|
919 Third Avenue
New York, New York 10022
United States of America
P: +1 212.756.2174
E:
|
David M. Hillman is a partner in the New York office, where he practices in the areas of corporate restructuring and creditors’ rights litigation, with an emphasis on the representation of secured and unsecured creditors, bank groups, bondholders, creditors’ committees, shareholders and other parties in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases in industries including retail, manufacturing, radio broadcasting, automotive, pharmaceutical, telecom, energy and aviation, among others. He recently represented a hedge fund as secured creditor, DIP lender and stalking horse bidder in a retail Chapter 11 case, and is currently representing a private equity firm in a fraudulent transfer action in the Mervyn’s bankruptcy case, and a global electronics manufacturer as secured and unsecured creditor in the Circuit City bankruptcy proceedings. David has significant experience litigating issues involving plan confirmation, lender liability, financing and cash collateral disputes, contested 363 sales, fraudulent transfers, preferences, equitable subordination, recharacterization, substantive consolidation, breach of fiduciary duty and similar disputes.
David was named a “leading individual” and recognized by Chambers USA in bankruptcy/restructuring as a “young and talented corporate restructuring specialist” who “has particularly impressed sources with his work on behalf of hedge funds.” A member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, David speaks frequently on bankruptcy-related topics, recently addressing the 13th Annual New York Bankruptcy Conference on the subject of “What are Stakeholders Fighting About? Expansion Rule of 9019, Competing Plans, Collective Actions and Binding Minority Lenders in the Same Credit, Tousa.” His article, “Cramdown: Reorganization Plan Litigation for Secured Creditors,” appeared in Practising Law Institute’s 28th Annual Current Developments in Bankruptcy & Reorganization and Aspen Law & Business’ Bankruptcy Litigation Manual. Other of his articles have appeared in The Bankruptcy Strategist, Bankruptcy Court Decisions and NYU Journal of Law and Business. David received his J.D., cum laude, from Albany Law School, where he was associate editor of the Law Review, and his B.A., cum laude, from New York State University at Oneonta.
Selected Representations
Counsel to ad hoc committee of second lien bondholders in Chapter 11 case of Real Mex Restaurants, Inc. (restaurant industry).
Counsel to Goldman Sach's affiliate Liberty Harbor, Highbridge Capital Management, Tennenbaum Capital, Hale Capital and Tinicum Capital as unsecured creditors in Chapter 11 case of GSI Group, Inc. et al. (manufacturing).
Counsel to D.B. Zwirn Special Opportunities Fund LP as secured creditor, DIP lender and stalking horse bidder in Chapter 11 cases of Everything But Water et al (retail).
Counsel to Cerberus Partners LP in $1 billion fraudulent transfer action in connection with bankruptcy case of Mervyn’s LLC (retail).
Counsel to Panasonic Corporation of North America in Chapter 11 case of Visteon Corporation (automotive).
Counsel to secured creditor in out-of-court restructuring (radio broadcasting).
Counsel to secured creditor in out-of-court asset foreclosure (automotive/account servicing).
Counsel to secured creditor in out-of-court equity foreclosure (manufacturing).
Counsel to Panasonic Corporation of North America as secured and unsecured creditor in Chapter 11 cases of Circuit City Stores, Inc. et al (retail).
Counsel to ad hoc committee of noteholders in out-of-court restructuring (pharmaceutical).
Counsel to Ableco Finance LLC as agent for pre-petition secured lenders and as agent for post-petition lenders in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases of Global Motorsports Group and affiliates (retail).
Counsel to Sandell Asset Management Corp. as unsecured creditor in connection with out-of-court restructuring and bankruptcy case of Earth BioFuels Inc. (energy).
Counsel to post-confirmation plan administrator in Deltak LLC (manufacturing).
Counsel to Boies Schiller & Flexner in Adelphia bankruptcy case in connection with fee application dispute.
Counsel to McDermott Will & Emery in St Vincent’s bankruptcy case in connection with fee application dispute.
Counsel to creditors’ committee in Global Power Equipment Group et al. (manufacturing).
Counsel to Dunlop/Slazengers as trademark licensor in Chapter 11 case of SGP Acquisition (retail).
Counsel to D.B. Zwirn Special Opportunities Fund LP as secured creditor in connection with Chapter 11 cases of Stop 26 Riverbend Licenses (telecom).
Counsel to Post Advisory Group in connection with breach of contract suit for failure to pay commitment and break-up fee (media).
Counsel to directors and secured creditors in connection with lender liability and breach of duty litigation in Chapter 11 cases of Twinlab (retail).
Counsel to Wells Fargo Foothill Inc., Ableco Finance LLC and CIT Group Inc. as post-petition lenders in Chapter 11 case of E.spire et al. (telecom).
Counsel to Rabobank International in Chapter 11 case of Enron in connection with true sale suit arising out of a complex securitization involving the common stock of a publicly traded company which had a market value in excess of $517 million (energy/derivatives).
Counsel to Blackacre Bridge Capital LLC and SWH Funding Corp. in Chapter 11 case of River Center, Inc. et al. (real estate).
Counsel to Ableco Finance LLC and the CIT Group/Business Credit Inc. as post-petition lenders in Chapter 11 cases of Atlas Air et al. (aviation).
Counsel to Ableco Finance LLC, Wells Fargo Foothill Inc. and Regiment Capital Advisors LP as pre-petition secured creditors in Chapter 11 case of Pen Holdings, Inc. et al. (mining/leasing).
Counsel to creditors’ committee and Harrison J. Goldin as liquidating trustee in Pegasus Gold Corporation et al. (mining).
Counsel to Bank of Montreal, as agent for secured bank group, in adversary proceedings to determine status as secured or unsecured of over $1 billion of debt in Loewen Chapter 11 case.
Selected Publications
“Restructuring Troubled Media Firms: Practical Tips for Creditors,” Troubled Company Reporter, Dec. 22, 2011 (co-author)
“Equipment Lenders Beware: Out-of-Court Foreclosure May Not Insulate Assets from Successor Liability Claims Asserted by the Borrower's Creditors,” Equipment Leasing Newsletter, July 2011 (co-author)
“Buyer Beware: Purchaser of Assets in UCC Article 9 Foreclosure Sale May Be Subject to Claims of Debtor's Unsecured Creditors,” The Bankruptcy Strategist, June 2011 (co-author)
“Not So ‘Silent’: Second Lien Creditor Allowed to Oppose Bid Procedures,” ABI Committee News, Secured Creditor Committee, December 2010 (co-author)
“Treatment of ‘Make-Whole’ and ‘No-Call’ Provisions by Bankruptcy Courts,” Pratt’s Journal of Bankruptcy Law, April 2011 (co-author)
“District Court Reverses Bankruptcy Court’s Controversial Fraudulent Transfer Tousa Decision,” SRZ Client Alert, February 2011 (co-author)
“Treatment of ‘Make-Whole’ and ‘No-Call’ Provisions by Bankruptcy Courts,” SRZ Client Alert, December 2010 (co-author)
“Cramdown: Reorganization Plan Litigation for Secured Creditors,” PLI 28th Annual Current Developments in Bankruptcy Reorganization, 2006 and Aspen Law & Business’ Bankruptcy Litigation Manual, 2006–07 edition
“Debtors Cannot Assume or Assign Trademark License Without Licensor’s Consent,” The Bankruptcy Strategist, April 2006
“Chapter 11 Debtors Cannot Assume or Assign Trademark License Without Consent From Licensor,” Bankruptcy Court Decisions, January 2006
“Bankruptcy Impact on Fiduciary Duties and D&O Liability Insurance: A Practical Guide for Directors, Officers, Creditors, Shareholders and Insurers,” SRZ Client Memorandum, January 2005
“Deepening Insolvency Litigation Risks for Lenders and Directors When Out-of-Court Restructuring Efforts Fail,” NYU Journal of Law and Business, December 2004
“Fighting Cramdown: The Objecting Secured Creditor in Reorganization Plan Litigation,” SRZ Client Memorandum, August 2004
Primer on Break-Up Fees in Bankruptcy, 2001
More
Selected Speaking Engagements
“What are Stakeholders Fighting About? Expansion Rule of 9019, Competing Plans, Collective Actions and Binding Minority Lenders in the Same Credit, Tousa,” American Bankruptcy Institute 13th Annual New York Bankruptcy Conference, New York, May 2011
“Rule 2019 Disclosure and Committee Membership Issues” and “Pre-Packaged and Pre-Arranged Bankruptcies,” SRZ Distressed Investing: Inside the Bankruptcy Process Seminar, June 2009
More
Memberships
American Bankruptcy Institute
New York City Bankruptcy Assistance Project
Steering Committee Member
Other Distinctions
Chambers USA, America's Leading Lawyers for Business
Bar Admissions
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York
Education
-
Albany Law School, J.D., cum laude, 1995
- Associate Editor, Albany Law Review
-
State University of New York at Oneonta, B.A., cum laude, 1992
Prior Experience
Mayer, Brown & Platt, 1995-2001
Associate