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Bryan Uelk

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Bryan Uelk is an associate in the Bankruptcy and Restructuring Practice Group in the firm's Chicago office.

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The practice of appointing one or more independent directors to the boards of distressed companies has not only proliferated in recent years, but has become the subject of increasing controversy. In this episode of the Restructure THIS! podcast, John Dubel discusses, among other things, the proper role of an independent director in a restructuring and weighs in on whether he believes the current independent director framework in chapter 11 is broken. In doing so, John addresses some of the most significant criticisms that have been levied against independent directors, including that independent directors often lack disinterestedness and are nothing more than “repeat players” that advocate for preordained outcomes.
Continue Reading The Role of the Independent Director in a Restructuring

During times of corporate uncertainty, the company’s message to customers, vendors and employees can either instill confidence or foster anxiety. This holds true more than ever in the digital and social media era. In a chapter 11 scenario, then, engaging with, rather than dodging, press calls may be the preferred approach. This provides the opportunity to craft the message as well as address misinformation from leaks.
Continue Reading Communicating Distress in the Digital Era

Members of Sheppard Mullin’s Finance & Bankruptcy team recently co-authored an article entitled “When the Other Shoe Drops: Drivers of the Next Restructuring Cycle” with experts from leading restructuring advisory firm M3 Partners for the January 2022 issue of the American Bankruptcy Institute Journal. The article discusses the confluence of factors that Sheppard Mullin and M3 believe will contribute to an uptick in restructuring activity in the future, including the eventual tightening of credit markets and a variety of pre-pandemic and post-pandemic headwinds.
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Continue Reading Sheppard Mullin and M3 Partners Weigh In on the Potential Drivers of the Next Restructuring Cycle for the ABI Journal

Most restructuring professionals will tell you that there is no “typical” restructuring. That is absolutely true. Every financially distressed business is different and the character and direction of its restructuring will be highly dependent upon, among others, its capital structure, its liquidity profile, and the level of support it can build for its reorganization among key stakeholder bodies. Nevertheless, there are some important similarities in the way that any company should initially address a distressed situation. We discuss below a variety of key tasks, or “commandments,” that we recommend any company should undertake as soon as it anticipates possible financial distress.
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Continue Reading Seven Commandments for the Financially Distressed Company