Abid Qureshi focuses on financial restructuring litigation. Mr. Qureshi represents creditors, bondholders, hedge funds, institutional investors and creditor committees and debtors in the full range of complex litigation matters arising in the course of chapter 11 restructurings, cross-border insolvencies and other bankruptcy contexts.
Practice & Background

Mr. Qureshi has led litigation teams in some of the most challenging and hotly contested chapter 11 proceedings in recent years, including Nortel, Eastman Kodak, Calpine and General Growth Properties. On behalf of creditor committees and other creditor constituencies, he is regularly called upon to litigate novel procedural and substantive issues relating to contested plan confirmations, make-whole and no-call claims, inter-company transactions, breaches of fiduciary duties, fraudulent transfer claims, asset sales and valuation proceedings. For example, in the Chemtura bankruptcy proceedings, Mr. Qureshi led the charge on behalf of the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors in a contested confirmation process in which the court ultimately adopted the Committee’s $2.05 billion valuation of a proposed global settlement that was the lynchpin of Chemtura’s plan of reorganization. In the high-profile chapter 11 case of Philadelphia Newspapers, Mr. Qureshi led the litigation effort on behalf of a steering group of secured lenders concerning the sale of the debtor’s assets and ultimately prevailed in our client’s bid to own those assets.

In addition to tackling cutting-edge issues in the courtroom, Mr. Qureshi has been at the forefront of recent changes to bankruptcy legislation, having testified before the Advisory Committee on Bankruptcy Rules regarding amendments intended to clarify the scope and applicability of the disclosure requirements of Bankruptcy Rule 2019.

He is a frequent speaker at events hosted by the American Bankruptcy Institute, the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, The American College of Investment Counsel and the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section, among others. Mr. Qureshi also serves on Law360’s 2012 Editorial Advisory Board for its daily bankruptcy.

Mr. Qureshi received his B.A. first class in international relations in 1991 from the University of British Columbia and his J.D. in 1994 from the University of Toronto, where he was an associate editor of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law Review. He received his LL.M. with merit in international business law in 1996 from the London School of Economics in England.
Representative Matters

Mr. Qureshi’s recent engagements include advising:

the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Nortel Networks Inc.
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Chemtura Corporation
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of General Growth Properties, Inc.
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of TOUSA, Inc.
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Calpine Corporation
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Delta Air Lines, Inc.
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Collins & Aikman Corporation
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Loral Space and Communications, Inc.
the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors of Allegiance Telecom
the Joint Official Liquidators of two Bear Stearns-managed sub-prime hedge funds
a significant creditor in the chapter 11 cases of Tribune Co.
an ad hoc group of second lien lenders of Eastman Kodak Company
the informal second lien noteholders committee of Indianapolis Downs, LLC
an ad hoc group of first lien lenders of Catalyst Paper Corp.
an informal committee of secured lenders of Philadelphia Newspapers, LLC
an informal noteholder group of Lehman Brothers Holdings, Inc.
an ad hoc committee of noteholders of Premier International Holdings, Inc. (Six Flags)
an informal committee of secured noteholders of Nellson Nutraceutical, Inc.
debtor Inner City Media Corp.
debtor Pinnacle Airlines Corp.
debtor Foamex International, Inc.

Awards & Accolades

The Best Lawyers in America (2012-2015) for bankruptcy litigation
“Outstanding Young Restructuring Lawyers” by Turnarounds & Workouts (2009)
New York Metro Super Lawyers (2012-2014)

Speaking Engagements

Mr. Qureshi’s speaking engagements include:

moderating a panel titled “Ethics: Before it’s over should we talk (or not)?” at the American College of Investment Counsel’s 2014 Spring Investment Forum in Chicago, Illinois, April 2014
participating in a panel titled “Valuation Game Theory: Constituents' Tactics and Perspectives” at the American Bankruptcy Institute’s VALCON 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada, February 2014
participating in a panel titled “So You Think You Want to be A Court Officer?” at the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Canadian/American Cross-Border Insolvency Symposium in Toronto, Canada, November 2011
participating in the “Changing Players in Bankruptcy and Rule 2019” program at New York City Bar, May 2011
presenting “Update on the Model Form and Recent Make-Whole Developments” at the American College of Investment Counsel Spring Investment Forum in Chicago, Illinois, April 2011
participating on a panel titled “How to Conduct a Valuation Trial” at the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Annual Spring Meeting in National Harbor, Maryland, April 2011
participating on a panel titled “Romancing the Stone: Successful Credit-Bidding in a Dangerous World (For Lenders, That Is!)” at the American Bankruptcy Institute’s 16th Annual Rocky Mountain Bankruptcy Conference in Denver, Colorado, January 2011
participating on a panel about Rule 2019(a) at the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges 84th Annual Conference in New Orleans, Louisiana, October 2010
participating on a panel on “The Future of Credit Bidding” at the RBS High Yield Conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, May 2010
participating on a panel titled “Bankruptcy Part II: What’s New” at the American College of Investment Counsel’s 2010 Annual Spring Investment Forum in Chicago, Illinois, April 2010
speaking on credit bidding at the ABA Business Law Section Spring Meeting in Denver, Colorado, April 2010.