“As we continue to expand the firm’s bankruptcy and restructuring capabilities, David will be a tremendous asset to our clients, enhancing both our testimonial and advisory capabilities,” said Brattle President & Principal Dr. Torben Voetmann. “With his breadth of experience working on contentious, high-profile disputes, David is a wonderful addition to the Brattle Bankruptcy and Restructuring team and our firm more broadly.”

Mr. Prager specializes in bankruptcy and restructuring matters and corporate value and solvency disputes. He has consulted on or testified in a number of high-profile bankruptcies and restructurings, including those of Enron, Lehman Brothers, Archegos, Adelphia, Energy Future Holdings, Puerto Rico, Detroit, Syncora, and Tribune. Topics of his services have included formulations of reorganization plans, evaluations of value allocations and reasonableness of projections, and the resolution of complex capital structures.

As a financial advisor, Mr. Prager has supported both creditors and debtors in major corporate and municipal restructurings, and served in interim C-suite roles, including at The PMI Group and Syncora Guarantee. He also has expertise in fraudulent conveyance actions and forensic and trading investigations.

“Brattle’s proven commitment to quality, incisiveness, and collaboration is a perfect match for the restructuring and testimonial services I provide in matters featuring a high degree of complexity,” said Mr. Prager. “I look forward to working with my new colleagues to solve complex financial restructurings, corporate valuation disputes, and related financial matters.”

Prior to joining Brattle, Mr. Prager was a Managing Director at a global financial and risk advisory firm. He previously focused on restructuring and complex financial litigations at a financial advisory firm.

To learn more about Mr. Prager, see his full bio.

The post The Brattle Group Welcomes David W. Prager as Principal and Co-Leader of its Bankruptcy & Restructuring Practice appeared first on Brattle.

Specializing in structuring and leading principal investments, divestments, financings, and restructurings, Mr. Klotz has executed transactions in more than 40 countries worldwide. He has worked with a wide range of industries, spanning the retail, commercial, and industrial sectors.

“Brattle is thrilled to welcome Rafa, a superlative team leader and dealmaker,” Brattle Interim President & Principal David J. Hutchings. “His impressive global experience and wide-ranging commercial and insolvency knowledge will augment our capabilities across a number of practices.”

A former practicing attorney and expert in cross-border insolvency, Mr. Klotz has led numerous acquisitions in US Chapter 11 proceedings and in insolvency administrations outside of the US, secured debt financings, debtor-in-possession (DIP) financings, sale-leasebacks of plants and machinery, raw material and supply chain financing, and inventory supply financings. In intellectual property (IP) related transactions, Mr. Klotz is a recognized global expert in converting consumer brands into asset-light licensing vehicles, and in the valuation of consumer brands, particularly in the context of asset-based lending and distress M&A.

“I look forward to transitioning into consulting alongside the esteemed experts at The Brattle Group,” said Mr. Klotz. “I’m excited to leverage my experience working in multiple business lines and geographies to assist clients and expand Brattle’s global presence as a market leader in insolvency and IP matters.”

Prior to joining Brattle, Mr. Klotz was a Senior Managing Director in the International Division of Gordon Brothers Group. He previously practiced law at leading corporate law firms, specializing in bankruptcy, cross-border insolvency, and distressed M&A transactions.

The post The Brattle Group Welcomes Insolvency Expert Rafael Klotz as Principal appeared first on Brattle.

PREPA had over $8 billion in bonds outstanding when the utility filed for bankruptcy on July 3, 2017. In a March 2023 summary judgment ruling regarding the nature and amount of the PREPA bondholders’ claim, Judge Swain ruled that, in addition to a secured claim on specific funds set aside for bond repayments, the bondholders also had an unsecured claim equal to the value of the future revenues expected to be deposited in those funds. The Financial Oversight and Management Board (FOMB) for Puerto Rico asked Brattle to estimate the amount of this claim.

David Plastino, leader of the firm’s Bankruptcy & Restructuring practice, developed a model estimating the future cash flows expected to flow to the bondholders as of the bankruptcy petition date. Mr. Plastino determined the present value of these cash flows to be $2.1 billion. The bondholders argued that the present value of the future cash flows expected to flow to the bondholders was at least equal to the face value of the bonds plus accrued interest as of the petition date. Judge Swain accepted Mr. Plastino’s model, applied certain adjustments, and estimated the bondholders’ claim to be approximately $2.39 billion.

Judge Swain cited Mr. Plastino’s testimony in her decision, noting, “Mr. Plastino has credibly predicted both that the net revenues which could be available to pay on the Bonds would be substantially less than predicted by the Bondholders’ expert and that significant risks could have existed creating obstacles for a receiver seeking to maximize funds available for debt service, including immediate needs to make capital expenditures on infrastructure to keep PREPA operating and generating revenues well into the future.”

Judge Swain also noted that, “The Court has determined, after consideration of the evidence and expert testimony, that Mr. Plastino’s model is the most appropriate model as it contemplates a net revenue stream that is set to be derived and paid through a method that should be relatively affordable for ratepayers, reflects the impact of system maintenance and improvements that will.  be required to keep the system generating revenues over a lengthy period, and includes a present value discount factor for the time value of money and general market perceptions of risk.”

The post Brattle Analysis Integral to Court Ruling Determining the Allowed Claim of PREPA Bondholders appeared first on Brattle.

The article, “Solvency Shortcuts: The Use and Misuse of Simple Tools for Predicting Financial Distress,” was authored by Brattle Senior Associate Dr. Adrienna Huffman, Principal David Plastino, and former Brattle Associate Nitin Bajaj and published in the May 2022 edition of the ABI Journal. In the article, the authors review various solvency shortcut measures –including the Altman Z-Score – and conduct an empirical analysis to assess the ability of these measures to predict future insolvency. In their review, the authors found that, while bankruptcy shortcut measures are predictive of insolvency, no single measure is perfect, and the predictive power of the different methods depends on each company’s characteristics. Although the simplicity of using a single ratio or metric can be advantageous, analyzing multiple metrics as a best practice will likely lead to more robust predictions.

The full Best of ABI 2022: The Year in Business Bankruptcy can be found below.

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The post <i>Global Restructuring Review</i> Publishes an Article on Bankruptcy & Restructuring Expert Franklind Lea appeared first on Brattle.

An expert in insolvency and financial restructuring, Mr. Lea has over three decades of experience working on complex business, financial, and real estate matters. His experience includes 17 years as a commercial lender, credit officer, and commercial real estate appraiser, and an additional 17 years as the founder of Tactical Financial Consulting, where he specialized in litigation and restructuring support for third parties.

“With his wealth of experience and wide-ranging expertise, Franklind is a wonderful addition to our growing Bankruptcy & Restructuring practice,” said Brattle Interim President & Principal David J. Hutchings. “He will not only provide valuable insights to our clients but will be an excellent mentor for up-and-coming colleagues.”

Mr. Lea’s broad expertise allows him to advise clients and provide expert testimony on numerous bankruptcy, financial, valuation, and restructuring-related issues. He has provided litigation support, served as an expert witness, or been a workout officer in over 200 federal, state, and bankruptcy court hearings.

Mr. Lea is one of only approximately 1,000 individuals in the US accredited as a Certified Insolvency and Restructuring Advisor (CIRA) by the Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Advisors. He is also an active member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, currently sitting on its Board of Directors, the Board’s Executive Committee, and several sub-committees.

“I am thrilled to be joining the stellar group of professionals at The Brattle Group,” said Mr. Lea. “I look forward to helping the firm grow its Bankruptcy & Restructuring practice and helping clients resolve complex issues.”

To learn more about Mr. Lea, please see his full bio.

The post Bankruptcy & Restructuring Expert Franklind Lea Joins The Brattle Group as Principal appeared first on Brattle.

“David’s distinctive background as a practicing attorney, private equity investor, and investment banker provides him with a unique perspective among economic and financial consultants on bankruptcy, restructuring, capital raising, and M&A that will be immensely valuable to our clients and broaden the scope of services we offer,” said Brattle Interim President & Principal David J. Hutchings. “He will be a tremendous asset to our growing Bankruptcy & Restructuring practice, and finance-focused team more broadly, and we are thrilled to welcome him to Brattle.”

Mr. Lorry has worked with public and private companies across a diverse range of industries in all stages of mergers and acquisitions. He also has experience in general corporate finance and commercial transactions, financial and operational due diligence, and a wide range of commercial disputes. Representative transactions and matters include acquisitions through bankruptcy court-supervised sale processes, claims and debt trading, debt financing and restructuring, loan administration, business sales, recharacterization and other avoidance actions, and directors and officers (D&O) and fiduciary claims.

“I am excited to transition into consulting with the recognized leading bankruptcy and securities experts at Brattle,” said Mr. Lorry. “I look forward to collaborating with my new colleagues in Washington, DC, New York, and beyond; and drawing on my years of experience to provide valuable insights and litigation support to resolve clients’ complex situations.”

Prior to joining Brattle, Mr. Lorry was a Managing Director and Senior Counsel, advising private equity funds and their portfolio companies. He previously held several senior roles as a private equity investor and with middle-market investment banking firms. He began his career practicing corporate, insolvency, and commercial law with Am Law 100 firms.

To learn more about Mr. Lorry, please see his full bio.

The post The Brattle Group Welcomes Bankruptcy & Restructuring Expert David Lorry as Senior Consultant appeared first on Brattle.

In a recent article for the American Bankruptcy Institute’s ABI Journal, Principals Paul Hinton and David McKnight and Associate Dr. Pietro Grandi detail important implications for estimating aggregate claim liabilities in mass tort cases. They examine the selection issues associated with using observed verdicts as benchmarks, and the risk of failing to adjust for the probability of success in litigation. They also discuss why careful analysis is necessary to ensure that benchmarks are appropriate, and that verdict values are properly adjusted to avoid misvaluing claims.

The full article, “The Verdict Valuation Paradox: Implications for Mass Torts,” is available below.

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