Heenan Blaikie’s Bankruptcy, Insolvency and Restructuring practice group provides comprehensive and “real-time” advice to debtors, institutional lenders and other major financial institutions, corporate creditors, monitors, receivers, trustees and other stakeholders both in court-supervised insolvency proceedings and private workouts and reorganizations. Our lawyers have been involved in numerous high-profile insolvency proceedings in Canada under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (BIA) and the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) as well as cross-border proceedings involving Chapters 11 and 15 of the United States Bankruptcy Code.
The pace of insolvency proceedings demands timely, creative and informed decision-making to allow clients to position themselves for maximum recovery or to generate value. Heenan Blaikie recognizes the importance of innovative and efficient strategies both for alternatives to insolvency and, if necessary, through court proceedings. Our group integrates with the firm’s other national groups focusing on complementary activities such as banking and financial services, litigation, labour and employment, tax as well as corporate finance and securities to assist in responding to critical developments as they arise.
Our group has acted in a wide number of industry sectors, including agriculture, automotive, energy, financial services, forestry, insurance, manufacturing, media and entertainment, oil and gas, pharmaceuticals, pulp and paper, real estate, and retail services.
Services Overview
Our Bankruptcy, Insolvency and Restructuring practice group has expertise in all types of insolvency and restructuring issues, including:
- Proceedings under the CCAA and BIA
- Court-appointed and private receiverships
- Plans of Arrangement under the CCAA and the Canada Business Corporations Act
- Distressed and debtor-in-possession financing
- Fraudulent conveyances, preferences, and other insolvency litigation
- Distressed mergers and acquisitions
- Multi-jurisdictional and cross-border insolvencies
- Asset sales and liquidations
- Proposals to creditors under the BIA
- Out-of-court restructurings and workouts
- Advising directors and officers
- Inter-creditor arrangements and priority disputes
- Purchasing distressed assets
- Pension issues
- Debt restructuring and refinancing
- Creditor rights
- Asset tracking and freezing
- Regulatory compliance
- Contingency planning
Organizational Involvement
Lawyers in our practice group belong to and participate in multiple professional associations and organizations, including:
- American Bankruptcy Institute
- American Bar Association
- Canadian Bar Association
- Canadian Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Professionals (CAIRP)
- Canadian Insolvency Foundation (CIF)
- INSOL International
- Insolvency Institute of Canada
- International Bar Association
- Turnaround Management Association