Restructuring and Insolvency

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Agence de communication - Eliott & Markus

Our team assists our clients in connection with debt restructurings, insolvency proceedings, acquisitions of underperforming companies, acquisition of going concerns in insolvency proceedings ("plans de cession") and insolvency-related litigation. The matters we handle are often international.

Our team is experienced in managing not only out-of-court debt renegotiation but also insolvency proceedings and the associated litigation (shareholders' and directors’ liability, piercing the corporate veil, appeals against safeguard plans, etc.). We work closely with our teams in Finance, Private Equity, M&A, Tax Law and Employment Law enabling us to tailor our organisation and the implementation of restructuring plans.

Our expertise in cross-border insolvency proceedings is particularly strong, regardless of whether the proceedings fall within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2015/848 or not. We are accustomed to guiding our international clients through the special features of restructuring negotiations and insolvency proceedings in a French context.

We have extensive experience in setting up French trusts (“fiducies”), as this mechanism is often used in connection with debt restructurings.

Capabilities

Debt restructuring

Out-of-court processes: “mandat ad hoc”, “conciliation”
In-court processes: safeguard proceedings (with or without creditors’ committees) or reorganisation proceedings (“redressement judiciaire”)

Distressed M&A

Sales of distressed entities not subject to insolvency proceedings (“cession in bonis”)
Takeover bids in insolvency proceedings (“offres de plan de cession”)
Prepackaged plans

Collective insolvency proceedings

Safeguard, accelerated safeguard and accelerated financial safeguard
Court-supervised reorganisation and liquidation

International procedures

EU Regulation 2015/848
Cooperation between insolvency practitioners from different Member States
Exequatur of foreign judgments

Litigation

Shareholders’ / Managers’ liability in the context of insolvency proceedings
Lenders’ liability claims
Piercing of the corporate veil
Claw-back actions
Litigation relating to security interest
Claims for restitution of assets in insolvency proceedings
Challenges against claims filed in insolvency proceedings
Appeals against court-approved debt restructuring plans

Work Highlights

Assisted the shareholders of several large companies involved in out-of-court proceedings or collective insolvency proceedings due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Counsel to aircraft lessors in the court-supervised reorganisation of an airline.
Counsel to various credit institutions in connection with the safeguard proceedings of a major distribution group.
Counsel to a company placed in safeguard proceedings following an unfavourable arbitration award.
Liability claims against the executives and former shareholders of a French company involved in collective insolvency proceedings.
Counsel to an institutional lessor for the conciliation proceedings of its lessee and then in litigation.
Litigation regarding the implementation of a safeguard plan after the vote by the creditor committees.
Counsel to the court-appointed liquidator in the main insolvency proceedings of a European company, on the occasion of the disposal of assets located abroad and negotiations with the liquidator of a secondary insolvency proceeding.

Debt restructuring

Distressed M&A

Collective insolvency proceedings

International procedures

Litigation

Key Contacts

Gilles Podeur

Louis Renucci

Firm news

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