WeWork, Inc. and its debtor affiliates — the leading global flexible space provider — in their Chapter 11 cases in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey. With approximately $17 billion in funded debt and lease obligations at the time of filing and posing complex, novel issues of international, regulatory and foreign law, WeWork, with over 500 entities, is one of the largest jointly administered Chapter 11 cases in history. Through its Chapter 11 cases, WeWork was able to equitize all $4.3 billion of its funded indebtedness, right size its lease portfolio and reduce future obligations by $11 billion as the result of a pioneering strategy for rent negotiations, facilitate a global settlement with numerous stakeholders and navigate complex cross-border issues.
Whittaker, Clark & Daniels, Inc. and its debtor affiliates in their Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey. Whittaker was a leading producer of talc and other industrial compounds. Whittaker filed its Chapter 11 cases with the goal of equitably and efficiently resolve all valid current and future tort claims asserted against Whittaker and its debtor affiliates.
Aearo Technologies LLC and its debtor affiliates in their Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Indiana. Aearo Technologies is a market leader in the energy control space, providing custom noise, vibration, thermal, and shock protection solutions to the aerospace, commercial vehicle, heavy equipment, and electronics industries. Aearo Technologies and its non-Debtor parent 3M are defendants in the largest multi-district litigation in history, with over 230,000 personal injury claims filed related to certain historical Aearo products.
Nordic Aviation Capital Designated Activity Company and its subsidiaries in connection with their prearranged Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia. NAC, an Irish company, is the largest regional aircraft lessor in the world with more than 475 aircraft. With over $7.7 billion of liabilities, NAC was the largest Chapter 11 filing in 2021.
Carlson Travel, Inc. and 37 of its affiliates (“CWT”) in the fastest cross-border prepackaged restructuring transaction to date. On November 12, 2021, the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas entered an order confirming CWT’s prepackaged Chapter 11 plan of reorganization, just 18 hours after commencing bankruptcy proceedings. CWT is a leader in business travel management with over 12,000 employees and operations in 140 countries and territories around the world. As a result of the restructuring, CWT eliminated almost $900 million of its $1.6 billion of debt, secured access to $775 million of exit facilities and a $350 million equity investment, and preserved the entirety of its worldwide employee base.
Belk, Inc. and certain of its affiliates in the fastest-ever in-court restructuring transaction. Belk emerged from Chapter 11 on February 24, 2021, just 21 hours after filing for Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Belk, headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the nation’s largest private department store chain with 291 stores located throughout the southeastern United States. Pursuant to the prepackaged Chapter 11 plan of reorganization, Belk will keep all of its store locations open and pay all suppliers, landlords, and its 17,000 employees in full. As a result of the restructuring, Belk received $225 million of new capital and reduced its debt load by approximately $450 million.
RGN-Group Holdings, LLC, and approximately 100 other debtor affiliates (Regus) in their Chapter 11 cases filed in the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. Regus offers a network of on-demand office and co-working spaces, and ancillary service and support, to a variety of clients across a host of industries in over 1,000 locations in the United States and Canada.
Murray Energy Holdings Co. and certain of its subsidiaries in their Chapter 11 cases in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Ohio. Murray is the largest privately-owned coal company in the United States, headquartered in St. Clairsville, Ohio, and has operations primarily in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, Alabama, Illinois, Utah, and Colombia, South America. Murray employs nearly 5,500 people, including approximately 2,400 active union members. Murray entered Chapter 11 with approximately $2.7 billion in prepetition funded debt and more than $8 billion in actual or potential pension and employee benefit obligations.
One Call Corporation, a leader in ancillary services for the workers’ compensation industry, in a successful out-of-court recapitalization that reduced One Call’s debt through a consensual equitization of nearly $1 billion of junior debt, reduced its annual interest expense by approximately $90 million, and eliminated all near-term maturities. The restructuring was facilitated by a $375 million investment led by existing lenders KKR and GSO Capital Partners.
