Michael J. Edelman

Michael Edelman helps debtors, creditors, financial institutions, and investors resolve complex restructuring and bankruptcy matters.

Guiding aviation industry clients and others through high-stakes financial challenges, Michael is known as the premminent aviation reorganization and restructuring counsel representing lessors financiers and OEMs.  Michael has been instrumental in many landmark Chapter 11 cases over the past two decades, including every major airline bankruptcy and reorganizatrion case, where he generally leads our representation of lessors, financiers and original equipment manufacturers holding the laregest number (and value) of aircraft and related equipment.  Specifically, he has led our representations in, to name a few, the Spirit Airlines, SAS, GOL, Azul, LATAM, Avianca, Aeroméxico, Republic, American Airlines, Delta, United and PAL Chapter 11 cases.  Michael also has been involved in out-of-court restructurings and aviatrion reorganizations in numerous other jurisdictions, including in England, Australia and Brazil, amongst others. Michael also led our representation of EDC, who was the co-sponsor in each of the GM and Chrysler reorganizations, where he played critical roles in developing the structure and implementation of their successful reorganizations.  He also has represented numerous aviation debtors and equity sponsors, including Northwest Airlines, Voyager and numerous JOLCO and other special purpose aircraft owners.  In sum, Michael is widely recognized as the leading equipment side aircraft/aviation bankruptcy counsel. 

With a practice spanning distressed asset litigation, securitization disputes, Chapter 11 reorganizations and out-of-court restructurings, Michael counsels debtors on stabilizing operations, creditors (lessors and financiers) on maximizing recoveries and financial institutions on safeguarding investments. His work often involves debtor-in-possession and other financing arrangements, lease and financing restructurings, negotiating creditor protections, structuring asset sales, and insurance settlements through bankruptcy.  Michael also has extensive experience in effecting enforcement actions and implementing value enhancing litigation stratregies involving equipmenmt financings and leasing structures.   Aligning restructuring strategies with business operational realities, Michael combines courtroom-tested advocacy with practical transactional solutions, particularly in highly regulated and capital-intensive industries. In sum, Michael has worldwide prominence in the aviation and equipment finance fields, where his extensive guidance in almost every distressed aviation matter over the past thirty years enables him to provide an unparalleled level of servies in a pragmatic manner and enables our clients to obtain optimal results in those matters.

Experienced in transactions and litigation, Michael focuses on his clients’ business objectives, enabling continued business operations while addressingfinancial obligations. He structures complex financings and asset dispositions and has advised major lenders, lessors and banks in numerous airline and transportation restructurings and leveraged lease and mortgage transactions. Michael authored the U.S. Chapter in Aircraft Repossession and Enforcement, Practical Aspects.