The firm has acted as counsel in a wide variety of restructuring transactions, including exchange offers, consent solicitations and the renegotiation of credit agreements with bank syndicates and other lenders. This practice is closely coordinated with lawyers in the firm's financial restructuring practice.
At Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, we continue to rise to the challenges that face our clients, by meeting their every corporate and securities need. From delicate merger and acquisition negotiations and corporate restructuring representation to private equity and corporate finance transactions, Akin Gump has the breadth of experience and depth of capabilities to meet the challenges you face every day. For over six decades, we have remained committed to supporting your business goals and helping you to achieve success.
Representation of Companies Emerging from Restructuring
Our corporate restructuring lawyers are among the leading practitioners in the nation representing companies and boards of companies that have recently emerged from Chapter 11. Such restructurings often result in our clients’ investments being replaced with new debt, preferred equity or common equity, or a combination thereof, leaving them as the majority shareholders of the reorganized company. Because of the firm’s representation of the creditors-turned-controlling shareholders, together with the firm’s detailed knowledge and insight of the debtor company obtained in the course of the restructuring, lawyers in our corporate restructuring practice are uniquely positioned to continue working with the company as its counsel, following emergence from Chapter 11. Similarly, because of our experience in such situations, private equity and hedge fund clients of the firm, as well as directors in a position to select counsel, turn to our corporate restructuring lawyers to enter a newly restructured situation as new company counsel.
These representations have provided our corporate restructuring practitioners with specialized knowledge of the post-restructuring issues and challenges that companies emerging from Chapter 11 often face. Such issues include board and committee structures, charter and by-law issues, going-public concerns, corporate governance and securities, trading and accounting issues. Our familiarity with these companies has allowed the restructuring company to think about and execute investment exit strategies.
Sales of Assets of Financially Troubled Companies
We have significant experience representing various constituencies in connection with sales of assets of financially troubled companies, including assets of chapter 11 debtors—also known as “363 transactions.” The representation of purchasers and other parties in interest in these contexts requires all of the skills applicable to ordinary mergers and acquisitions transactions, in addition to specialized knowledge of insolvency, fraudulent transfer, preferences and similar issues that, if not properly addressed, could materially impact such parties' interests and expectations. Likewise, 363 transactions require a full understanding of bankruptcy court procedures and the interplay between corporate and bankruptcy laws (as well as other applicable laws). Akin Gump's corporate restructuring practice has developed specific experience in these transactions and works closely with the firm’s financial restructuring group on all bankruptcy-related aspects of these transactions.