U.S. Innovative Lawyers Report

In the Financial Times' first "U.S. Innovative Lawyers Report 2010," Kirkland received commendations for the Firm's restructuring work for Charter Communications and General Growth Properties.  The FT evaluated law firm work based on originality, rationale and impact.

Regarding Charter, the editorial stated that Kirkland: "Helped reinstate nearly $12bn in debt borrowed at precredit-crisis interest rates. The debtor, junior bondholder and their advisers worked together to use a section of the bankruptcy code never previously used on this scale against the opposition of the senior debt holders."

Regarding GGP, the report said: "The restructuring challenged the conventional wisdom that commercial mortgage-backed securities debt was 'bankruptcy remote' and could not be restructured. Kirkland's lawyers found a way to put the commercial mortgage-backed securities debt into bankruptcy and unlock its value for the company's creditors."

The "U.S. Innovative Lawyers Report" is based on 270 submissions from 54 law firms, representing 60 percent of the Am Law 50, and 40 percent of the Am Law 100. More than 340 interviews were conducted by the RSG Consulting research team.