Overview
Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.
Overview
Connell Foley’s Corporate Restructuring and Bankruptcy Practice Group brings together a team of long‑time practitioners with decades of experience guiding clients through complex insolvency matters. Our attorneys are admitted to practice in a number of states and regularly appear in major bankruptcy venues, including the District of New Jersey, Southern District of New York, Southern District of Texas, District of Delaware, and other key jurisdictions where significant Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 cases are filed.
We represent a broad range of stakeholders – debtors, creditors, committees, indenture trustees, lenders, purchasers, and other parties in interest – and provide practical, business‑focused solutions in insolvency matters.
Our multidisciplinary approach draws on Connell Foley’s strengths in litigation, corporate, real estate, environmental, tax, and employment law, enabling us to address the full range of issues that arise in sophisticated restructuring matters.
Recognized Leaders in the Industry: The Corporate Restructuring and Bankruptcy attorneys regularly earn accolades from respected and prestigious peer-review industry publications and organizations, including Chambers USA Guide to America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, Best Lawyers® and Best Law Firms®, Super Lawyers and Super Lawyers Rising Stars, Benchmark Litigation, and the American Bankruptcy Institute.
Areas of Focus
Debtor Representation
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys provide comprehensive counsel to businesses navigating financial distress and Chapter 11 reorganization. Our attorneys advise debtors across a wide range of industries and organizational structures, from privately held companies to large, multi‑entity enterprises, including publicly traded companies.
We assist clients with:
- Pre‑bankruptcy planning and strategic counseling
- Debtor‑in‑possession (DIP) financing
- Out‑of‑court restructurings and workouts
- Assignments for the benefit of creditors
- Asset sales and going‑concern transactions
- Contract negotiations and regulatory considerations
- Employment, tax, environmental, union, and other related issues
- Preparation, negotiation, and confirmation of Chapter 11 plans
Our approach emphasizes practical, business‑oriented solutions designed to help clients stabilize operations, preserve value, and pursue a viable path forward.
Official & Ad Hoc Committees
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys represent official and ad hoc committees in complex Chapter 11 cases across the United States. We advocate for the interests of unsecured creditors, bondholders, trade creditors, and other stakeholder groups.
Our work includes:
- Investigating debtors’ assets, liabilities, and financial condition
- Evaluating potential sources of recovery
- Negotiating plan terms and restructuring frameworks
- Pursuing claims against insiders, affiliates, and third parties
- Assessing and negotiating asset sales
- Coordinating with financial advisors and other professionals
- Litigating contested matters when necessary
Supported by Connell Foley’s strong corporate and litigation practices, we balance strategic negotiation with a readiness to litigate when appropriate.
Secured Lenders
We represent secured creditors in bankruptcy, foreclosure, restructuring, and workout matters. Our work includes defending claims objections and challenges to liens or security interests, as well as advising on debtor‑in‑possession (DIP) financing and cash‑collateral arrangements.
We assist clients with:
- Negotiation of financing terms or cash‑collateral use
- Preparation of required filings
- Review of budgets and collateral protection
- Evaluation of professional‑fee carve‑outs and lien‑challenge provisions
- Enforcement of security interests, including stay‑relief requests
- Article 9 sales and loan covenant modifications
- Complex commercial mortgage foreclosures involving problematic clouds on title, quiet title actions, recovery and sale of mortgaged properties and related work outs
We also help secured creditors maximize value by obtaining stay relief orders and enforcing security interests in bankruptcy.
Bond Restructuring and Indenture Trustees
We advise bondholders, indenture trustees, and ad hoc groups on:
- Chapter 11 treatment of bond debt
- Debt for equity swaps
- Restructuring support agreements
- Evaluation of restructuring proposals
- Negotiation of plan terms
- Claims against issuers and insiders
- Intercreditor and subordination issues
Fiduciaries
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys represent a wide range of fiduciaries in bankruptcy, receivership, and other court‑supervised matters, including:
- Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 trustees
- Plan administrators and plan trustees
- Post-confirmation litigation and liquidation trustees
- Examiners
- Federal and state court receivers
- Special masters
We assist fiduciaries with asset recovery, claims administration, litigation management, regulatory compliance, and oversight of business operations.
Creditors’ Rights
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys represent secured and unsecured creditors in Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 cases, out‑of‑court restructurings, and state and federal court litigation.
Our services include:
- Defense of preference and fraudulent transfer actions
- Enforcement of security interests and recovery of collateral
- Protection of contract rights and intellectual property
- Negotiation of restructuring terms and repayment arrangements
- Prosecution of lender remedies and defense of lender liability claims
- Representation of institutional lenders, insurers, trade vendors, landlords, equipment lessors, and other creditor constituencies
We work closely with clients to identify risks, preserve rights, and pursue strategies that support recovery efforts.
Equipment Lessors
We assist equipment manufacturers and lessors in bankruptcy matters.
Our work includes:
- Advising on pre‑petition lease and sale structures
- Addressing recharacterization challenges
- Responding to preference and claims‑related actions
- Providing legal opinions regarding true‑lease and true‑sale treatment
Real Property
We assist landlords, tenants, and buyers involved with real property in bankruptcy, restructurings, and workouts. Our services include:
- Defending avoidance actions and mechanics’/materialmen’s lien claims
- Seeking payment of post‑petition rent and related charges
- Obtaining stay relief to pursue foreclosure or remove non‑paying tenants
- Negotiating lease assumptions or rejections
- Preparing cure and rejection‑damage claims
- Reviewing financial capabilities of proposed assignees
- Addressing tenant‑mix provisions and store‑closing sale guidelines
- Supporting buyers and bidders in real‑property acquisitions through bankruptcy
We also advise tenants responding to a landlord’s bankruptcy filing, including protecting rights to maintain possession.
Additionally, our team is well-qualified to represent buyers and bidders seeking to acquire real property interests through asset sales in insolvency proceedings.
Intellectual Property
We assist clients with IP issues arising in bankruptcy, including rights under patent licenses. Our services include:
- Monitoring proceedings affecting a debtor’s patent portfolio
- Addressing assumption or rejection of executory contracts
- Advising licensees on options following rejection, including damage claims or retention of certain rights
Trade Vendors
We represent trade creditors in bankruptcy cases. Our work includes:
- Preparing and defending proofs of claim
- Submitting reclamation demands
- Seeking stay relief to enforce setoff and related rights
- Pursuing administrative‑expense claims for goods delivered pre‑petition or within the 20‑day period
- Negotiating critical‑vendor treatment where applicable
Bankruptcy Litigation
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys handle the full spectrum of bankruptcy‑related litigation on a nationwide basis, as well as in federal district and appellate courts.
Our litigation experience includes:
- Avoidance actions, including fraudulent transfer and preference actions
- D&O (directors and officers) litigation
- Plan confirmation disputes
- Securities‑related litigation
- Professional liability and malpractice claims
- WARN Act claims
- Bankruptcy appeals
We combine deep bankruptcy knowledge with strong litigation capabilities to help clients navigate contested matters efficiently and strategically.
Asset Purchases & Sales (Section 363 & Article 9) and Other Distressed Transactions
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys guide buyers, sellers, lenders, and investors through the full spectrum of distressed transactions. We advise on acquisitions of assets from financially troubled companies, whether conducted through bankruptcy (Section 363), state law remedies (including Article 9 sales), or other distressed environments requiring strategic planning, negotiation, and expedited execution.
Our team handles all aspects of distressed asset transactions, including:
- Section 363 and Article 9 asset sales
- Stalking horse negotiations and bid protections
- Reviewing and negotiating bidding procedures
- Auction participation, competitive strategy, and bidder advisory
- Comprehensive due diligence on distressed assets
- Preparation and negotiation of asset purchase agreements
- Coordination with secured lenders, creditors’ committees, and other stakeholders
- Addressing successor liability, tax considerations, and regulatory or operational issues
Cross‑Border Insolvency & Chapter 15
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys advise domestic and international clients in cross‑border insolvency matters, including Chapter 15 recognition proceedings.
Our experience includes:
- Representing foreign debtors seeking recognition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts
- Advising U.S. creditors in foreign proceedings
- Negotiating cross‑border protocols
- Litigating issues involving foreign and U.S. insolvency law
- Opposing recognition where appropriate
Bankruptcy & Insolvency Issues Impacting Transactions
We help clients identify and mitigate bankruptcy‑related risks in corporate and commercial transactions.
Our services include:
- Fraudulent transfer and preference analysis
- Recharacterization and equitable subordination risks
- Substantive consolidation concerns
- Bankruptcy‑remote structuring
- True sale, true lease, and non‑consolidation opinions
Mass Torts
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys have significant experience in mass tort bankruptcies involving asbestos, sexual abuse claims, consumer protection issues, and other large‑scale liabilities.
We represent:
- Debtors
- Insurers
- Equity holders
- Claims administrators
- Purchasers of assets affected by mass tort liabilities
Environmental Issues in Bankruptcy
Our environmental and bankruptcy attorneys collaborate to advise clients on:
- Filing and recovering environmental claims
- Enforcing indemnification agreements
- Addressing successor liability
- Navigating Superfund and state law obligations
- Litigating plan‑injunction and discharge issues
Equity Holders
We advise equity holders on:
- Governance and fiduciary issues
- Valuation disputes
- Plan negotiations
- Rights offerings and recapitalization strategies
- Confirmation‑related litigation
Examiners & Corporate Investigations
Connell Foley’s restructuring attorneys represent examiners and conduct investigations involving:
- Pre‑petition transactions
- Insider conduct
- Potential avoidance actions
- Related‑party dealings
- Examiner reports
- Claims prosecution
Experience
Experience
Debtor Representation
Over the course of their careers, our restructuring attorneys’ debtor representations have included:
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Official and Ad Hoc Committees
Select Creditors’ Committee Representations by our restructuring attorneys:
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Select Ad Hoc Committees
- Chaparral Energy
- Overseas Shipholding Group
- RTI Holding Co. d/b/a Ruby Tuesdays
- Southeastern Grocers
Secured Lenders
Our bankruptcy attorneys’ secured creditor representations have included lenders in the following bankruptcy cases:
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Bond Restructuring and Indenture Trustees
Our restructuring attorneys have represented indenture trustees in the following bankruptcy cases:
- Aceto Corporation
- AMR Corporation (American Airlines)
- BlockFi Inc.
- Doral Corporation
- Eastern Airlines
- Union Valley Corporation
- University Medical Center (Philadelphia)
Fiduciaries
Our restructuring attorneys have represented chapter 7 and 11 trustees and post-confirmation liquidating and litigation trustees in the following bankruptcy cases:
- CTN Holdings
- DBSI Inc.
- Entertainment Publications
- Hit or Miss, Inc.
- Linens Holdings
- National Dry Cleaners
- Robert E. Brennan
- Showplace Farms
- TSR Wireless
Asset Purchases & Sales (Section 363 & Article 9) and Other Distressed Transactions
Our restructuring attorneys have represented purchasers in the following bankruptcy cases:
- Bayonne Medical Center
- Bowflex, Inc.
- Bridgewater Resources
- Center City Healthcare
- Enamelon
- Enor Corporation
- The Grand Union Company
- United Healthcare
