Perkins Coie's bank clients confront unique financing and workout issues in their indenture trustee and related agency capacities, which we address in our comprehensive representation of the corporate trust departments of banking institutions in domestic and cross-border capital market transactions.

We review and negotiate indentures for both traditional unsecured and secured corporate and municipal debt capital market transactions. In addition, our corporate trust attorneys have broad experience in connection with escrow, custody and agency agreements, lending facilities, secured transactions,  project financings, structured financings and asset-backed transactions.

As counsel to domestic and global banking institutions, we support clients’ roles and responsibilities as indenture trustee, successor trustee, collateral agent, administrative agent and other agency capacities. Clients have included:

Our corporate trust attorneys have played important roles in transactions that have provided the financing for thousands of corporations and projects located throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and various emerging markets throughout Latin America and Asia. We frequently consult with and support our bankruptcy, restructuring and commercial litigation attorneys while representing corporate trust clients in default administration, bankruptcy and litigation matters.

Defaults & Bankruptcies

Perkins Coie represents multinational banking corporations and trust departments of major banks in bond defaults and issuer bankruptcy cases across the country.

Working in conjunction with the firm’s Corporate Trust and Litigation practice attorneys, our bankruptcy lawyers provide a depth of experience in this area and counsel a broad range of stakeholders in a numerous post default and reorganization scenarios.

We counsel corporate trust departments of major banking institutions in their capacity as indenture trustee or agent in connection with bond and loan facility defaults. Our corporate trust and bankruptcy attorneys have played a leading role in complex reorganizations, including Lehman Brothers Holdings, Tropicana Entertainment, Wickes Inc., American Home Mortgage Corporation, Tribune Company, Calpine Corp., Borders Group Inc. and WorldCom, Inc. The work done for the indenture trustees in these bankruptcy cases includes:

• Exercising their post-default rights and obligations under debt indentures and loan agreements and governing federal or state law
• Participating in the negotiation of issuer reorganizations and restructurings, including by serving as members of official creditor committees
• Defending and prosecuting litigation claims under debt indentures and applicable law
• Coordinating and facilitating distributions to holders resulting from issuer reorganizations and liquidations
• Coordinating bondholder communications

Advising trustees in all aspects of Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 proceedings, Perkins Coie’s team of bankruptcy attorneys represent:

• Creditors’ committees
• Secured and unsecured creditors
• Commercial landlords
• Indenture trustees
• Chapter 7 trustees and liquidating trustees

Our experience includes matters involving post-default rights and obligations under debt indentures, loan agreements and governing federal or state law.

Additional related experience includes the negotiation of issuer reorganizations and restructurings, including by serving as members of official creditor committees; defending and prosecuting litigation claims under indentures and applicable law; coordinating and facilitating distributions to holders resulting from issuer reorganizations and liquidations; and coordinating bondholder communications.