PRACTICE AREAS
Restructuring
Restructure to grow. The answer you need.
We help companies and creditors to restructure their debt before reaching the insolvency stage through restructuring plans under Law 16/2022, their judicial approval, the refinancing of bank and syndicated debt, standstill agreements and viability plans. We have refinanced syndicated loans worth tens of millions of euros and worked on plans involving the formation of creditor classes and the inclusion of dissenting creditors. We act during the pre-insolvency phase, when the range of options is widest and the value of the company remains intact.
Our Approach · The right questions make all the difference
We have been advising on the financial and operational restructuring of Spanish and international companies for over three decades. We have worked on court-approved restructuring procedures, restructuring plans involving the inclusion of dissenting classes, and out-of-court negotiations with creditor groups in highly complex contexts. That track record has taught us one thing: the outcome of a restructuring is rarely determined by the rules. It is determined by the questions that are asked — and when they are asked.
Have you analysed how the formation of creditor classes can completely reshape the balance of power in negotiations, before the plan is filed? Do you know how far judicial approval can actually go — and where the point begins at which a dissenting creditor has solid grounds to challenge it? Have you considered what happens when the best interests of creditors (BIC) test and the absolute priority rule (APR) point in different directions, and who decides which one takes precedence? Are you aware of the actual limits of cross-class drag – what can be enforced under the equity test and what cannot be imposed even if the judge approves the plan?
These are not rhetorical questions. They are the questions that have shaped the way we work from the very first day of our term of office. If your company – or your client – is facing restructuring, the time to ask these questions is before you sit down to negotiate. And if the negotiations are unsuccessful, the transition to an orderly insolvency procedure is prepared from this stage onwards; it is not improvised.
Decenas M€
In refinanced syndicated debt
Homologados
Agreements with legal protection
Standstill
Negotiations with a banking syndicate
SERVICES
What we do
Restructuring plans (Act 16/2022)
Comprehensive plan design: scope of affected debt, classification of creditors, calculation of majorities and negotiation strategy. The structure of the plan determines the carry-over and approval process before the case reaches court.
Judicial approval
Preparation and defence of the plan’s approval: extension of its effects to creditors and dissenting shareholders, protection against actions to set aside the plan, and defence against challenges from dissenting creditors.
Bank refinancing
Negotiations with financial institutions to restructure syndicated and bilateral debt. Standstill agreements, debt write-offs, payment deferrals and grace periods.
Feasibility plans
Detailed financial analysis, cash flow projections, scenario analysis and a formal presentation to financial creditors.
Operational restructuring
Corporate reorganisation, strategic divestments, streamlining of the organisational structure and optimisation of resources.
Creditors and restructuring plans
Representing creditors affected by a scheme: position on the formation of classes, analysis of the ‘best interests’ and ‘absolute priority’ tests, voting and challenging the approval where the scheme does not stand up to scrutiny.
METHOD
How we work
Financial and legal assessment
A comprehensive overview of the debt — who each creditor is, what security they hold and their ranking — and an honest assessment of the business’s viability.
Plan design
The scope of the debt in question, the categorisation of claims and a comparison with the tests to be carried out by the judge, before any information is disclosed to the creditors.
Protected negotiation
A standstill agreement with the relevant bodies and, where appropriate, notification to the court of the commencement of negotiations, so that these may take place within the legal framework.
Approval and implementation
Filing of the plan, court approval with extension of its effects to dissenting creditors, defence against challenges and implementation of the agreements.
EXPERIENCE
Proven track record
Decenas M€
In refinanced syndicated debt
Homologados
Agreements with legal protection
Standstill
Negotiations with a banking syndicate
Direct experience in the refinancing of syndicated loans worth tens of millions of euros, in court-approved agreements and in standstill negotiations with banking consortia. We have been advising on the financial and operational restructuring of Spanish and international companies for over three decades, always adopting an approach that prioritises business continuity.
TEAM
Who advises you
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What clients ask before engaging us
Yes, and now is the best time to do so. The TRLC allows you to notify the court that negotiations with creditors have begun: whilst this legal protection remains in place, the obligation to file for insolvency proceedings is suspended and enforcement proceedings against assets necessary for business operations can be halted. We draft the notification and handle the negotiations.
It is the mechanism introduced by Law 16/2022 into the TRLC: an agreement that modifies a company’s assets, liabilities or equity in order to resolve a situation of insolvency without going through insolvency proceedings. It replaced the former refinancing agreements and is now the key tool in the Spanish pre-insolvency framework.
From the mere likelihood of insolvency — when it is objectively foreseeable that the company will be unable to meet its obligations — through to imminent or actual insolvency. The sooner action is taken, the more options are available and the greater the scope for negotiation with creditors.
Court approval allows the effects of the plan to be extended to creditors — and even shareholders — who have not approved it, and protects the transactions under the plan from actions to set them aside should insolvency proceedings be initiated at a later date. Without court approval, the plan is binding only on those who sign it.
Yes: it is the ‘drag-along’ effect. With the required legal majorities, the approved plan can bind dissenting creditors within a class and even entire classes that voted against it. But there are limits: the test of the creditors’ best interests and the rule of absolute priority, amongst others. If you are a creditor subject to the ‘drag-along’ provision, we will assess whether the approval is contestable.
A standstill agreement with the financial institutions: during the negotiations, the creditors undertake not to enforce security or call in the debt early. This provides the breathing space needed to draw up the viability plan and negotiate in an orderly manner rather than under pressure.
The work already done is not lost: the assessment, the viability plan and the list of creditors form the basis for an orderly insolvency procedure, including the possible sale of the business unit or a pre-pack. Our insolvency practice — with over 1,000 cases under our belt — takes over seamlessly and without delay.
AREA INSIGHTS
Featured articles
The best proof of how we work is reading us. A selection of our analyses:
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Do you need advice on restructuring?
Tens of millions in refinanced debt. Initial, no-obligation consultation.