Leslie A. Berkoff is a partner with Moritt Hock Hamroff & Horowitz LLP and serves as co-chair of the firm’s Litigation and Bankruptcy practice groups. Ms. Berkoff concentrates her practice in the area of bankruptcy and restructuring litigation and corporate workouts, and she represents a variety of corporate debtors, trustees, creditors, and creditor committees both nationally and locally. Her practice also includes an emphasis on equipment leasing and health care law, and she has experience in commercial litigation and corporate transactions. In addition to her practice, Ms. Berkoff has served as a mediator, court appointed examiner, and guardian ad litum in several bankruptcy cases. Prior to joining Moritt Hock Hamroff & Horowitz LLP, Ms. Berkoff served as a law clerk to the Honorable Jerome Feller, United States Bankruptcy Judge in the Eastern District of New York, from 1991 to 1993 and to the Honorable Allyne R. Ross, Federal Magistrate Judge in the Eastern District of New York, from 1990 to 1991. Ms. Berkoff speaks and publishes extensively, and is a recognized leader in her field. She is a graduate of Hofstra University School of Law, J.D. 1990 and was editor-in-chief of Hofstra Labor Law Journal. Ms. Berkoff is admitted to practice in New York and Connecticut. Ms. Berkoff was the chair of the International Women’s Insolvency and Restructuring Confederation from 2004 to 2008 and has served on the board of directors of that organization for more than ten years. She also serves as co-chair of the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Healthcare Insolvency Committee. Ms. Berkoff is an active member of the Nassau County Bar Association and a past chair of its Bankruptcy Committee. She is also a member of the Long Island Fund for Women & Girls Circle of 99s. In addition, Ms. Berkoff serves on the board of editors of Pratt’s Journal of Bankruptcy Law and is a past president and board member of Hofstra School of Law’s Alumni Association.
Jonathan Carson, managing director and chief marketing officer of Kurtzman Carson Consultants LLC (KCC), oversees the company’s business development and marketing initiatives. Additionally, he leads the company’s various growth initiatives, continually seeking new and innovative ways to support clients’ needs. He was recognized as the winner of the 2008 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® in the Services category in the Greater Los Angeles Area for his entrepreneurial endeavors in developing KCC’s innovative business model and reputation for industry leadership. Prior to establishing KCC, Mr. Carson was a corporate restructuring attorney with Kirkland & Ellis LLP in the firm’s Chicago office, as well as at Pachulski, Stang, Ziehl, Young & Jones PC in Los Angeles. In his previous positions, Mr. Carson represented numerous debtors in their restructuring efforts including United Artists Theatre Corp.; Babcock & Wilcox; Harnischfeger Industries Inc.; and Indesco International Inc. Mr. Carson began his professional career as the judicial law clerk to the Honorable Geraldine Mund, United States Bankruptcy Judge, Central District of California (Los Angeles). A frequent guest speaker at industry events, Mr. Carson has presented at gatherings of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges and the American Bankruptcy Institute. He lectures on a regular basis at Northwestern University School of Law, Chicago Kent College of Law, and the University of California at Los Angeles School of Law. Mr. Carson is the author of Pre-petition Capital Contributions: The Road to Equitable Treatment in Bankruptcy, 3 Columbia Business Law Review 403 (1999) and Recovering Avoidable Transfers under Section 550 of the Bankruptcy Code: Defining “for the benefit of the estate,” 72 Chicago-Kent Law Review 589 (1996). His thoughts and perspectives have been profiled in leading industry publications such as American Lawyer, The Deal, Daily Bankruptcy Review, and Turnarounds & Workouts. Admitted to practice law in California and Illinois, Mr. Carson earned his Juris Doctor from Chicago-Kent College of Law. He graduated with distinction from the University of Michigan where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. He is an active member of the Young President’s Organization (YPO), Los Angeles chapter.
Mark A. Castillo is a shareholder at The Curtis Law Firm PC. Mr. Castillo has developed a diverse practice with significant experience in all areas of bankruptcy law and litigation. Through representation of numerous Chapter 11 debtors, secured and unsecured creditors, official committees, and Chapter 7 and Chapter 11 trustees, Mr. Castillo has developed a broad knowledge of the law and the Bankruptcy Code, including pre-bankruptcy planning and prepackaged acquisitions, pre-negotiated reorganizations, bankruptcy liquidation and non-bankruptcy dissolution, assumption, assignment, and rejection of leases and contracts, utility and reclamation issues, claims objections, avoidance and recovery actions, disclosure-statement and plan drafting and negotiation, and various confirmation and post-confirmation issues. Mr. Castillo has tried suits involving millions of dollars in bankruptcy-related claims, including turnover, conversion, and contract claims, and has litigated or settled millions more in preference and fraudulent-transfer claims for both plaintiffs and defendants. Mr. Castillo was named “Texas Rising Star” by Texas Monthly in 2005, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010 and received the Thomas R. Mulroy Prize for Appellate Advocacy. Because of an extensive and confidential peer review, Martindale-Hubbell awarded Mr. Castillo its highest BV rating for an attorney practicing for fewer than ten years. Mr. Castillo received his B.A., summa cum laude, from the University of Texas at Dallas and his J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. He is co-chair of the Moot Court Board at the University of Chicago Law School. He is admitted to practice before Texas and U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western Districts of Texas.
Sara L. Chenetz, a partner at Blank Rome LLP, represents clients with varied interests and perspectives in restructuring, bankruptcy, and related matters. Ms. Chenetz’s current and prior clients include official and unofficial Chapter 11 committees, debtors in possession, bond holders, equity holders, investors, investment funds, lenders, first and second lien holders, asset acquirers, insurers, sureties, landlords, tenants, indenture trustees, franchisors, employee benefit plans, trustees, examiner, directors and officers, general and limited partnerships, limited liability companies, REITS, individuals, assignors, and assignees and creditors in assignments for the benefit of creditors, plaintiffs, and defendants. She regularly advises clients on doing business with financially troubled companies. She advises clients in entertainment, insurance, manufacturing, real estate, transportation and other industries in the areas of restructuring, bankruptcy, in and out of court workout, insolvency, credit planning issues, and litigation. Ms. Chenetz has first chaired several federal and state bench trials and arbitrations and second chaired a federal jury trial. She has served as a court appointed mediator in bankruptcy cases in the Southern District of New York and Central District of California. Ms. Chenetz has been ranked by Chambers USA in 2009 and has an AV rating by Martindale. She is also a respected speaker and widely published author. Ms. Chenetz received her J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law and her B.A., magna cum laude, from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst.
Michael Frishberg, vice president of Kurtzman Carson Consultants LLC (KCC), drives the strategic development and implementation of KCC’s business development and client services, maximizing the scope and value of the company's suite of service offerings. He brings extensive corporate restructuring experience to his role while supporting the company's overall growth initiatives. Prior to joining KCC, Mr. Frishberg was a partner in the Restructuring Group at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in the firm’s New York office. He represented debtors and official committees in Chapter 11 restructurings such as Solutia Inc., Allegiance Telecom Inc., Teligent Inc., Newcor Inc. and Quality Stores Inc. Mr. Frishberg graduated with honors from Chicago-Kent College of Law and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from the University of Michigan.
Amy L. Kyle, a partner at Bingham McCutchen LLP, is deputy chair of the Financial Services Area. She also serves on the Firm Committee of senior firm management. Since 1983, Ms. Kyle has represented leading financial institutions in connection with a broad range of finance-related matters, with a particular focus on the transportation industry. She has been lead agent’s counsel in financings for companies that operate in all modes of transportation, lease transportation equipment, or engage in international and domestic shipping, including NetJets Inc., Ryder System Inc., Ingram Industries Inc., Genesee & Wyoming Inc., Carlisle Leasing International LLC, Container Applications International Inc., XTRA Inc., Moran Transportation Company, and TBS International Limited. Ms. Kyle’s experience also includes loan workouts and debt restructurings. She often represents agents and other creditors in workouts and restructurings, both in and out of court. Her experience extends to debtor-in-possession financing, exit financing and sales under §363 of the Bankruptcy Code. Currently, she is representing the secured term lenders in the bankruptcy of Visteon Corporation, a multinational tier 1 automotive supplier. Additionally, she represented the administrative agent for the secured lenders to RH Donnelley Inc. in its bankruptcy and related exit financing, and the administrative agent and certain senior secured prepetition and debtor-in-possession lenders to Pacific Energy Resources Ltd. in its bankruptcy. She has also been actively engaged in restructurings and bankruptcies in the mortgage industry, representing major creditors in the bankruptcies of New Century, American Home, and Delta Financial, as well as out-of-court restructuring transactions for several major mortgage originators and aggregators. She has extensive experience in steel industry cases, having represented the agent for senior secured prepetition and debtor-in-possession lenders in steel manufacturer bankruptcies, as well as representing a major steel company in obtaining U.S.-guaranteed steel financing and working capital financing and restructuring its other debt obligations in connection with its reorganization and exit from Chapter 11. She represented the agent for the senior secured lenders to one of the nation’s largest Burger King franchisees in its bankruptcy. She also represented the secured prepetition and debtor-in-possession lenders to a satellite telecommunications company in its bankruptcy. Ms. Kyle has been actively involved in leveraged finance transactions since the mid-1980s. Her experiences include senior and mezzanine financing of private acquisitions and leveraged recapitalizations, including platform companies and roll ups, as well as public mergers and tender offer transactions. She has also been engaged in connection with workouts and restructurings of a number of those transactions. Ms. Kyle also frequently represents lenders to the retail finance sector representing the lead in transactions involving national retailers, such as Borders Group Inc., Coach Inc., Timberland Inc., and Staples Inc. Her international assignments have included numerous cross-border financing transactions, including acquisition financing transactions, as well as private equity investments by both U.S. and non-U.S. clients, and restructuring transactions, particularly in Europe and Latin America. She has represented the private equity arm of a large financial institution in many of its private equity investments in Latin America and the venture capital arm of a Brazilian conglomerate in several private equity investments, including the purchase of the Brazilian business of a high technology company from its financially troubled U.S. parent. She has also represented creditors in a consensual debt restructuring of a power plant in Colombia, and the lead investor in rescue financing investments in a separate power plant inColombia. Her representations also include a multinational company in the oil services industry in its financing arrangements in the Norwegian and other international and U.S. debt markets. Ms. Kyle has been named leading lawyer in banking & finance (Massachusetts) by Chambers USA (2004-2010) and in banking law and equipment finance law by The Best Lawyers in America (2002-2010). She has also been recognized by Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business (2004-2010), Super Lawyers, Massachusetts (2004-2010), Lawdragon 500 Leading Dealmakers (2007), and Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers in America (2006). She is a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar and editor of the Transnational Law Journal. Ms. Kyle is a member of the American Bar Association and Boston Bar Association. She is admitted to practice in Massachusetts and New York and before the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals, First Circuit. She is a registered foreign lawyer in England and Wales. Ms. Kyle received her J.D. from Columbia University School of Law and her A.B. from Princeton University.
