Our international Restructuring and Insolvency Litigation group specialises in complex, multi-jurisdictional insolvencies involving competing creditor claims from diverse groups.
We act for clients from all parts of the capital structure and our advice spans all aspects of contentious insolvency work, including, for example, retention of title claims, enforcing security, representing officeholders in numerous and diverse applications for directions, risk assessing restructuring proposals and defending corporate restructuring and reorganisations.
Our team is able to seamlessly combine all the elements involved in complex restructurings, both contentious and non-contentious. We work closely with our top-ranking restructuring and insolvency group and other practice areas such as corporate, employment, pensions, tax, environmental, regulatory and capital markets.
Recent examples of our work
Recent examples of our work include representing:
ISDA in an application made by the administrators of LBIE seeking directions as to the meaning and effect of Section 2(a)(iii) of the ISDA Master Agreement, and its compatibility with the anti-deprivation principle of English insolvency law. This matter raised important issues relating to parties’ rights and obligations under the standard form ISDA Master Agreement which had not previously been considered by the English courts.
- As well as advising over 150 counterparties in relation to the failure of Lehman Brothers through our restructuring group, we advised two of the parties to the application brought by the administrators of Lehman Brothers International (Europe) (in administration) (LBIE) for directions in relation to some USD2bn of ‘client money’ held by LBIE. Later this year, this matter will proceed to the Supreme Court.
HSBC as security trustee in relation to a 'leapfrog' appeal to the Supreme Court by a bond trustee against a decision of the chancellor regarding whether a clause in a finance document excluded the rule in Cherry v Boultbee.
Richard S. Fuld, Jr., the former chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lehman Brothers Holding, Inc. (LBHI) on an array of intersecting proceedings arising out of Lehman's well-publicized bankruptcy. We are representing Mr. Fuld in connection with his Congressional testimony, governmental and regulatory inquiries, and multiple securities and ERISA class actions.
Recognition for our work
- Ranked 1st tier in the Dispute Resolution category. “Sources say: ‘Very good in just about everything they do. Disputes work really matters to them. I sharpen my pencil and get up an hour earlier when I've got a dispute on with them!’” Chambers & Partners Global 2011