Gabriela Zamfir Hensley
Overview
Experience
Representative Matters
Gulfport Energy Corporation — Representation of Gulfport Energy Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiaries in their prearranged Chapter 11 restructuring in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Gulfport is an independent returns-oriented, gas-weighted exploration and development company and one of the largest producers of natural gas in the contiguous United States, with significant acreage positions in Ohio and Oklahoma. Gulfport entered Chapter 11 with a restructuring support agreement signed by prepetition revolving credit facility lenders holding over 95% of its revolving debt obligations and noteholders holding over 70% of its senior unsecured notes, The restructuring support agreement proposes eliminating approximately $1.25 billion in funded debt obligations, provides for a $262.5 million DIP facility and $580 million in committed exit financing, and contemplates a backstopped rights offering for at least $50 million of preferred equity.
Central Security Group, Inc. — Representation of Central Security Group, Inc., one of the nation’s largest providers of home and business security and automation, in an out-of-court debt-for-equity exchange that significantly improved the Company’s overall capital structure, eliminating approximately $250 million (more than 50%) of the Company’s funded debt and including a new $25 million revolving credit facility commitment. The out-of-court transaction was executed after the Company successfully solicited support from 100% of its first lien and second lien lenders.
FTS International, Inc. — Representation of FTSI and its affiliates in their prepackaged Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. FTSI, a publicly-traded company, is one of the largest providers of hydraulic fracturing services in North America and provides customized hydraulic fracturing solutions to exploration and production companies to enhance recovery rates from oil and gas wells drilled in the most active basins in the United States. FTSI commenced its Chapter 11 cases with a restructuring support agreement with over 87% of the holders of the company’s funded secured debt. If the company’s prepackaged Chapter 11 plan is approved, holders of approximately $440 million of funded secured debt will exchange their debt claims for over 90% of the equity in the reorganized debtors, holders of FTSI’s existing equity will receive approximately 10% of the equity in the reorganized debtors, and all ongoing business trade claims will ride through the bankruptcy unimpaired.
Valaris plc — Representation of Valaris plc and 89 of its subsidiaries in their prearranged Chapter 11 cases. Valaris, which is incorporated in the United Kingdom, is the world’s largest offshore driller by fleet size, owning 67 drilling rigs and operating in every major offshore hydrocarbon basin throughout the globe. Valaris filed Chapter 11 with a restructuring support agreement and backstop commitment agreement to fully equitize all $7.1 billion of its prepetition funded debt, consisting of an unsecured revolving credit facility and 15 series of unsecured notes. The noteholders supporting the restructuring also have committed to a fully backstopped rights offering for $500 million of new secured notes upon emergence from Chapter 11 as well as to provide a $500 million DIP financing facility.
Stage Stores, Inc. — Representation of Stage Stores, Inc. (NYSE: SSI) and its affiliate Specialty Retailers, Inc. in their Chapter 11 cases pending before the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Stage operates in 42 states through 437 department stores under the Bealls, Palais Royal, Peebles, Stage and Goody’s brands and 289 off-price stores under the Gordmans brand. Stage had $1.6 billion in revenue in 2019.
Neiman Marcus Group LTD LLC — Representation of Neiman Marcus Group LTD LLC and affiliates in their pre-arranged Chapter 11 cases. The Company successfully completed its restructuring of over $5.5 billion of funded indebtedness in under five months. The restructuring plan was confirmed in September 2020, eliminated more than $4 billion of debt and more than $200 million of annual cash interest expense, and preserved more than 13,000 jobs. Neiman Marcus is the first retailer with over $5 billion of debt to reorganize under Chapter 11.
Frontier Communications Corporation — Representation of Frontier Communications Corporation and its 103 debtor subsidiaries in their prearranged Chapter 11 restructuring in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. With over $17.5 billion in outstanding funded debt, Frontier’s Chapter 11 cases were among the largest filed in 2020. Frontier, together with its subsidiaries, have over 4 million customers, and 18,000 employees across 29 states. The company’s prearranged plan, which was confirmed in approximately four months, effected a balance sheet restructuring that will reduce the company’s outstanding funded debt by over $10 billion, carries broad stakeholder support and proposes unimpairment of all general unsecured creditors.
Tapstone Energy, LLC — Representation of Tapstone Energy, LLC and certain of its affiliates in their out-of-court restructuring. Tapstone is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on the development and production of oil, natural gas, and NGLs in the Anadarko Basin in Oklahoma, Texas, and Kansas. The restructuring transaction reduced Tapstone’s funded debt by approximately $440 million and provided the company with liquidity, including a $50 million new money investment, to optimize operations and expand its production base through mergers and acquisitions.
Longview Power, LLC — Representation of Longview Power, LLC and its affiliates in connection with their prepackaged Chapter 11 cases involving the restructuring of approximately $355 million in funded debt. Longview operates a 710 net megawatt supercritical coal fired power generation facility in Maidsville, West Virginia that is at the forefront of the clean coal movement.
Hollander Sleep Products, LLC — Representation of Hollander Sleep Products, LLC and certain of its affiliates, a leading bedding products manufacturer and wholesaler, specializing in pillows, comforters, mattress pads and foam products, in connection with their prearranged Chapter 11 restructuring in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
Sungard AS Capital, Inc. — Representation of Sungard AS Capital, Inc. and its affiliates in their Chapter 11 cases in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the Southern District of New York, in the fastest Chapter 11 case in history. Sungard AS obtained confirmation in less than 19 hours on May 2, 2019. In addition, Sungard AS emerged from Chapter 11 faster than any company in history—staying in Chapter 11 for less than 48 hours. Sungard AS, a provider of availability and recovery services, had approximately $1.26 billion in funded debt at the commencement of its Chapter 11 cases and deleveraged by over $900 million upon emergence.
Westmoreland Coal Company — Representation of Westmoreland Coal Company and certain of its affiliates (collectively, “Westmoreland”) in their Chapter 11 proceedings before the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. Westmoreland is the sixth largest North American coal producer, maintaining domestic coal operations in Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, Texas, New Mexico, and Ohio, and Canadian coal operations in Alberta and Saskatchewan, and is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado. At the time the cases were filed, Westmoreland had funded debt obligations of approximately $1.4 billion. Westmoreland is pursuing a sale of its mining operations and commenced its Chapter 11 cases with a restructuring support agreement entered into with a substantial majority of its key lender constituents.
Toys “R” Us, Inc. — Representation of Toys “R” Us, Inc. and several of its direct and indirect subsidiaries in one of the largest ever retail Chapter 11 filings in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond Division. Following implementation of a strategy to effect a successful wind-down of operations in the United States and going concern sales and/or reorganizations of operations throughout the world, including Asia, led efforts to construct and implement global settlement agreements amongst all stakeholders and five distinct Chapter 11 plans.
More
Thought Leadership
Publications
Note, Running in the Shadows: Analyzing Legality and Morality in Marathon “Banditing,” 2018 U. Ill. L. Rev. 781.
Credentials
Admissions & Qualifications
- 2018Illinois
Education
- University of Illinois College of LawJ.D.summa cum laude2018
Order of the Coif
Managing Editor, University of Illinois Law Review
Rickert Award for Excellence in Academic Achievement
Rickert Award for Excellence in Service
Frederick Green Moot Court Invitation Team
CALI Awards for Excellence in Contracts, Civil Procedure, Introduction to Advocacy, Advanced Legal Writing: Appellate Advocacy, Professional Responsibility, and Business Associations
- Southern Illinois University EdwardsvilleB.S., Political Sciencesumma cum laude2014