Experience

Fairway Energy, LP and affiliates

Fairway Energy, LP and its affiliates operated an integrated business that owned and operated an underground crude oil storage facility in Houston, Texas.  They commenced their bankruptcy cases to sell their business as a going concern. Following a marketing and sale process and auction, the Fairway debtors ultimately sold substantially all of their assets to Fairway New Co LLC, an affiliate of their lender, Riverstone Credit Partners-Direct, L.P., for a $77.5 million credit bid. After the sale closed, the debtors successfully achieved confirmation of their plan of liquidation. Young Conaway serves as co-counsel in Fairway’s bankruptcy cases with Haynes and Boone, LLP.

David’s Bridal, Inc. and it’s affiliates

Young Conaway, along with co-counsel Debevoise & Plimpton, represented the debtors in connection with their $800 million debt restructuring, which was implemented through a consensual chapter 11 plan.  Young Conaway assisted the nation’s largest wedding retailer in meeting its goals to continue to provide uninterrupted, exceptional service to customers during the chapter 11 process and emerge from bankruptcy within two months of filing in time for the peak wedding dress retail season beginning in January 2019.

Mattress Firm, Inc.

Mattress Firm, Inc. is the largest specialty mattress retailer in the United States, operating more than 3,200 stores across 49 states prior to the company’s chapter 11 filing.  Young Conaway, together with Sidley Austin LLP, successfully navigated the company and its affiliates through a prepackaged chapter 11 process designed to simplify and de-leverage the debtors’ capital structure and right-size their real estate footprint. The debtors confirmed their prepackaged plan of reorganization, which provided for payment in full of nearly all unsecured creditors, and emerged from bankruptcy in less than 50 days. The restructuring provided the company with enhanced financial flexibility through a $525 million exit financing facility and significant cost savings realized from the rejection of hundreds of store leases, setting the stage for the company’s long-term success.

Syntax-Brillian Corporation

Young Conaway served as counsel to Greenberg Taurig, LLP in the chapter 11 proceeding of Syntax-Brillian Corporation pending in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

Fisker Automotive Holdings, Inc.

Young Conway acted as co-counsel with Sidley Austin LLP to Wanxiang America Corporation in the chapter 11 proceeding of Fisker Automotive Holdings, Inc.

HCR ManorCare, Inc.

HCR ManorCare logo

HCR ManorCare, Inc. and its non-debtor subsidiaries are a leading national healthcare provider that operate a network of more than 450 locations nationwide providing (a) skilled nursing and inpatient rehabilitation facilities, memory care facilities, and assisted living facilities (b) hospice and home health care agencies; and (c) outpatient rehabilitation clinics and other ancillary healthcare and related businesses.  HCR ManorCare, Inc. commenced its bankruptcy case to effectuate a prepackaged plan of reorganization satisfying the claims of a major creditor and improving its go-forward operations by, among other things, reducing its operating leverage.  Young Conaway was retained as co-counsel in HCR ManorCare, Inc.’s chapter 11 bankruptcy case with Sidley Austin LLP.

JG Wentworth (Orchard Acquisition)

The J.G. Wentworth Company and its affiliated debtors are a leading diversified consumer financial services company focused on mortgage lending, personal and business lending, structured settlements, and prepaid cards.  The J.G. Wentworth debtors commenced their bankruptcy cases to effectuate a recapitalization of their balance sheet on a consensual basis in accordance with the terms of a restructuring support agreement with their primary stakeholders.  Following a mere 36 days, the J.G. Wentworth debtors’ pre-packaged plan of reorganization was confirmed and the company emerged from bankruptcy a week later.  Through the plan, the J.G. Wentworth debtors’ prepetition funded debt, which totaled $449.5 million, was eliminated and the company received $70 million in new funding.  Young Conaway was retained as co-counsel with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.

Woodbridge Group of Companies, LLC

On December 4, 2017, the Woodbridge Group of Companies, LLC and its affiliated debtors commenced chapter 11 cases, which arose out of a massive, multi-year Ponzi scheme perpetrated between (at least) 2012 and 2017.  As part of this fraud, the debtors raised over one billion dollars from approximately 10,000 investors, while amassing a significant portfolio of high-end real estate properties, the total estimated value of which is still being determined but which range individually in value from approximately $50,000 to over $100,000,000 per property.  The goal of the chapter 11 cases is to maximize recoveries to investors and other constituencies harmed by the Ponzi scheme.  In order to accomplish this goal, the debtors developed a plan of liquidation that memorializes a settlement reached with various investor and creditor parties in interest in consultation with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  The debtors are working diligently to confirm the plan and make initial distributions prior to the end of 2018.  Young Conaway was retained to represent the Debtors as co-counsel working with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Klee, Tuchin, Bogdanoff & Stern LLP.