Blank Rome has recruited a veteran restructuring lawyer with experience in a number of the highest-profile recent Chapter 11 cases.
Rick Antonoff, who was previously a member of the financial restructuring practice at Clifford Chance, is now a partner in Blank Rome’s office in Manhattan. Antonoff has advised creditors in the Chapter 11 proceedings of American Airlines, Los Angeles Dodgers, Arcapita, Refco, GSC Group, Extended Stay Hotels, and other high-profile clients.
“Blank Rome is very much a financial services-oriented firm that does work for Citibank, HSBC, and other large financial institutions I work with and also has a very strong record in the middle market. The firm does mostly creditor work including a long track record representing creditors’ committees, but also has substantial experience in debtor cases,” Antonoff told IFLR1000.
Antonoff said that during last several years, big banks have disposed of many of their troubled assets thanks to regulatory capital requirements and related needs. According to Antonoff, many of the assets in question have moved over to the buy-side, namely hedge funds and private equity firms. Such entities have assumed more active roles in restructurings both in and out of court, Antonoff said.
“I continue to see distressed investment opportunities in the U.S. and abroad, although sourcing deals has become more challenging. Sectors in the U.S. that have been active for distressed investing include shipping, healthcare, retail, telecom, and energy. More recently, higher education has become an industry worth watching,” he added.
In a context of growing interest in Latin America – as private equity firms, restructuring advisors, and investment bankers devote increasing amounts of time to Mexico and Brazil – Antonoff said that a fair amount of his practice is cross-border.
One of Antonoff’s highest-profile engagements in recent months has involved the ongoing saga of Argentina’s bonds litigation.
“The principal issues in the Argentina bonds litigation have been resolved, insofar as enforceability of the pari passu and equal treatment provisions, but there are still contentious negotiations between the Republic and the holdout creditors and more recently the addition of ‘me too’ bondholders asserting a right to the same treatment that the litigation plaintiffs won after chasing Argentina for more than ten years and spending tens of millions of dollars,” he said.
“The case also raised interesting debates around the occurrence of certain ‘credit events’ under credit default swaps. At the same time, the litigation has already facilitated changes in the way sovereign debt documents are written to include collective action clauses intended to avoid the holdout problem that plagues Argentina,” Antonoff added.
Antonoff holds a J.D. from Cardozo Law School and a B.A. from Binghamton University.