Mr. Anifowoshe is a Managing Director and Head of Restructuring in the Fortress Credit Funds Business’ Corporate Loan and Securities group. Since joining Fortress in 2020, Mr. Anifowoshe has focused on special situations, restructurings, and distressed debt across the Fortress platform. Prior to joining Fortress, Mr. Anifowoshe was a Vice President in the Restructuring and Debt Advisory group at Evercore where he advised debtors, lenders, and sponsors on a broad range of restructuring, bankruptcy, capital raising, and liability management transactions across multiple industries. Mr. Anifowoshe began his financial career in capital markets at Barclays in New York, where he focused on fixed income products for institutional clients. Mr. Anifowoshe received his B.A. from Yale University, his J.D. from Columbia Law School, and his MBA from Columbia Business School.

Josh Brody’s practice focuses on representing clients in complex Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases and other distressed situations, including out-of-court restructurings, liability management transactions, debtor-in-possession financing and distressed asset sales. He represents a diverse range of creditors at all levels of complex structures, including secured and unsecured, bondholders and term loan holders, indenture trustees, creditors’ committees, and trade creditors. Josh also advises hedge funds and other financial institutions on the rights and remedies of debtholders and in understanding elaborate corporate and capital structures.

Josh joined Cleary Gottlieb as a partner in 2025 from another major international law firm.

HONORABLE STACEY G. C. JERNIGAN

Chief Judge, United States Bankruptcy Court

1100 Commerce St., Room 1254

Dallas, TX 75242-1496

214-753-2040

Judicial History:  Appointed to the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas, 

Dallas Division, on May 12, 2006.  Over 200 written opinions may be accessed at www.txnb.uscourts.gov

Prior Legal Experience (Private Practice):  Practiced 17 years in the Business Reorganization and Bankruptcy Practice Group at Haynes and Boone, LLP (Dallas, TX office), 1989-2006.  Head of Bankruptcy Practice Group (2000-2006); Partner (1997-2006); Associate (1989-1996).  Represented all types of parties-in-interest in large Chapter 11 cases and out-of-court workouts.  Specific industry expertise:  energy companies; healthcare and other regulated entities; real estate businesses; public companies.  

Prior Legal Experience (Public Sector—Special Assignment):  Adviser to the California Legislature (Speaker of the Assembly Robert Hertzberg), Sacramento, California (Jan.-Aug. 2001), in connection with the California utility financial crisis involving PG&E utility company.

Teaching: Adjunct Professor, SMU Dedman School of Law, Creditors Rights.

Recent Speeches and Panel Presentations:

1. Elder Fraud, FJC Workshop for Bankruptcy Judges, St. Petersburg, FL (Apr. 2025) and Minneapolis, MN (July 2025).
2. Mass Torts and Existential Threats to Corporate Entities, 43rd Annual University of Texas/Jay L. Westbrook Bankruptcy Conference, Austin, TX (Nov. 2024).
3. First, Do No Harm: Overseeing Bankruptcies in Hospitals and Other Critical Care Settings, FJC Workshop for Bankruptcy Judges, Overland Park, Kansas (June 2024).
4. Non-Profit Companies in Bankruptcy, Joint ABI/NCBJ Program, Seattle, WA (Sept. 2024). 
5. Bankruptcy Judges Panel, Univ. Of Chicago/BYU Winter Bankruptcy Conference, Deer Valley, Utah (Mar. 2024). 
6. Arbitration in Bankruptcy, ABI Winter Leadership Conference, Scottsdale, AZ (Nov. 2023)
7. Chapter 11 Issues, 42nd Annual University of Texas/Jay L. Westbrook Bankruptcy Conference, Austin, TX (Nov. 2023).  
8. Views from the Bench, ABI Conference, Washington, DC (Sept. 2023).
9. Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency, ABI Southeast Bankruptcy Conference, Amelia Island, FL (July 2022). 
10. Fifth Circuit Cases that Every Bankruptcy Lawyer Should Know, State Bar of Texas Bankruptcy Bench-Bar Conference, San Antonio, TX (June 2023). 
11. Hot Topics in Healthcare:  What to Do When the Stimulus Money Runs Dry? 41st Annual University of Texas/Jay L. Westbrook Bankruptcy Conference, Austin, TX (Nov. 2022).

Professional Memberships and Honors:  Board Certified in Business Bankruptcy Law by the American Board of Certification; Member, National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (International Committee and Security Committee); Fellow, American College of Bankruptcy (frequent speaker at its conferences); Fellow, Texas Bar Foundation; Fellow, Dallas Bar Foundation; Master, former Board Member, Serjeant of the Inn, and occasional Bankruptcy Course Instructor for John C. Ford American Inn of Court; Member, American Bankruptcy Institute (frequent speaker at conferences); Bankruptcy Observer to Fifth Circuit Judicial Council; Member, State Bar of Texas Bankruptcy Section; Member, Dallas Bar Association Bankruptcy and Commercial Law Section; Co-Chair of the Center for American and International Law’s Biennial Fifth Circuit Bankruptcy Bench-Bar Conference, New Orleans, LA (2016, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2024); Judicial Co-Chair of the National “Roadways to the Federal Bench: Who, Me?  A Bankruptcy Judge?” (a diversity and inclusion event sponsored by the Judicial Conference of the United States Committee on the Administration of the Bankruptcy System)); Planning Committee for the Annual University of Texas/Jay L. Westbrook Bankruptcy Conference, Austin, TX (for approximately 20 years).   

Miscellaneous Publications:  Fiction legal thrillers: Mystic Spires Post-Mortem:  A Cold Case Legal Thriller, ISBN: 978-1-61254-725-1 (Brown Books Publishing Oct. 14, 2025); He Watches All My Paths, ISBN:   978-1-79406-707-3 (Amazon Books 2019); Hedging Death, ISBN: 978-1-63363-581-4 (White Bird Publications 2022). 

Education:  J.D., University of Texas School of Law, 1989; B.B.A., magna cum laude, Southern Methodist University, 1986.    

Personal:  Married to a retired Dallas Police Officer.  Mother to two adult children and two Cavalier King Charles Spaniels.  The family enjoys international travel. 

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. 

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.

Fran Blair joined PSP Investments in 2018 and serves as a Managing Director in the firm’s direct investing Credit business, where he heads the distressed credit and rescue finance strategy in New York. Mr. Blair is a member of the Global Credit Investment Committee for private credit and liquid/syndicated leveraged credit in addition to leading the firm’s restructuring and post-reorganization corporate governance efforts. He currently sits on the Board of Directors of Transcendia Holdings Inc., Fleet Farm Group LLC, and Coronis Health I, LLC, with past board experience including Crash Champions LLC (formerly Service King), Dayton Superior Corporation, and Penson Technologies LLC (formerly Penson Financial Services). In addition to his corporate governance roles, Mr. Blair has extensive experience serving on creditor and ad hoc committees in restructurings and bankruptcies, including cases such as Indiana Toll Road. Prior to PSP, Mr. Blair was a Managing Director at Solus Alternative Asset Management LP, where he was a founding member of the investment team in 2007. He previously held roles in credit investing, trading, and restructuring at Deutsche Bank and began his career in the Financial Sponsors Group at Bankers Trust. Mr. Blair holds a BA in Economics from Hamilton College.

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.

David M. Feldman is Global Co-Head of the Restructuring & Insolvency practice in New York. David brings more than 30 years of experience representing large and sophisticated credit funds, private equity firms, financial institutions, and companies in complex bankruptcy cases, out-of-court restructurings, and distressed asset and debt transactions. He is consistently ranked as a leading Bankruptcy and Restructuring lawyer by Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, describing him as “an excellent strategist with an ability to guide his clients through restructurings efficiently and successfully,” that he “is very smart,” and “very experienced,” highlighting “his in-depth understanding of technical issues” and his “fantastic strategic vision”.

Scott Alberino is a partner at Akin and represents debtors, official creditor committees, informal creditor groups, equity holders, and other stakeholders in all aspects of corporate liability management, restructuring, bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings. He regularly advises boards of directors of public and private companies on issues facing financially distressed companies, including fiduciary duties, corporate governance and executive compensation. Scott also regularly represents private equity funds, hedge funds and other financial institutions that are acquiring control positions in financially distressed companies and in structuring debtor in possession (DIP) and exit financing.

Scott Welkis has worked for more than 25 years in the debt financing space, guiding clients on both sides of transactions in the origination, negotiation and completion of an extensive range of traditional and alternative financing arrangements. Drawing on his long experience in debt and distressed financing, as well as with in-court and out-of-court restructurings, Scott strategizes, structures and executes creative, market-leading and often bespoke financing solutions for clients. He advises and represents capital providers — banks and traditional financial institutions, and established and emerging alternative capital sources, including credit funds, hedge funds and distressed investors — in the origination and structuring of a wide spectrum of corporate debt financings, including senior, subordinated and unsecured financings, leveraged loans, and asset-based loans. Scott also guides private and public companies, including post-restructured companies, in structuring and executing financing transactions for their short- and long-term capital needs, including new money financings, rescue loan transactions and debtor-in-possession (DIP) financings. He advises companies throughout the debt life cycle, navigating them through financial challenges, restructurings and other distressed situations that frequently include complex intercreditor issues and governance concerns.

Mauricio Jannet

Managing Partner at Blink Capital Solutions, with over 25 years of experience in the financial sector. Former Managing Director at ExeFin, CEO LATAM at GMAC Rescap, and MD of Capital Markets at GMAC Financiera. Holds an MBA, a Bachelor of Science in Economics, and a BBA from Texas Christian University.

His expertise spans mortgage and construction loan origination, valuation of mortgage loan portfolios, real estate asset servicing, structuring real estate financing, and mortgage-backed securitizations. 

He has participated in numerous debt restructuring operations across various sectors, including non-bank financial institutions, hospitality, oil & gas, and real estate. Additionally, he has extensive experience in establishing complex, tailor-made financing structures within the in Mexico.

With more than a decade of experience in the bankruptcy and restructuring arena, Whitney brings a deep understanding of complex transactions and unparalleled knowledge of legal process and procedure to advising public and private companies facing capital structure, liquidity, liability management, financial disclosure, and other transactions. At C Street, Whitney has guided several companies through their strategic communications process, including WeWork, Belk, Brightspeed, Rackspace, 2U, Robertshaw, and Mobileum. She also advises individual creditors and creditor groups, as well as buyers of distressed assets.

Prior to joining C Street, Whitney was a partner at global law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP, where she oversaw a number of complex and high-profile restructuring matters. During her legal career, she advised companies through complicated special situations, including Chesapeake Energy Corporation, Prima Wawona, Yellow Corporation, HONX, Inc. STX Filmworks, Inc., American Tire Distributors, Inc., and numerous others. In addition to Whitney’s company-side representations, Whitney regularly counseled private equity and investment funds, both in and out of court, and on corporate governance matters related to sponsors’ portfolio companies.

Whitney holds a B.A. in Political Science and History from the University of Colorado and a J.D. degree from American University Washington College of Law. She is a member of the Illinois bar.

David has more than 25 years of restructuring experience in providing both interim management and advisory services that span multibillion-dollar to middle-market situations. His experience crosses numerous industries, including retail, healthcare, restaurant, automotive, manufacturing, mining, entertainment, education, and consumer products and services. He has represented companies, secured lenders and unsecured creditors. David is Co-Leader of the Americas Restructuring Practice. David also Co-Leads the Lender Advisory practice advising hedge funds and private credit lenders in distressed situations.   David has a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Montclair State University in New Jersey. 

•David is currently leading the team advising At Home in their in-court restructuring.  He recently served as CRO of Franchise Group and previously served as the CRO at Party City.   He led the restructuring of Akumin, Inc an outpatient diagnostic imaging provider and led the team advising Cano Health, a $3B+ healthcare provider and primary care physician network.  

•David has advised hedge funds and private credit lenders at Envision Healthcare, Save-a-Lot, CarbonLite, Outcome Health as well as several other non-public distressed credits.  

•Previously David has served as CRO of mental-health-services provider Bellwether Behavioral Health; as CRO of frac sand producer Preferred Sands; as CRO and interim CFO of RCS Capital Corporation; as CRO of $1.3-billion global automotive and transportation company Mark IV Industries; and as interim CFO and chief operating officer of Malden Mills, creator of Polartec fleece.

•Some of David’s other company representations include financial advisor to Diamond Sports Group, Akorn Pharmaceutical, Bumble Bee tuna and Jack Cooper Transport during their respective in court restructurings.  He served as financial advisor to Crossmark during its successful out of court restructuring and served as financial advisor to ModSpace. 

David J. Cohen is a partner in Weil’s Restructuring Department and is based in New York and Miami, where he serves as Co-Managing Partner of the Miami office. David has extensive experience representing debtors, secured and unsecured creditors, sponsors, lenders, bondholders, acquirors, and other key stakeholders in U.S. and cross-border corporate restructurings, both in-court (including chapter 11, chapter 15, receivership, and other insolvency proceedings) and out-of-court, as well as in liability management transactions, distressed financings, and distressed M&A matters across a wide range of industries.

David advises companies, sponsors, ad hoc creditor groups, DIP lenders, secured lenders, and other creditors in complex restructurings, recapitalizations, and related transactions. He has been recognized as a “Rising Star” in Bankruptcy by Law360, an “On the Rise” attorney by the Daily Business Review, an “Emerging Leader” by The M&A Advisor, and an “Outstanding Young Restructuring Lawyer” by Turnarounds & Workouts. He has also been included among Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Global Bankruptcy & Restructuring Lawyers and its Lawdragon 500 X – The Next Generation list.

David regularly speaks on bankruptcy and restructuring panels and has been a guest lecturer at the University of Miami School of Law and University of Florida Levin College of Law.

Michael Chaisanguanthum is a Managing Director at UBS Asset Management.  He joined Credit Suisse Asset Management (the predecessor to UBS Asset Management) in 2007 and is the Head of Restructuring for the Credit Investments Group, where he focuses on workouts, restructurings, and distressed credits.  Prior to joining Credit Suisse Asset Management, he was an associate with Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP.  Michael holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of California, Berkeley, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.

Matthew is a General Partner and the head of OrbiMed’s Royalty and Credit Opportunities team. He has been with OrbiMed since 2010 and helped launch the firm’s first dedicated royalty and credit fund. He has led over $6 billion of investments in the structured credit and royalty space. Prior to joining OrbiMed, Matthew was responsible for pharmaceutical licensing and acquisitions at Ikaria. He has worked in healthcare for 30 years, including life sciences investing at Fortress Investment Group and global commercial strategy at GSK. Matthew received his M.B.A. from Duke University with a concentration in Health Sector Management. At OrbiMed, he is focused on providing structured capital solutions to fund growth across healthcare and life sciences.

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.

Mobi joined Centerbridge in 2018. Prior to joining Centerbridge, Mobi was an Analyst in the Restructuring and Special Situations Group at PJT Partners.

Evan Lederman is a Partner, Co-Head of Credit at J.F. Lehman & Company (“JFL”), an alternative asset manager with approximately $8 billion of AUM. Mr. Lederman has 20 years of investing, legal and restructuring experience across the credit spectrum, ranging from performing to distressed. He has chaired various creditor committees in some of the largest and most complex restructurings and serves on numerous public and private corporate boards, including currently serving as a director of JFL portfolio company, PURIS and Team, Inc.

Previously, Mr. Lederman was a Partner at Fir Tree Capital Management, a multi-billion dollar investment manager, where he was Co-Head of Credit and Special Situations. Mr. Lederman began his career as a restructuring and litigation attorney at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP.

A native of New York, Mr. Lederman graduated magna cum laude from New York University, where he earned a B.A. in political science and government and was the all-university commencement speaker. He also graduated with honors from New York University School of Law, where he received a J.D.

Todd Solomon has over 25 years of investing experience specializing in restructuring, distressed, opportunistic credit, and special situations.  Mr. Solomon is Head of Restructuring at Lord Abbett & Co where he is responsible for the oversight and leadership of restructuring and workout situations globally.  In addition, Mr. Solomon is Portfolio Manager of Distressed and Special Situations. 

Mr. Solomon was a Managing Principal at Halcyon Capital Management LLC where he held numerous roles, including Portfolio Manager of Halcyon Liquid Strategies and Director of Research.  He was a member of the Firm’s Investment Management and Risk Management Committees.  Mr. Solomon also was Director of Research at TCW Distressed LLC.

Mr. Solomon began his career at Chase Manhattan Bank in the Private Placement Group.  He previously served as Senior Research Analyst at Triage Capital Management and an Associate specializing in M&A and Corporate Finance at Citigroup in the Investment Banking Global Communications Group.  Mr. Solomon earned his BA, with a concentration in Managerial Economics, from Union College and his MBA from Columbia Business School.  

Jose Kliksberg has worked with distressed and high yield credits in emerging markets for the last 20 years. He has worked at various credit funds covering EM corporates including Moneda Asset Management, Black River and currently at Kawa Capital. He was a credit analyst at Morgan Stanely and Bank of America Special sits desks and an M&A banker at JPMorgan. Throughout his career he has restructured, invested, and advised various Latin American companies. He has a degree in Finance from the University of Maryland and an MBA from MIT Sloan.

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.

Mr. Villen is a member of Houlihan Lokey’s Financial Restructuring Group with a special focus on the Latin America region. He has more than two decades of global investment banking experience, including corporate restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, and the issuance of both debt and equity securities.

Mr. Villen’s prior experience includes providing advice to major parties-in-interest in a broad range of transactions, including Atento, Mexarrend, Volcan Compañía Minera, WOM S.A., Alpha Credit, Credito Real, Oi S.A., Unifin Financiera, Grupo Mega, Credivalores, Grupo Aeroportuario de la Ciudad de Mexico, Corporación GEO, Nextel Mexico, Nextel Brazil, Panrico, Martinsa-Fadesa, Levantina, Bodybell, Banco Estado, Afore XXI, Frontier Communications, Windstream Holdings, Guitar Center, The Weinstein Co., Relativity Media, SFX Entertainment, Rhythm & Hues Studios, Independent News & Media, IBAHN Corp., Quizno’s, Sbarro, Culligan International, IAP Worldwide Services, Reichhold Industries, UniversalPegasus International, Gibson Brands, and Den-Mat, among others.

Before joining Houlihan Lokey, Mr. Villen worked with Prudential Financial’s M&A and Corporate Development Group in Newark, New Jersey. He started his career with Deutsche Bank’s Financial Institutions Group in London. 

Mr. Villen holds a B.S. in Business Administration from Pontificia de Comillas University and an MBA from Columbia Business School. He speaks fluent Spanish and French.

James H.M. “Jamie” Sprayregen serves as Vice Chairman Global Strategy & Growth at Hilco Global. As a key advisor and strategic growth partner to CEO and founder Jeffrey Hecktman, he shares direct oversight of the firm’s rapidly expanding financial services platform with other key members of the executive leadership team. 

Jamie is one of the most well-known and highly regarded dealmakers and thought leaders in the restructuring, corporate reorganization and M&A community. He founded Kirkland and Ellis’ worldwide Restructuring Group, building it from inception in 1990 to become the premier restructuring group in the world, and the only one ranked tier 1 in every major region globally. As a partner in the Chicago and New York offices of Kirkland & Ellis, he served on the law firm’s worldwide management committee from 2003-2006 and 2009-2019. He joined Goldman Sachs in 2006 and served as co-head of its Restructuring Group, advising clients in restructuring and distressed situations. He rejoined Kirkland three years later. 

Chambers & Partners has praised Jamie for his “outstanding reputation for complex Chapter 11 cases” recently noting he is “a go-to for big issues” and a “bankruptcy guru.” In the 2022 edition of Chambers USA, sources described Jamie as “a rock star – the Mick Jagger of the bankruptcy bar.” Chambers said that clients it spoke to noted that he is “probably the best restructuring lawyer in the world” and is “a luminary in the field” of restructuring and insolvency.

Sources have also commented that he is “a premier restructuring expert” and “in a class of his own” with “unbelievable technical capabilities” and “deep experience he can draw upon.” He has been praised as a “great clients’ lawyer, admired for his unflustered ways” and for his ability “to take extraordinarily complex issues and make them understandable for boards and executive management teams.” 

Prior editions of Chambers guides have described Jamie as “a world-class practice leader,” “one of the deans of the Bar,” and “a restructuring genius and one of the best strategists in the country” noting that clients look to him as someone who is “providing leadership and strategic guidance on the big issues.” Sources commended Jamie for his “incredible work ethic and skill” and for his ability to “bring a mastery of the law to practical application.” Clients are “impressed by his boundless energy to work on issues” and note that Jamie is “very good in complicated and difficult situations.” 

In March 2010, Jamie was selected by The National Law Journal as one of “The Decade’s Most Influential Lawyers.” Jamie was named “Global Insolvency & Restructuring Lawyer of the Year” in 2013 by Who’s Who Legal Awards, receiving more votes from clients and peers than any other individual worldwide. In October 2013, Jamie was inducted into the Turnaround Management Association (TMA) Turnaround, Restructuring, and Distressed Investing Industry Hall of Fame. 

From 2013-2015, Jamie was appointed to serve a two year term as the President of INSOL International, the world’s leading international insolvency association. Jamie is also an Adjunct Full Professor of Finance at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania where he teaches a combined Wharton/Penn Law course on “Corporate Restructuring.”

Jamie received his J.D., cum laude, from the University of Illinois College of Law and his B.A., cum laude, from the University of Michigan.

Carlos Galvez (San Francisco) joined KKR in 2015 and is a Director on the Credit team, focused on leveraged credit funds and portfolios. Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Galvez worked at Overland Advisors where he was a special situations analyst and event-driven analyst supporting multi-strategy hedge funds. Prior to Overland Advisors, Mr. Galvez worked at Lincoln International as a vice president advising on mergers and acquisition transactions, sales of distressed assets and leveraged buyouts. Mr. Galvez holds a B.A. and B.S. in Mathematics and Economics from Stanford University and a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard Business School.