Financial Restructuring & Bankruptcy

We represent clients that want to acquire financially distressed businesses as well as those that wish to acquire only targeted assets of a distressed business. These acquisitions have been an effective strategy for many of our clients, and our insolvency and M&A attorneys collaborate to advise clients in these transactions throughout the country. Whether an acquisition occurs in a bankruptcy proceeding, in a receivership caser, or outside of a court proceeding, we can complete the transaction promptly and skillfully.

We assist businesses in financial distress, with an initial focus on negotiating with the client’s lenders and creditors in out-of-court restructurings. While Chapter 11 is an extraordinarily useful remedy for ailing businesses, it is best used as a backdrop for negotiations. When an out-of-court restructuring is not viable, however, we will not hesitate to file a Chapter 11 bankruptcy if it’s right for our client.

We approach debtor representation with practical knowledge of bankruptcy law, creative ideas for using Chapter 11 to the client’s benefit, and business acumen. We have experience in many kinds of Chapter 11 cases, from “prepackaged” cases to those in which the parties are fighting bitterly throughout. Although we look for effective compromise at every step, we are prepared to litigate aggressively.

We have helped manufacturers, retailers, distributors, telecommunications companies and businesses in nearly every major industrial sector resolve their debt crises. We also have helped companies resolve problematic litigation claims, both pre- and post-judgment, through creative use of Chapter 11.

Investment banks, broker-dealers, hedge funds, CLOs, and other financial institutions turn to us for counsel on legal and transactional issues related to the purchase and sale of par and distressed assets. These include primary and secondary loan transactions, equity interests of restructured companies, special situations investments, and bankruptcy claims.

Clients turn to Thompson Coburn for our experience in protecting and enforcing the rights, interests and remedies of banks and other financial institutions in workouts and loan enforcement.

Our attorneys are committed to the idea that a negotiated, voluntary settlement is typically the most efficient way to handle a problem loan situation. From small business loans to complex syndicated credits and single-asset real estate loans, we handle workouts of all sizes and complexities for borrowers doing business in a wide range of industries. We also represent lenders in loan enforcement proceedings.

By combining insights from our representation of lenders in loan originations with the skill and experience of our litigation and bankruptcy teams, we deliver strategic, effective solutions to help lenders enforce borrower commitments and recover debts efficiently.

We are trusted advocates for unsecured creditors’ and bondholder committees in Chapter 11 cases and ad hoc committees in out-of-court restructurings and workouts, delivering results in industries ranging from retail and telecommunications to manufacturing and hospitality.

In representing committees, we are actively involved in the bankruptcy process, including securing debtor-in-possession financing, negotiating asset sales, the pursuit and resolution of objections to claims, the development of plans of liquidation and reorganization, and the prosecution of avoidance actions, as well as other complex bankruptcy litigation.

We approach committee representation as a consensus-building process but are prepared to pursue creditors’ remedies aggressively when circumstances require litigation. Beyond bankruptcy proceedings, we help committees navigate complex non-bankruptcy matters to ensure their interests are protected and their goals are achieved.

We represent Chapter 11 trustees, liquidating trustees, receivers, and other similar fiduciaries in bankruptcy or similar insolvency proceedings. Our experience includes representing many types of constituents in insolvency and bankruptcy proceedings – for instance, we have represented Chapter 11 trustees in connection with confirmation of Chapter 11 plans and sales of estate assets. Our attorneys are experienced with state court receiverships and participated in drafting the current receivership statute in at least one jurisdiction. Frequently, a confirmed Chapter 11 plan will create a liquidating trust or a qualified settlement fund to administer the case post-confirmation, and our attorneys have represented the trustees and other fiduciaries in connection with these types of matters.

Thompson Coburn provides comprehensive counsel to secured creditors, guiding them through all phases of a transaction, from credit origination to workouts, loan enforcement, and bankruptcy. We represent a wide range of lenders, including banks, asset-based lenders, equipment financiers, hedge funds, and private equity groups, offering tailored advice and creative solutions.

In transactional matters, our team collaborates across practices to provide forward-thinking bankruptcy and insolvency advice when loans and credits are structured, documented, and originated. We also assist in structured finance techniques and, in conjunction with those, providing non-consolidation and other bankruptcy-related reasoned opinions. Later in the credit cycle, we help lenders negotiate and close workouts, restructurings, and other solutions for troubled credits, with experience spanning industries and credit types, from large syndicated loans to small business and real estate loans.

For loan enforcement, we represent secured creditors in real property foreclosures, and UCC secured party sales and replevin actions involving collateral such as equipment, inventory, financial assets, or intellectual property. We also have considerable experience with non-bankruptcy remedies like receiverships and assignments for the benefit of creditors.

In bankruptcy, we advocate for secured creditors in Chapter 11 cases, handling debtor-in-possession financing facilities and cash collateral arrangements. We represent secured creditors in the Section 363 bankruptcy sale process, both when their collateral is to be sold to third parties and when they seek to credit bid, and in Chapter 11 plans of reorganization.

When disputes arise, our attorneys represent secured creditors in contested cash collateral, stay relief, case conversion and dismissal, claims allowance, lender liability, preference and fraudulent conveyance, bankruptcy sale, and plan confirmation matters.

Our national team leverages a collaborative approach, working closely with litigation and finance colleagues to navigate the complex intersection of bankruptcy and other legal areas. With a focus on practical, efficient resolutions, we combine deep experience with strategic advocacy to protect our clients’ rights and maximize recovery. Our attorneys have connections with peers across the country and are equally comfortable appearing in bankruptcy courts from coast to coast as in our home jurisdictions.

Congress in 2019 enacted a new Subchapter V of Chapter 11 dealing with small business reorganizations. During the time Subchapter V has been in effect, our attorneys have represented debtors and creditors in several Subchapter V cases. One of our attorneys is a standing Subchapter V trustee.

We have a niche practice advising national and international trade suppliers and vendors in areas including collections, billing and payment disputes, and representation in bankruptcy proceedings. We serve as U.S. counsel to several large international trade suppliers and vendors and represent numerous others on a national and regional basis, assisting with legal strategies to protect their contract and vendor rights.

Drawing on the strength of our commercial litigation practice, we have assisted trade creditor clients by successfully pursuing judgments in state and federal courts and using pre-judgment and post-judgment remedies designed to secure the collection and enforcement of those judgments. These include pre-judgment attachments, garnishments, executions, debtor’s examinations and other proceedings. We have also successfully assisted in enforcing other available remedies such as reclamation rights, setoff rights, rights of recoupment, lien enforcement, assignments for the benefit of creditors, and the commencement of involuntary bankruptcy proceedings.

Our attorneys combine knowledge, skills and experience in representing trade creditors in connection with claims or liabilities asserted against them in a bankruptcy or similar proceeding, including preferences, post-petition transfer claims, fraudulent transfers, lien avoidance actio,ns and claims objection litigation. We are able to successfully eliminate or minimize potential exposure in connection with such claims or liabilities. Additionally, we advise on credit enhancement tools like security interests, consignments, letters of credit, and trade credit insurance.

Click here to download Thompson Coburn’s Trade Creditor Manual.