Mark Silverman and Jonathan Aberman have joined Locke Lord’s Bankruptcy, Restructuring and Insolvency Practice Group as Partners in the Firm’s Chicago office. Silverman, who will serve as Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS) Special Servicer Team Leader, and Aberman bring to Locke Lord a strong roster of lender and special servicer clients, along with substantial and ongoing experience in advising lenders and servicers on a host of cutting-edge finance and bankruptcy issues. The pair join Locke Lord from Dykema Gossett PLLC.
“We are pleased and excited to welcome Mark and Jon to Locke Lord. They are outstanding lenders’ lawyers — creative tacticians with a deep understanding of the markets in which their clients operate,” said Jonathan Young, Co-Chair of the Firm’s Bankruptcy, Restructuring and Insolvency Practice Group. “With their substantial and varied experience advising on loan enforcement and workouts across multiple sectors and industries, they will add depth and strength to our existing lender-facing relationships and offerings. They will be a great fit with our existing Restructuring team, which prides itself on working seamlessly with the Firm’s Litigation and Debt Finance groups.”
Silverman, who previously served as co-team leader of Dykema’s CMBS special servicer group and assistant leader of the financial services litigation practice, frames and resolves issues involving creditors’ rights, loan workouts, bankruptcy and loan enforcement. He advises large, midsized and small banks, financial institutions and financial technology companies across the country, as well as the nation’s largest CMBS special servicers. His loan enforcement and workout experience spans several sectors, including retail centers, hospitality, commercial and multi-family real estate, health care and medical facilities, industrial, manufacturing and transportation. He also represents creditors in bankruptcy proceedings and defends them from preference claims. Silverman maintains an active commercial litigation practice, advocating for clients in contract disputes, complex post-judgment collection matters, fraudulent transfer claims and breach of fiduciary duty actions, among others.
“Locke Lord has a broad geographic footprint with unmatched scope, depth of knowledge and experience across industries,” said Silverman. “The Firm’s attractive platform across a number of practice areas, as well as its commitment to a collaborative and collegial team approach, will be integral in expanding our practices and continuing to provide an unwavering commitment to client service.”
Aberman, who also joins from Dykema and was previously an Associate with Locke Lord predecessor firm Lord, Bissell & Brook, has more than 20 years of experience representing clients on intractable and complex challenges arising from distressed situations. He has assisted CMBS special servicers, banks, non-bank lenders, finance companies and other businesses in enforcing their rights, protecting their assets and maximizing their recoveries in complex bankruptcy cases, loan workouts, corporate restructurings, mortgage foreclosures, receiverships and assignments for the benefit of creditors. Aberman has also represented buyers and sellers of assets in the distressed marketplace, including Bankruptcy Code Section 363 sales and sales under Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code. He has handled all aspects of complex Chapter 11 cases in bankruptcy courts across the country, including debtor-in-possession financing, cash collateral disputes, auctions, asset sales and other loan and lease dispositions. He also negotiates and structures the bankruptcy-related aspects of commercial loan transactions.
“The opportunity to join Locke Lord’s strategic growth path and bolster clients’ diverse needs for counsel on highly sophisticated bankruptcy and restructuring matters represents not only an exciting next chapter in my legal career but also an opportunity to help fortify the Firm’s strong commitment to continuously elevate services on behalf of clients,” said Aberman. “Locke Lord has a solid, well-earned reputation, and my colleague Mark and I are both honored to be trusted with building upon that reputation together.”
“Adding these two esteemed lawyers with national practices and reputations to Locke Lord’s Chicago office will further bolster the Firm’s Bankruptcy, Restructuring and Insolvency practice,” said Michael Renetzky, Managing Partner of the Firm’s Chicago office. “Mark and Jon are well-respected attorneys with a wealth of industry knowledge surrounding the challenges and opportunities within the troubled credit landscape, and will undoubtedly enhance and expand our restructuring capabilities in Chicago and across the Firm.”
Locke Lord’s Bankruptcy, Restructuring and Insolvency Practice Group has broad experience in complex bankruptcy cases, out-of-court restructurings, cross-border proceedings and other distressed and special situations. The team has been recognized by numerous publications as leaders in the field — including for three consecutive years on Global Restructuring Review’s GRR 100 list, which includes the top firms handling cross-border restructurings and insolvencies and related matters. The team regularly advises premier financial institutions, institutional investors, equity sponsors, portfolio companies, asset purchasers, debt investors, finance companies, insurers and sureties to achieve strategic goals in the context of structured transactions, commercial litigation, loan workouts, debt restructurings and bankruptcy.
