Restructuring (including bankruptcy): municipal in United States

Headed up by Vincent Marriott, the bankruptcy, reorganization and capital recovery group at Ballard Spahr LLP has a national reputation for public finance and municipal bankruptcy work, and is also well known for its dedicated municipal recovery practice, led by William Rhodes. The firm's workload extends well beyond Chapter 9 cases; the group also frequently handles Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 cases for special districts, hospital systems, and public housing companies. Kimberly Magrini, who maintains a special focus on disclosure issues for distressed municipalities, was promoted to partner in July 2020. Marriott and Rhodes are based in Philadelphia, while Magrini divides time between Philadelphia and New York. James Lodoen left the firm in 2020.

For over two decades, the distressed municipal finance team at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP has been involved in countless complex and challenging situations involving state and local governments. New York is the base for a number of key practitioners, including Lary Stromfeld, who handles transactions, disputes and advisory matters involving a wide variety of financial products and complex financings; Ivan Loncar, who focuses on the representation of creditors in connection with tax-exempt and taxable financings; Ingrid Bagby, who handles Chapter 9 work on behalf of both creditors and debtors; and special counsel Casey Servais, who has recently represented the single-largest creditor of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

Norton Rose Fulbright's municipal restructuring and bankruptcy practice has a proven track record of representing key parties, both in- and out-of-court, in various municipalities across the US. The group remains particularly active in matters concerning the ongoing Puerto Rico debt crisis, a recent example of which was Dallas-based Toby Gerber's representation of the Puerto Rico Public Buildings Authority in its defense of claims brought by the Federal Oversight and Management Board relating to the Government of Puerto Rico’s Title III proceedings. Contacts in New York include practice head Eric Daucher and standout senior associate James Copeland.

The restructuring team at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP works extremely closely with the firm's stellar public finance practice, and has thus been able to distinguish itself as a leader in the field of public finance restructuring. Contacts in the New York office include Raniero D’Aversa, who chairs the practice group, and experienced practitioner Lorraine McGowen, who has played a key role in several matters concerning Puerto Rico’s debt restructuring. Thomas Laryea in Washington DC stands out for his expertise in sovereign debt restructuring, while San Francisco-based senior counsel Marc Levinson is widely recognized as a go-to name for Chapter 9 work, having acted as the lead insolvency lawyer in the City of Stockton case. In November 2020, Douglas Mintz left the firm for Schulte Roth & Zabel LLP.

Under the leadership of Bruce Bennett in Los Angeles, the team at Jones Day has built up a formidable reputation for handling municipal revitalizations and other matters involving government operations, labor relations and debt, both from a debtor and creditor perspective. Heather Lennox, who splits her time between the Cleveland and New York offices (and also serves as partner-in-charge of the former), has acted in many of the nation's largest in- and out-of-court municipal restructurings. The firm continues to be known for its advice to the City of Detroit in its historic Chapter 9 debt adjustment case; both Bennett and Lennox were heavily involved in this matter.

Over the course of 2020, the restructuring group at O'Melveny & Myers LLP played a key role in a number of high-profile municipal restructurings; the firm's ongoing lead role in the restructuring of Puerto Rico’s debt obligations is of particular note. The team was also involved in the development, negotiation and drafting of landmark legislation to reform California’s wildfire liability framework, and provided advice to California Governor Gavin Newsom in the wake of the PG&E cases. Global practice chair John Rapisardi in New York and bankruptcy litigation expert Peter Friedman in Washington DC are key figures in the team.

The team at Squire Patton Boggs brings an integrated approach to municipal restructuring work, with practitioners equally able to advise on public finance, tax and public policy issues. Stephen Lerner , who chairs the firm's global restructuring and insolvency practice from New York and Cincinnati, has significant experience in Chapter 9 work. San Francisco-based practitioner Karol Denniston has been working with distressed governmental entities since 2009, and is a frequent speaker on the importance of mediation as part of the municipal restructuring process. Pedro Hernandez in Miami specializes in representing clients in public finance matters, with particular emphasis on bond issues in the State of Florida and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.