Mr. Wise is a partner in the Banking and Finance and Distressed and Special Situations Lending practices of Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP.  Mr. Wise’s practice focuses on the representation of financial institutions, private equity funds, hedge funds and corporate borrowers in complex lending transactions. He also has special expertise in complex special situations financing transactions involving financial institutions and corporate borrowers in second lien and subordinated financings, mezzanine structures, debtor-in-possession financings, chapter 11 exit financings, recapitalizations, restructurings, work-outs, and distressed debt purchases and sales. Mr. Wise also has extensive experience in agent bank representations in cross-border and multi-currency transactions, real estate financings, asset based financings, leveraged acquisition financings, and bank and bond/bridge financings.  He frequently publishes on a variety of finance topics.

Mr. Wise has experience representing lenders and borrowers in a many industries, including automotive, steel, packaging, real estate, rail, media, retail, textiles and telecommunications.  Recent representative finance transactions in which Mr. Wise has acted as lead lending counsel include Emergency Maintenance Services ($80 million of notes and warrants), American Apparel ($41 million second lien facility), Monitor SLV ($80 million second lien financing), Real Mex Restaurants ($200 million senior unsecured facility and holdco notes), 280 Park Avenue ($650 million mezzanine financing), Merisant Corporation ($85 million second lien financing), Performance Transportation Systems, Inc. ($60 debtor-in-possession financing), Cadence Innovation LLC (f/k/a New Venture Holdings, LLC) ($100 million working capital facility and real estate financing), and General Chemical Industrial Products, Inc. and General Chemical (Soda Ash) Partners ($62.5 million bridge facility and $95 million permanent financing).  In addition, Mr. Wise has represented a group of Mexican corporations in a $1.3 billion dollar cross-border restructuring, and major money-center banks in loans to leading automotive suppliers, steel manufacturers, chemical manufacturers, real estate developers and a marine construction company.

J.D., University of Michigan Law School, 1995
M.A., Pi Sigma Alpha, Claremont Graduate University, 1993
B.A., magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, Claremont McKenna College, 1991

New York State Bar Association, Business Law Section
Turnaround Management Association