In distressed situations, it is crucial that counsel be experienced, creative and pragmatic. It is imperative that counsel have the ability to structure and negotiate transactions as well as the litigation expertise necessary to protect client rights. Our 40-attorney Corporate Restructuring and Bankruptcy Department has the resources necessary to tackle complex problems and we take pride in our ability to yield tangible results. Institutions, committees, corporations and individuals look to us to find practical solutions where others cannot. We have been actively involved in most of the major bankruptcy cases over the last 20 years and our breadth of industry expertise is second to none. We are knowledgeable in the telecommunications, real estate, health care, manufacturing, retail, mortgage finance, consumer products, supermarket, food service, financial services, construction, transportation, utilities, media and entertainment sectors, among others.
Working closely with the firm’s other departments, our diverse practice area includes representation of creditors’ committees, equity committees, debtors, banks, bondholders, trade creditors, landlords, investors, debtor-in-possession lenders and acquirers as well as investors in the purchase and sale of securities and assets of troubled companies. Among other areas, we have particular expertise giving advice in connection with complex bankruptcy litigation and investigations, distressed investments, mergers and acquisitions, and mass tort and class action bankruptcies. We also have an active subgroup of attorneys focused on distressed and special situations lending, and another devoted to claims trading in distressed enterprises.
The department's recent recognitions and news include:
- Kenneth H. Eckstein was named by Turnarounds & Workouts as one of the “Outstanding Restructuring Lawyers” in 2011;
- Mr. Eckstein and Thomas Moers Mayer were named to the Lawdragon 3000 list of Leading Lawyers in America for 2011, with Eckstein making the top 500 in 2011 and Mayer in 2007;
- Department awarded Law Firm of the Year by the 2012 U.S. News and World Report “Best Law Firm Rankings.” The firm’s bankruptcy litigation practice received this honor over 26 other nationally recognized top tier firms based on the rankings of both peer and client review;
- Department selected as one of the country’s best in the Chambers USA and Legal 500 U.S. series;
- Department selected as one of the best in the United States by IFLR (2008-2011);
- Mr. Eckstein and Mr. Mayer were selected by Chambers USA 2008-2011, Legal 500 US 2009-2011 and Best Lawyers in America 2008-2012 as leaders in their field;
- Mr. Mayer was listed in Chambers Global 2008-2011;
- Mr. Eckstein was named “Restructuring Lawyer of the Year” by Global M&A Network in 2010;
- Mr. Mayer is a member of the National Bankruptcy Conference;
- Mr. Mayer was honored with the Conway Mackenzie & Dunleavy Award as one of 12 Outstanding Restructuring Lawyers of 2007;
- Amy Caton was named to American Lawyer’s “45 Under 45 — Best Young Women Lawyers in the Am Law 200,” Investment Dealer’s Digest’s third annual “40 Under 40” list of up-and coming lawyers, bankers and other professionals; as one of the nation’s top 12 “Outstanding Young Restructuring Lawyers of 2008” by Turnarounds & Workouts; and as one of Law360’s Rising Stars — one of the 10 bankruptcy attorneys under 40 to watch;
- Adam C. Rogoff was named to Global Insolvency & Restructuring Review as one of its “Top 40 Under 40” global insolvency practitioners in 2000;
- Five of the department’s lawyers, Messrs. Philip Bentley, Eckstein, Mayer, Rogoff and Robert T. Schmidt, repeatedly are recognized in the annual New York Super Lawyers;
- Firm won the Corporate Turnaround of the Year ($500+ million) Award for Cooper-Standard Holdings, and the Industrial Products & Manufacturing Award of the Year for Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation at the Global M&A Network’s 2011 Distressed M&A Deal Forum and Turnaround Atlas Awards Gala; and
- Firm received the M&A Advisor award in 2011 for the Chapter 11 Reorganization of the Year (upper middle market) for its representation of the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Cooper-Standard Holdings, Inc. In 2010 the firm won the Distressed M&A and Business Services Sector Deals of the Year for its work on the Deloitte-BearingPoint acquisition, and the Consumer Services Sector Deal of the Year for its Chapter 11 reorganization of Bally Total Fitness. In 2007 the firm received the Chapter 11 Reorganization of the Year for its work on the WCI Steel case and for overall Bankruptcy Law Firm of the Year.
These awards not only reflect the depth of our restructuring practice and our ability to deliver successful outcomes but also our prominence as an industry leader, as evidenced in our current involvement in some of the nation’s largest and middle-market cases like the General Motors, Chrysler, Enron, WorldCom, Calpine, Adelphia, Dana Corporation, Dura Automotive, Sea Containers, Northwest Airlines, Owens Corning, Dow Corning, ASARCO and W.R. Grace bankruptcies, to name a few.
Members of our team regularly publish, teach and lecture widely on bankruptcy-related topics, including issues related to DIP financing, asset sales, mass tort bankruptcy, acquisition of troubled companies, creditor and shareholder rights, distressed investing and developments in claims trading. Many of our attorneys have clerked for prominent federal and bankruptcy judges. We continue to draw on the qualities that have fueled the success of the firm and our clients: a commitment to excellence and a dynamic spirit.