are easy to form and our international board provides support.  From the network application process to financial grants for recruiting events, a new network can be up and running quickly.  Our experience shows that being able to congregate is a real advantage to forming and growing a network, so think carefully about the geographic area you cover.  Feel free to contact the Networks Director for your regions or any of our Network Chairs… all of whom can give you good counsel to get started.

Still have questions?

If you can’t find an answer here or elsewhere on our website, you should feel free to call or email our Administrative Team and we will be happy to help you.