NEW YORK – McDermott International’s restructuring case (In re McDermott International, Inc.) – in which Bracewell LLP represented Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank on the successful refinancing of approximately $2.6 billion of letter of credit and term loan facilities – won the third annual International Matter of the Year Award, which was presented at the American Bankruptcy Institute’s (ABI) International North American Insolvency Symposium.
Led by New York partner Jeris Diana Brunette, the Crédit Agricole CIB refinancing was implemented through a cross-border restructuring process, pursuant to a transaction support agreement among a steering committee of letter of credit issuers and lenders, and an ad hoc group of cross-over lenders, participants and shareholders agreed in September 2023. The refinancing, which closed on March 25, 2024, amends and extends the facilities through June 2027.
Implementation of the amend and extend, which was heavily contested by several creditor groups, was accomplished through the English Court’s sanctioning of the Restructuring Plan on February 27, 2024, and the Dutch Court’s confirmation of the two wet homologatie onderhands akkoord (WHOA) Plans on March 21, 2024, and compromised approximately $1 billion of unsecured litigation claims.
Bracewell’s cross-border, multi-disciplinary team also included partners Andrew C.J. Bueso, Olivia Caddy, William H. Ebert, Rachel B. Goldman, Thomas M. Tomlinson, William A. (Trey) Wood III and Manuel Vera; of counsel Robin J. Miles; senior counsel Bagyasree Nambron; and associates Young June Jhe, Katie J. Jones, Sameer Ahuja, Emily A. Banse, Dylan W. Benac, Nour Haikal, Christie L. Latimer, and Kenni C. Wilkinson.
The ABI, founded in 1982, is the largest nonpartisan organization focused on research and education in insolvency matters. Its nearly 10,000 members, including legal, financial and academic professionals, provide a platform for idea and information exchange.
