Business Services
Bankruptcy & Creditors' Rights
No matter what type of restructuring scenario you encounter as a creditor or investor, the one constant is that there will be many competing stakeholder interests at play. In order to reach the desired result at the lowest possible cost, it is imperative to have counsel with a thorough understanding of how these competing interests interact and affect the course of such matters.
Roetzel’s insolvency lawyers are highly seasoned and battle-tested. Experienced counsel will help you navigate the restructuring process, protect any collateral and maximize your recovery.
Our attorneys understand both the cost-benefit analysis that drives business decisions, as well as the complex regulatory issues that underpin the analysis of many financial institutions.
Our clients are:
- Major commercial banks, community banks, credit unions, private equity funds, hedge funds, REITs and other lenders with secured and unsecured loans to distressed companies.
- Commercial landlords, equipment lessors and vendors whose tenants or customers are insolvent.
- Distributors, vendors and other businesses whose customers are in default or bankruptcy.
- Defendants—or targets of bankruptcy trustees—in preference or fraudulent transfer actions.
- Investors buying loan documents/assets/companies at all stages of distress, including out of bankruptcy cases.
- Creditor committees in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases, negotiating various issues with debtors and other stakeholders in the case to protect the creditor body’s collective interests.
We use our experience in commercial transactions to develop customized strategies that protect our clients' rights and help them determine the most appropriate course of action for each situation. Whether it is navigating a complex bankruptcy case or assisting with COVID related PPP and loan deferral situations, we lean on our decades of experience. In sum, we assist clients with implementing business practices and procedures to minimize the risks inherent in obtaining and extending credit, and to assist in collection efforts upon a default, should that case arise for our clients.
Our Experience
- Coordinated an orderly liquidation of a national chain of retail stores
- Convinced a bankruptcy court to allow a British manufacturer to terminate an exclusive distribution agreement with its North American distributor after the distributor went into Chapter 11
- Guided the successful "stalking horse" bidder through the purchase of an electrical transformer business from a Chapter 11 trustee
- Counseled several creditors in the Enron bankruptcy case
- Obtained relief from stay for several secured creditors in various Chapter 11 proceedings
- Counseled insurers that provided product liability coverage to a medical device manufacturer, which later filed Chapter 11
- Represented an equipment lessor in litigation over whether a lease was a true lease or an unperfected secured transaction
- Assisted a Chapter 11 trustee's operation and sale of a printing business, which had several competing secured creditors, as well as labor issues
- Represented the Ohio Department of Insurance and a court-appointed liquidator in concluding the affairs of an insurance company
- Helped a Chapter 7 trustee liquidate a manufactured home dealership business, satisfy the claims of several floor plan financiers, and resolve the claims of over 100 unhappy home buyers
- Served as the Securities Investor Protection Corporation trustee in the liquidation of a securities firm
- Served as a receiver in the liquidation of a used industrial machinery dealer
- Negotiated favorable settlements on preference claims and/or persuaded trustees/debtors to dismiss other such claims
- Negotiated a cash settlement of a guaranty, combined with consent to a receivership for a housing development
- Coordinated the care of and brokered the sale of an MRI unit for the benefit of a secured creditor, after the borrower defaulted and closed the business without arranging to care for the machine
- Successfully mediated a federal lawsuit brought against out-of-state guarantors who originally denied any liability under the guaranties
What We Do
REORGANIZATIONS AND LIQUIDATIONS
- Chapter 11 plans and disclosure statements
- Claims litigation
- Creditor Composition Agreements
- Creditors' Committee representation
- Debtors' representation
- Sales of assets and going-concern businesses
BANKRUPTCY AND COMMERCIAL LITIGATION
- Assumption or rejection of executory contracts
- Defense or prosecution of fraudulent transfer actions
- Defense or prosecution of preferential transfer actions
- Dischargeability actions
LOAN DOCUMENTATION AND ADMINISTRATION
- Assignment of claims and collateral
- Debtor-in-possession financing
- Forbearance and workout agreements and restated loan agreements
- Secured transactions
CREDITOR REPRESENTATION
- Cognovit actions
- Creditors' committee representation
- Discovery of assets
- Foreclosures and receiverships
- Reaffirmation
- Replevin actions
- Relief from stay
TAX CREDIT TRANSACTIONS
- Partnership disputes
- Termination issues
- Chapter 11 - limited partnership agreements