Safe-Harbor Issues After Lehman

Christy Rivera advises clients in connection to a wide range of transactions, including project financings and other secured lending transactions, securitizations and derivatives.

A large part of her practice consists of transactional and advisory work for hedge providers, lenders, sponsors, and other investors in connection with project development and finance, with a focus on renewables. Finally, she has extensive experience assisting lenders and other companies in financial restructurings.

She is co-chair of the firm's New York Hiring Committee.

Oscar is a Global Leader in Dentons’ Restructuring, Insolvency & Bankruptcy practice. He represents clients in and out of court in underperforming, distressed, workout, receivership, insolvency and bankruptcy situations involving strategic, operational, or financial issues, with an emphasis on M&A, equity or debt financing transactions.

Clients include investors, purchasers, lenders/agents, indenture trustees, estate fiduciaries, committees and debtors. As a result of his multi-faceted practice, Oscar is able to anticipate and navigate the interests of competing constituencies for the benefit of clients. Known for his creativity, ability to execute and practicality, Oscar is frequently called upon by clients in situations that are unique, sensitive or complex. Clients describe him as an “out of the box thinker” and a “pleasure to work with,” guarding their interests at every turn.

Oscar has received several accolades, including being named a 40 Under 40 Leader in Insolvency by the American Bankruptcy Institute, an Emerging Leader in M&A, Financing and Turnaround by The M&A Advisor, a Top 50 Rising Star Dealmaker in the Americas by Global M&A Network, a Top Rated Bankruptcy Attorney by Super Lawyers, and a Top Attorney Under 40 by Bankruptcy Law360. Restructurings or transactions he has been at the center of have received equal praise as Out of Court Restructuring of the Year or Cross-Border Turnaround of the Year by Global M&A Network’s Turnaround Atlas Award, and M&A Deal of the Year, Restructuring Deal of the Year or Industry Deal of the Year by The M&A Advisor.

Joel D. Applebaum, a Member in Clark Hill’s Corporate Restructuring & Bankruptcy Practice Group.

Hon. Lisa G. Beckerman is a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge, sworn in on Feb. 26, 2021. From May 1999 until she was appointed to the bench, she was a partner in the financial restructuring group at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP. From September 1989 until May 1999, she was an associate and then a partner in the bankruptcy group at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP.

Prior to her appointment, Judge Beckerman served as a co-chair of the Executive Committee of UJA-Federation of New York’s Bankruptcy and Reorganization Group, as co-chair and as a member of the Advisory Board of ABI’s New York City Bankruptcy Conference, and as a member of ABI’s Board of Directors of from 2013 through 2019. She is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and a member of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges (NCBJ) and the 2021 NCBJ Education Committee. She also is a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board for Boston University School of Law.

Judge Beckerman received her A.B. from University of Chicago in 1984, her M.B.A. from the University of Texas in 1986 and her J.D. from Boston University in 1989.

Hon. Robert D. Drain is a U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the Southern District of New York in White Plains. Since his appointment, he has presided over such chapter 11 cases as Loral, RCN, Cornerstone, Refco, Allegiance Telecom, Delphi, Coudert Brothers, Frontier Airlines, Star Tribune, Reader’s Digest, A&P, Hostess Brands, Christian Brothers and Momentive. He also has presided over the ancillary or plenary cases of Corporacion Durango, Satellites Mexicanas, Parmalat S.p.A. and its affiliated U.S. debtors, Varig S.A., Yukos (II), SphinX, Galvex Steel, TBS Shipping, Excel Maritime, Nautilus, Landsbanki Islands, Roust and Ultrapetrol. He also has served as the court-appointed mediator in a number of chapter 11 cases, including New Page, Cengage, Quicksilver, LightSquared, Molycorp and Breitburn Energy.

Prior to his appointment to the bench in May 2002, Judge Drain was a partner in the bankruptcy department of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, where he represented debtors, trustees, secured and unsecured creditors, official and unofficial creditors’ committees, and buyers of distressed businesses and distressed debt in chapter 11 cases, out-of-court restructurings and bankruptcy-related litigation. He was also actively involved in several transnational insolvency matters.

Judge Drain is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and a member and board member of ABI, a member of the International Insolvency Institute, a member and Secretary of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges and a founding member and chair of the Judicial Insolvency Network. He also is the current chair of the Bankruptcy Judges Advisory Group established through the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, and was appointed to the FDIC’s Systemic Resolution Advisory Committee through May 1, 2021.

Judge Drain was an adjunct professor for several years at St. John’s University School of Law’s LL.M. in Bankruptcy Program and currently is an adjunct professor at Pace University School of Law. He has lectured and written on numerous bankruptcy-related topics and is the author of the novel The Great Work in the United States of America. He received his B.A. cum laude from Yale University and his J.D. from Columbia University School of Law, where he was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar for three years.