Houston Business Journal featured Haynes and Boone, LLP as the Largest Bankruptcy Law Firm in Houston. The firm’s Houston office has 96 lawyers, ranking ninth among the city’s 50 largest law firms.
The Restructuring Practice Group at Haynes and Boone is fully equipped to handle issues in the largest and most complex out-of-court financial restructurings and Chapter 11 reorganization cases. Here are highlights of the HBJ interview with Haynes and Boone Restructuring Partner Kenric Kattner:
How’s business? The restructuring business in Houston has been busy over the last several years and specifically with respect to the oil and gas industry. A number of energy Chapter 11 filings that could have filed in Delaware filed in Houston instead. ... Other than energy, there are additional businesses that may experience challenges during the next year including health care, retail and real estate. ...
What’s the most challenging part of being a bankruptcy lawyer in Houston right now? ... A bankruptcy lawyer must know something about finance, corporate law, tax law, labor and employment and how a number of different industries and business sectors work. ... Bankruptcy lawyers are essentially problem solvers and must know how to negotiate a resolution for the problem or alternatively deal with it in court. A bankruptcy lawyer typically practices in an emergency context with short deadlines and situations that need an expedited solution. ...
What were some of your big wins last year and what makes them successful in your eyes? I recently had a very interesting case involving a business that is a vertically integrated manufacturer and operator of the powerful heavy-lift S-64 Air-Crane helicopter, and a global provider of aviation services. ... The company was on the brink of running out of cash; however, through negotiations with its creditor constituencies, the company obtained financing to carry it through a Chapter 11 case in only six months. The company completely revised its business plan, restructured its aircraft fleet, eliminated over $400 million in debt from its balance sheet and raised $20 million in a rights offering on the exit from bankruptcy. Over 2,000 jobs were preserved. ... Over 50 Haynes and Boone lawyers worked on the case due to the short time frame. ...
What keeps you up at night? What keeps me up at night are the demands of a complicated practice, but another important area is the hiring, training and retention of our younger lawyers. It is important for every successful law firm to provide development opportunities for their lawyers to learn and grow. ...
Excerpted from Houston Business Journal. To read the full article, click here. (Subscription required)