Lenard Parkins

Lenard M. Parkins has practiced bankruptcy law and bankruptcy litigation for more than 40 years. He has offices in both Houston and New York City. He focuses his practice on the counseling and representation of large and medium sized corporations, bondholders, indenture trustees, boards of directors, asset buyers, Chapter 11 plan sponsors, secured lenders, special servicers, private equity and hedge funds, oil and gas interest holders, equity interest holders, liquidating trustees, and creditor committees in financial restructurings, workouts, litigation and appeals, both out-of-court and in formal reorganization cases filed throughout the United States. He has also represented debtors regarding issues of dealing with collective bargaining agreements and the requirements needed to reject collective bargaining agreements under Section 1113 of the bankruptcy code.

Mr. Parkins represents clients in a wide range of industries and endeavors including energy, power and natural resources, distressed debt and equity acquisitions, rescue financings, oil and gas, private equity, real estate and real estate finance, hospitality, healthcare, and aviation.

Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Parkins was a shareholder in a Fortune top 50 international law firm where he practiced business reorganization and financial restructuring and split his practice time between its Houston, Texas and New York City offices. Prior to that time, Mr. Parkins was a partner and leader of the Bankruptcy and Business Restructuring Practice in the New York City office of an international law firm.

Mr. Parkins was an adjunct professor of law and taught Chapter 11 strategy and litigation for a number of years at the University of Houston Law Center.

Mr. Parkins was recognized by Legal 500 US for Bankruptcy Law in 2017. He has also been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America® every year since 2005 in the areas of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law and also for Bankruptcy Litigation in 2018 and the four years immediately preceding. He was listed in Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business in 2012, 2013 and 2014 for Bankruptcy/Restructuring Law and he is listed in its 2014 edition as a recommended practitioner. He was also listed in Chambers Globalin 2014 and 2015 for Bankruptcy/Restructuring Law. He was named a New York “Super Lawyer” for Bankruptcy Law in 2018, from 2009 to 2016, and from 2003 to 2007 by Super Lawyersmagazine. Mr. Parkins is AV® Preeminent rated by Martindale-Hubbell.*

*AV®, BV®, AV Preeminent® and BV Distinguished® are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used under in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies.

Experience:

• Bankruptcy counsel for the unsecured creditors committee in the C&J Energy Chapter 11 case in Houston, Texas.
• Bankruptcy and trial counsel for Blue Wolf Capital Partners in litigation in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Tucson, Arizona.
• Bankruptcy and bankruptcy trial counsel for Liquidating Trustee Robert Ogle in successful litigation and summary judgments against Mississippi Power Company, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.
• Bankruptcy trial counsel for an affiliate of the Archer Daniels Midland Company in litigation in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas.
• Lead bankruptcy and bankruptcy trial counsel representing Midland Loan Services as special servicer on holding about $1 billion of senior secured debt collateralized by 45 hotels in the Innkeepers bankruptcy case then pending in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
• Represented senior secured lenders and liquidation trustee in a fertilizer plant Chapter 11 case in the Southern District of Mississippi.
• Represented hedge fund as lead bankruptcy counsel for senior secured lender in a Chapter 11 case in San Antonio converting debt to ownership of eight oil patch hotels near the Permian Basin in Texas.
• Represented an affiliate of The Related Companies in the Chapter 11 case of FKF Madison Group Owner LLC then pending in Wilmington, Delaware.
• Represented secured lenders and successor owner of a frac sand mine and frac sand drying facility in successful Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases in Mississippi and thereafter represented an affiliated transloading facility in South Texas.
• Represented second lien agent and certain second lien lenders in the FX Luxury Las Vegas I, LLC bankruptcy case in the Las Vegas, Nevada bankruptcy court. The case required the successful restructuring of more than $450 million of secured debt. The team successfully obtained ownership for the firm’s clients of a 17-acre tract of land located on the Las Vegas strip directly across from City Center.
• Represented The Bank of New York as agent for the first lien lenders in Wellman, Inc.’s (large chemical company) Chapter 11 case in the Southern District of New York. Successfully defeated efforts by the Debtor and junior lienholders to effect a cramdown valuation of the agent’s collateral. The Court found the value of the agent’s collateral to be twice the amount proposed at trial by the Debtor and junior lienholders.
• Represented the senior lender, private equity firm which was an affiliate of Littlejohn & Co., in the Chapter 11 cases of Latham International, Inc. and its affiliates, a large swimming pool manufacturer and parts supplier, then pending in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
• Represented Atlas Worldwide Holding, Atlas Air Inc., and its affiliate Polar Air Cargo Inc., together the largest air cargo airline in the world in their financial restructuring and successful confirmed Chapter 11 cases in Miami, Florida. This effort included the first restructuring of Enhanced Equipment Trust Certificates (EETCs) through an airline Chapter 11 case. Atlas was headquartered in Purchase, New York.
• Represented the Indenture Trustee and senior secured bondholders in Epic Resorts, LLC Chapter 11 case in Wilmington.
• Represented the secured term lenders in the Galey & Lord Industries Chapter 11 case in Atlanta, Georgia.
• Represented Continental Airlines as lead partner as Chapter 11 Debtor in Possession in its first successful Chapter 11 case in Houston, Texas.
• Represented the unsecured creditors committee consisting of $250 million of unsecured note holders in the Commercial Financial Services Chapter 11 case in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
• Represented Northwest Airlines, Inc. in major Bankruptcy Court litigation in Maine regarding commuter airlines relationship.
• Represented Northwest Airlines, in Minneapolis, Minnesota in its financial restructurings in 1992-1993 and 1998.
• Represented Northern Border Pipeline, a subsidiary of Enron Corporation, in analysis of substantive consolidation issues for Northern Border during the Enron Chapter 11 case.
• Represented Prime Succession as debtors’ counsel in its pre-negotiated successful Chapter 11 case in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
• Represented the Asbestos Tort Claimants’ Committee in the first Chapter 11 case of National Gypsum in Dallas, Texas.

Education:

• University of Houston Law Center, J.D. (1976) Managing Editor of the Houston Law Reviewand Member of the Order of the Barons Honor Society
• Washington & Lee University, B.S. (1970)

Admissions:

• Texas (1976)
• New York (2008)

Court Admissions:

• U.S. Supreme Court
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
• U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
• U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York
• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
• U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
• U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas