Jenner & Block LLP is pleased to announce that internationally renowned restructuring and bankruptcy lawyer Richard Levin – an author of the 1978 US Bankruptcy Code and recipient of the 2015 Distinguished Service Award from the American College of Bankruptcy – is joining the firm as a partner in its New York office and becoming a member of its nationally recognized Bankruptcy, Workout and Corporate Reorganization Practice, effective May 18, 2015.
Mr. Levin is a distinguished leader in the bankruptcy profession, having forged a pre-eminent reputation as a restructuring, bankruptcy and creditor-debtor rights lawyer in his nearly 40 years in practice – by leading or playing a major role in numerous precedent-setting domestic and cross-border insolvency proceedings.
“Rich is simply one of the foremost bankruptcy professionals,” said Terrence J. Truax, managing partner of Jenner & Block. “His reputation for handling all facets of bankruptcy law – including commercial and municipal bankruptcies, restructurings and workouts – is unsurpassed. We are excited that Rich is joining the firm and is a significant additional presence in New York to our Bankruptcy, Workout and Corporate Reorganization Practice. We are a firm of ever-expanding global reach, and Rich’s presence further strengthens our capabilities.”
Mr. Levin joins the firm after serving as a partner at Cravath, Swaine & Moore LLP (2007-2015), where he chaired its Restructuring Practice. Among his numerous accomplishments there, he advised on the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA) on the City of Detroit’s bankruptcy case, coordinating a broad effort that protected the DIA’s priceless collection from the city’s creditors, and negotiated the first and most favorable settlement of clawback claims in the Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities SIPA proceeding.
“Jenner & Block has a history of involvement in some of the most high-profile and complex corporate reorganizations, manifested most recently by the service of our Chairman, Anton Valukas, as Examiner in the Lehman Brothers case,” said Daniel R. Murray, chair of the firm’s Bankruptcy, Workout and Corporate Reorganization Practice. “Rich’s entire career similarly has been marked by the highest quality of service to his clients and a deep dedication to the development of restructuring law. By joining Jenner & Block, Rich, with the knowledge, experience and leadership skills he brings, will enable our firm to further its commitment to our clients and remain on the cutting edge of the development of the law in this area.”
Before Cravath, Mr. Levin was a partner at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP & Affiliates (1997-2007); chief financial officer and general counsel at Whittaker Corporation (1994-1997); shareholder at bankruptcy boutique firm Stutman, Treister & Glatt Prof. Corp. (1978-1994); and assistant counsel to the US House of Representatives Committee on the Judiciary (1975-1978). He serves as chair of the National Bankruptcy Conference and is a Fellow and former regent, board member and vice president of the American College of Bankruptcy.
Mr. Levin provides additional pedigree to a New York office that has undergone substantial litigation and corporate growth over the past several years. “We are delighted that Rich – unquestionably a superstar in his field – has decided to join Jenner & Block,” said Richard F. Ziegler, managing partner of the firm’s New York office. “The firm is committed to growing our decade-old New York office, which has quickly become a top choice for superb lawyers of all levels of seniority who value the law as a profession and find great satisfaction in practicing in an intensely collegial setting.”
Mr. Levin was a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Commission to Study Reform of Chapter 11, which recently issued its final report and recommendations, and served as a consultant to the World Bank and the Central Bank of Brazil regarding Brazil’s 2005 bankruptcy legislation. Since 2002, he has served as a faculty member at the Federal Judicial Center’s Bankruptcy Judge Workshops. He is also a lecturer in law at Harvard Law School and a sought-after speaker and author on a range of bankruptcy issues. Mr. Levin has repeatedly been recognized as one of the foremost practitioners of bankruptcy and creditor-debtor rights law by, among others, Chambers USA and Chambers Global, Best Lawyers in America and Benchmark Litigation. He earned his JD from Yale Law School and his SB from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
“With its strong reputation for handling litigation, corporate and bankruptcy matters, Jenner & Block is an ideal platform where my practice can flourish,” Mr. Levin said. “I have known personally and admired many of the firm’s talented partners and have great respect for several of the bankruptcy lawyers with whom I have worked (or been opposite from) on numerous matters. The work they have done in the private equity bankruptcy area is a perfect fit with my practice. I am excited to join a firm so steadfastly committed to excellence and to public service. I am eager to play a role in helping the firm grow its transactional practice and presence in New York.”
