Corporate restructurings evolve with time, but the strategies and techniques used by companies over the past five to 10 years have developed with lightning speed. For decades, companies in distress used Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code to reorganize their balance sheets and, when appropriate, make necessary changes to their operations. However, traditional bankruptcy filings have made way for more out-of-court restructuring transactions, given, among other things, the global nature of certain businesses, private equity ownership, and the development of sophisticated financial and capital markets.

This course will expose students to the practical, real-world skills needed to advise clients in both in- and out-of-court corporate restructuring, as well as familiarize them with financial, legal, and strategic issues associated with corporate restructurings. The main focus of the course will be on the restructuring of a financially distressed company with particular emphasis on the boardroom and corporate governance process, relative legal rights of stakeholders in the capital structure, negotiations between stakeholders, and the role of legal and financial advisors in a restructuring. The course will include discussions of potential balance sheet techniques (liability management exercises) that can be used to avoid or mitigate the need for a comprehensive restructuring. The course will involve substantive lectures, selected reading assignments, industry guest speakers who will discuss real-life experiences and insights, role-playing exercises, preparation of written materials as part of the simulation exercises, and guidance and constructive feedback from the course instructor.

Recommended for the following Professional Pathways: Corporate Transactions and Governance; Financial Services and Compliance; Health Care Management and Compliance; International Business; Labor and Employment (Corporate Perspective); Real Estate and Land Use; Media, Entertainment, Sports, Fashion; Tech/Privacy; General Practice – Transactional

1 Credit