Fred S. Hodara leads the firm’s financial restructuring practice.
Mr. Hodara represents committees, hedge funds, insurance companies, bank lenders and other financial institutions in major financial restructuring and bankruptcy situations. Through his representation of the official committee of Washington Mutual, Inc., the liquidators of the two infamous Bear Stearns-managed subprime hedge funds and a $750 million hedge fund creditor of the failed broker-dealer Refco Capital Markets, Mr. Hodara has been in the vortex of Bankruptcy Code and regulatory issues relating to failed financial institutions, derivatives, repurchase agreements, securities contracts, mortgage backed securities and collateralized debt obligations.
Mr. Hodara focuses on representing creditors committees in chapter 11 cases and out-of-court restructurings, with particular emphasis on committees comprised of diverse creditor constituencies. Recent committee representations include Nortel Networks, Washington Mutual, the Mashantucket (Western) Pequot Tribal Nation and Philadelphia Newspapers.
Mr. Hodara has a particular interest in cross-border insolvency work. In addition to his representation of the liquidators of the two Bear Stearns-managed subprime hedge funds, which involved insolvency proceedings both in the U.S. and in the Cayman Islands, Mr. Hodara co-authored an article titled “chapter 15 and the UNCITRAL Model Law” for The Americas Restructuring and Insolvency Guide 2008/2009 and sits on the editorial board of INSOL World.
Mr. Hodara is a member of INSOL International and the American College of Investment Counsel and is a former director of the Turnaround Management Association-New York Chapter. He has been frequently recognized as one of the country’s leading financial restructuring attorneys including in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, The Best Lawyers in America, the K & A Restructuring Register: America’s Top 100 Restructuring Professionals and the International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers; he was named one of Turnarounds & Workouts’ “Outstanding Restructuring Lawyers” in both 2007 and 2008.