Distressed Assets and Alternative Investments

Our lawyers advise investors throughout the U.S., Europe and Asia with their purchase, sale and workout of distressed assets. We have handled every aspect of a deal and know the key issues involved in acquiring businesses and assets out of bankruptcy. For example, we have advised on executory contracts, negotiated breakup fees and acquisition agreements, advised on stalking horse bid protections and obtained bankruptcy court approval documentation. We have also counseled investors on acquiring debt positions in distressed companies to gain control over companies through the bankruptcy reorganization process.

We advise clients such as ABN AMRO Bank, KPMG, Fidelity National Special Opportunities, Inc., Wilmington Trust and The Royal Bank of Scotland on a variety of distressed deals involving assets under U.S. Bankruptcy Court protection, debtor-in-possession loans and post-reorganization exit facilities, credit default swaps and hedge obligations and leveraged lease certificates among others. Some recent examples include:

• The Royal Bank of Scotland and ABN AMRO Bank in a US$400 million debtor-in-possession (DIP) revolving and term loan credit facility to Chemtura Corporation.
• Exxaro Australia Sands Pty Ltd. with the purchase and sale of distressed assets under Section 363 in the bankruptcy case of Tronox, Inc.
• Fidelity National Special Opportunities, Inc. in its purchase of the Village Inn and Bakers Square restaurant businesses from VICORP Restaurants, Inc. and VI Acquisition Corp. under Section 363.
• HJ Heinz before the Federal Trade Commission in a proposed acquisition of a company in bankruptcy in the U.S.
• ABN AMRO as purchaser to Ritchie Risk-Linked Strategies, an SPV created to purchase more than 700 life settlement policies, in a Section 363 sale.