Bankruptcy Restructuring Support Agreements: Drafting Strategies to Avoid Expensive Confirmation Battles

Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
- work Practice Area
Bankruptcy
- event Date
Wednesday, November 30, 2022
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
-
This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
This CLE course will equip counsel to negotiate and draft restructuring support agreements (RSAs, also known as "lock-up" or "plan support agreements") that will help reduce the cost, length, and adverse effects of a Chapter 11 case. A well-structured RSA can assure all stakeholders that the debtor will emerge from the process with minimal disruption to the business, its creditors, and its employees. The program will discuss how RSAs can help to coordinate a multitude of stakeholders and the pitfalls of attempting to circumvent Bankruptcy Code protections.
Faculty

Mr. Zahralddin-Aravena is a member of the Corporate, Bankruptcy, Complex Business & Commercial Litigation, Digital Asset, and Ukraine Conflict Response Practices. He is a skilled business lawyer and litigator with significant experience advising clients in corporate and commercial litigation, insolvency, distressed M&A, compliance, corporate law and entity formation, corporate governance, commercial transactions, cyber law, regulatory actions, and cross-border issues. He represents clients in all aspects of bankruptcy and restructuring. He has extensive experience in international commercial law issues, including cross-border insolvency, federal bankruptcy court matters, assignments for the benefit of creditors, and receiverships. His international law experience, particularly in international commercial transactions, brings a unique and nuanced approach to business issues inside and outside distressed situations.

Ms. Caplow focuses her practice on restructuring, creditor’s rights, and commercial litigation. She has represented debtors, secured creditors, and unsecured creditors in bankruptcy court proceedings, adversary proceedings and out-of-court restructurings, and has represented both public and private sector clients in federal and state court, and in arbitration.

Ms. Warman is a partner in Culhane Meadows PLLC, based in Dallas, TX, and enjoys a national practice representing and advising clients in all types of business issues, ranging from contract negotiations to litigation and insolvency matters. In the insolvency world, she regularly represents creditors, creditors’ committees, debtors, and parties in asset and claims sale transactions. Ms. Warman is also frequently involved in corporate reorganizations, out of court work-outs, assignments for benefit of creditors, related litigation, mediations and appeals.
Ms. Warman is a fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy and serves as a co-editor of its College Columns Committee. She is a frequent speaker at national and regional events for NACM National, its affiliates and various other professional organizations. Ms. Warman is a long time member and supporter of NACM, and serves as the Senior Vice President of the Board of Directors of her local affiliate, NACM Southwest.

Mr. Brownstein provides turnaround management and advisory services to companies and their stakeholders, as well as investment banking services, fiduciary services, and litigation consulting, investigations and valuation services. He also serves as an independent corporate board member for publicly-owned and privately-held companies, as well as large nonprofits.
Description
Debtors and stakeholders of all levels of sophistication are increasingly relying on RSAs to structure and prenegotiate a term sheet for what will become the Chapter 11 plan. Under an RSA, creditors agree to support a plan that contains the terms and conditions set out in the RSA.
The key to a successful RSA is sufficient support from crucial stakeholders to comply with Chapter 11. Counsel must identify the most likely and most critical conflicts that are likely to arise and resolve those as much as possible. Attempts to avoid or undercut Bankruptcy Code protections will almost certainly reduce the value to creditors and may sabotage reorganization.
Counsel must also be wary of overreaching, such as negotiating with some creditors and presenting it to others as nonnegotiable, withholding critical information from all participants, unfair distributions, and procedural end-runs around Section 1129 of the Bankruptcy Code.
Listen as our authoritative panel of attorneys discusses best practices for crafting effective RSAs that minimize the overall cost and delay in Chapter 11 and maximize distributions to creditors.
Outline
- Overview of RSAs
- Identifying the proper parties
- Provisions for debtors
- Provisions for creditors
- Terms that invite objection
- Solicitation vs. negotiation
- Giving plan supporters better treatment
- Milestones
- Fiduciary terms
- Third-party releases
- Drafting best practices
Benefits
The panel will review these and other key issues:
- What is a plan support agreement?
- Can RSAs alter Bankruptcy Code priorities?
- What are essential terms in an RSA for the various parties and stakeholders?
- How does a court review an RSA?
- How can the parties prevent overreaching by certain constituencies?
Related Courses

Chapter 11 Fundamentals: Debtor-In-Possession Financing and Use of Cash Collateral
Tuesday, February 11, 2025
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
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