Meet The Attorneys Guiding Del Monte In Its $1.2B Ch. 11

A team of attorneys from Cole Schotz PC and Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer are guiding packaged foods giant Del Monte through Chapter 11 as it hopes to find a buyer.

Del Monte entered bankruptcy last week with a restructuring support agreement backed by a majority of its secured creditors to run a Chapter 11 auction for the business.

Del Monte sought in-court restructuring after a liability management transaction last year failed to sufficiently reduce borrowing costs from its $1.23 billion of secured debt, according to court documents.

At a first-day hearing July 2, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michael B. Kaplan gave interim approval to a $912.5 million debtor-in-possession loan from creditors who signed the restructuring support agreement, which includes $165 million of new money, a rollup of $247.5 million in term loan debt and a $500 million rollup of an asset-based loan.

Here is Del Monte’s legal team:

Michael D. Sirota

A member in his firm’s Hackensack, New Jersey, office, Sirota is the co-chair of the bankruptcy department and has helped clients including drugstore chain Rite Aid, office-space provider WeWork and retailer Bed Bath & Beyond in their Chapter 11s.

Sirota joined Cole Schotz in 1987. He graduated from Syracuse University College of Law in 1986, according to his LinkedIn profile.

David M. Bass

Also a member based in Hackensack, Bass has represented Modell’s Sporting Goods, Bed Bath & Beyond and View Inc., a “smart glass” maker.

Bass has been with Cole Schotz since 2006. He received his law degree from New York Law School in 1994, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Felice R. Yudkin

Also a member based in Hackensack, Yudkin has taken on work for clients including David’s Bridal in its Chapter 11, and also assisted BlockFi and WeWork in their respective bankruptcies.

She received her law degree from Fordham University School of Law in 2005, according to her LinkedIn profile.

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