Derek Hunter is a partner in the Miami and New York offices of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Derek advises companies, ad hoc committees, private equity firms and other investors on capital structure, liquidity and other strategic solutions for public and private companies across industries, including liability management transactions, exchange transactions, refinancings, amend and extend transactions, mergers and acquisitions, out-of-court restructurings and Chapter 11 court proceedings. Derek also advises boards of directors and senior management on fiduciary duties and corporate governance.

After long and successful careers in commercial real estate, Andy Graiser and Emilio Amendola co-founded A&G Real Estate Partners in 2012. Previously, in 1992, they founded and then later sold DJM Realty. In total, they’ve been business partners for 30 years.

A go-to resource for board members and C-suite executives at healthy and distressed companies across all industries--as well as lenders, investment bankers, private equity firms, financial advisors and attorneys--Andy plays a leadership role on each project, from commencement to successful conclusion. Those efforts have led to numerous industry accolades for A&G, including prestigious awards for its role on specific projects from the likes of the Turnaround Management Association and Global M&A Network, as well as Real Estate Advisory Firm of the Year in 2019 and 2020 from Global M&A Network, and  2021 Retail Real Estate Influencer from GlobeSt.com/Real Estate Forum.

His key areas of expertise include lease renegotiations and terminations, real estate optimization and dispositions, facilitation of growth opportunities, real estate valuations, and sales.

Andy and his team have achieved occupancy cost savings approaching $8 billion on behalf of 750+ clients in every real estate sector, while selling more than $12 billion of owned real estate and  leases.

Respected by the extended real estate community, Andy is a trusted advisor to innumerable clients of all sizes in retail, restaurant, education, office, family entertainment, movie theater, supermarket, warehouse/distribution, and various other sectors. The clients he is most closely associated with include A&P Supermarkets, Apex family entertainment, Chico’s, Cinepolis Theaters, Claire’s, Dowling College, Eileen Fisher, GNC, Hanna Anderson, Mattress Firm, Palace Entertainment, Party City, RadioShack, rue21, Ruth Chris, Sequential Brands, Supervalu, Tailored Brands and Tuesday Morning.

A frequent speaker, Andy is an active member of the International Council of Shopping Centers, the Commercial Real Estate Professionals and Investors Group, Real Estate & Debt Symposiums, the Turnaround Management Association, the American Bankruptcy Institute, and the Secured Financial Network.

His philanthropy includes the Runway of Dreams Foundation, the National Kidney Foundation, and More Than Words.

Based in New York, Andy is an avid sports fan, trivia connoisseur and enjoys traveling with his family.

Tom is a Partner and Co-Founder at Ames Watson. Prior to Ames Watson, Tom was the founder of Severn Partners, a private equity firm that acquired more than a dozen companies in the defense, retail, light manufacturing and service sectors. Over the past 18 years, Tom has developed extensive operating experience across more than two dozen different companies. Today, Tom serves as the Chairman & CEO of Lids Sports Group. Tom started his career as an infantry and special operations officer in the United States Marine Corps. Tom graduated from the Virginia Military Institute with a BA and an MBA from the University of Chicago. Tom lives in Annapolis, Maryland with his wife and three children.

Marc Puntus joined Centerview Partners in 2011 to establish its debt advisory & restructuring practice, which he co-heads.

Centerview is a premier provider of independent investment-banking advisory services, with industry-leading expertise in M&A, independent board advice, special committees, shareholder activism, debt and equity financing and debt advisory, liability management and restructuring.

During his over 30-year career, Marc has led restructuring, financing and M&A assignments for companies, creditors, acquirers, shareholders and other stakeholders across a wide array of industries. 

Some of Marc’s recent and more notable engagements, include:

• SVB Financial Group – parent company of Silicon Valley Bank.
• Celsius Network Ltd.— global crypto platform and BTC miner.
• Alacrity Solutions – insurance claims services provider.
• Sirva Worldwide – global moving and relocation services provider.
• Avison Young – global commercial real estate services provider.
• Diamond Sports Group – first lien lenders.
• Dish Networks – DNC convertible noteholders.
• Caesars Entertainment Corp. – public parent company of largest U.S. gaming operator.
• Silvergate Bank – crypto-focused bank. 
• Patriot Coal – coal mine operator.
• Westmoreland Coal – coal mine operator.
• Could Peak – coal mine operator.
• Catalina Marketing – CPG and retail-focused personalized ad provider.
• Foxwoods/MPTN – operator of Foxwoods casino and hotel properties.
• Clearwire Corporation – global mobile and fixed wireless platform.
• JC Penney – retailer, pre-ch. 11 transactions.
• Sears – retailer, pre-ch. 11 transactions.
• ResCap – largest domestic non-bank mortgage originator/servicer.

Prior to joining Centerview, Marc was a Managing Director and founder of Miller Buckfire & Co. Prior to that he was a member of the financial restructuring group of Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein where he began his investment banking career.

Marc began his career, post-law school, as a restructuring associate and, thereafter, a partner at Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP.

Marc received a J.D. (cum laude) from Boston University School of Law and a B.S.B.A./Finance (magna cum laude) from Georgetown University.

JUDGE BRENDAN LINEHAN SHANNON 

United States Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Delaware 

Brendan Linehan Shannon is a United States Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Delaware.  He received his undergraduate degree from Princeton University, and his law degree from the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.  

Prior to his appointment to the bench, Judge Shannon was a partner with Young Conaway Stargatt & Taylor, LLP in Wilmington, Delaware.   Since his appointment in 2006, Judge Shannon has managed a full Chapter 11 docket, and he also handles all Chapter 13 consumer bankruptcy cases filed in the State of Delaware.  He served as Chief Judge of the Bankruptcy Court from 2014 through 2018. Judge Shannon was reappointed by the Third Circuit to a second 14-year term on March 13, 2020.  In 2025, Judge Shannon received the William Norton Award for Judicial Excellence.   The Norton Award is presented annually by the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges to a judge who has demonstrated excellence as a scholar, writer and jurist.

  Judge Shannon was appointed by Chief Justice Roberts to serve on the Judicial Conference Committee for the Administration of the Bankruptcy System in 2015.  His term of appointment to that Committee ended in 2022.  In 2023, Chief Justice Roberts appointed Judge Shannon to the Judicial Conference Committee on Court Administration and Case Management.  Judge Shannon also serves as Chair of the Third Circuit Judicial Council Committee on Bankruptcy.  Judge Shannon has served on intercircuit assignment to the District of Puerto Rico since April 2022 when he was appointed to serve as the judicial mediator for the Puerto Rico Electric Power Company’s Title III insolvency proceedings.

 Judge Shannon is an adjunct professor in the Bankruptcy L.L.M. Program at St. John’s University School of Law in New York, and previously taught at Widener School of Law in Delaware.  He serves on the Board of Editors of Collier on Bankruptcy (16th ed.) and is a contributing author for Collier Forms.  Judge Shannon also serves on the Advisory Board for the American Bankruptcy Institute Law Review.  Judge Shannon speaks frequently at bar education programs and judicial conferences, and he regularly serves as a faculty member in training programs for new chief bankruptcy judges organized by the Administrative Office of United States Courts. 

In 2011, Judge Shannon was selected to serve as a member of the National Bankruptcy Conference.  The 60-member Conference was created in the 1930s, and its mission is to serve as a resource to Congress on bankruptcy legislation.  Judge Shannon is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and a member of the Delaware State Bar Association, the American Bar Association, the American Bankruptcy Institute and the Rodney Inns of Court. 

Mr. Gatto was one of the first employees at Silver Point Capital, a credit-focused global investment firm. After joining the Firm in April 2002, he became the first non-founding partner in January 2003. He has helped grow the business from $120 million of investable capital in 2002 to ~$40 billion. Today, he is the head of the Firm’s Private Side Businesses.

Prior to joining Silver Point, Mr. Gatto worked at Goldman Sachs as a senior member within the Special Situations Investing Business. 

Outside of Silver Point, Mr. Gatto is an adjunct professor at Columbia Business School and Fordham University’s Gabelli School of Business, where he teaches courses on credit analysis, and distressed value & special situation investing.

He authored the credit investing textbook - “The Credit Investor’s Handbook: Leveraged Loans, High Yield Bonds and Distressed Debt.”

Mr. Gatto received an M.B.A. from Columbia Business School and a B.A. in Economics from Cornell University.