Type: Upper Class

Managing Crisis: Strategies and Tactics for Corporate Distress and Restructuring
Welcome to what many in business consider the Wild West: the world of Corporate Distress and Restructuring. Attorneys, bankers, and consultants of all sorts find themselves representing one of the many stakeholders in a corporate restructuring. They can act as advisor to a landlord (for example, Simon Property Group) who has a tenant (such as, J. Crew) that files for chapter 11. They can be counsel to a lender (for example, Citibank) that has a troubled loan extended to a distressed borrower (such as, well, anyone in chapter 11 — and many who are not). They can work as turnaround consultants to a company working through strategic options to survive an existential challenge, which can be related to business-model dynamics, compliance issues with debt documents, product litigation, and more.
This new course provides a framework for understanding how these distress situations play out in our legal system. We will examine the types of transactions and strategies implemented, including liability-management transactions (i.e., maturity extensions and/or distressed debt exchanges), distressed M&A, vulture investing, operational turnarounds, and more. Our goal is to understand the world of Distress and Corporate Restructuring, a subsector in our financial and legal system that is poised for very busy times in the upcoming years due to the current interest-rate dynamics and near-term economic outlook.
The course will meet weekly to discuss assigned reading and case studies. To enhance learning and keep focused on practical realities, there will be frequent guest presentations from nationally recognized experts, who include lawyers in private practice, investment bankers, consultants, business executives, and others. They will present their own case studies drawing on their own experiences in real world situations.
The basic bankruptcy course is not a prerequisite, but certainly lends itself to this course for those interested in a deeper dive into the world of Corporate Distress and Restructuring. Rest assured, bankruptcy newcomers are most welcome and equally positioned for success. We will cover a series of advanced topics in corporate restructuring across a broad array of disciplines ranging from investment banking to turnaround consulting, from legal strategy to hedge-fund investing. Upon completion of this course, students will be versed in the general dynamics, relevant lingo, and current-event issues in the world of corporate restructurings. They will also be well-positioned to apply the lessons learned to practical, real-world situations.