Bankruptcy Asset Sales

Stone & Baxter regularly represents debtors, creditors, bidders, and other interested parties in the strategic sale and purchase of assets in bankruptcy or in other distress or insolvency situations.

Section 363 Bankruptcy Sales

More and more, Section 363 of the Bankruptcy Code has become the preferred vehicle for selling assets quickly, efficiently, and definitively. With Stone & Baxter’s emphasis on debtor representations, Section 363 is a natural cornerstone of its restructuring practice.

Collectively, our attorneys have initiated, defended, participated in, and litigated hundreds of 363 sales of nearly every conceivable type of asset, real or personal, tangible or intangible. The sales structures and formats are almost as varied, ranging from sales of single assets in Chapter 7 bankruptcies to national stalking-horse auctions of enterprise assets in Chapter 11 bankruptcies.

Although Section 363 is unrivaled in the law for its ability to “scrub” title, dispose of assets free and clear of liens and encumbrances, and provide finality for buyers and sellers alike, its benefits and protections do not always come easily. Ensuring the provision of those benefits and protections and avoiding the pitfalls that often challenge even the simplest of 363 sales require deep bankruptcy and cross-disciplinary transactional experience.

Our Approach to Distressed Asset Sales

With decades of nearly daily work on 363 sales, Stone & Baxter has deep experience closing distressed asset sales. That experience includes many, many successful sales. It also includes the occasional unsuccessful sale. For all sales, though, our approach is simple: close deals and avoid litigation, while maximizing due process and minimizing transaction costs.

That approach includes all aspects of the sale, including:

  • Sale transaction documents
  • Stalking horse and bidding procedures
  • Obtaining bankruptcy court approval
  • Engaging sales professionals as necessary
  • Setting up “data rooms” for due diligence
  • Conducting due diligence
  • Participating in the sale or auction
  • Finalizing and closing the sale
  • Credit bid and inter-creditor issues
  • Litigating pre- and post-sale issues

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