Richelle Kalnit is an associate in the Firm's Corporate Restructuring & Bankruptcy practice. She joined the Firm in 2008 and is resident in the New York office.
Ms. Kalnit's practice includes the representation of creditors' committees, debtors, asset purchasers, and secured and unsecured creditors in Chapter 11 reorganizations, liquidations and distressed situations.
Ms. Kalnit has significant experience representing creditors' committees in several of the most prominent retail Chapter 11 cases in the country, including Appleseed's (d/b/a Orchard Brands), Big M (d/b/a Mandee, Annie Sez and Afaze), Goody's, Mervyn's, Lenox Group, The Bombay Company, Samsonite Company Stores, Marty's Shoes and Bag ‘n Baggage.
She also frequently represents creditors' committees in restaurant and supermarket cases, including Pizzeria Uno, Claim Jumper Restaurants, Taco Tico and Foodmart.
Ms. Kalnit's experience extends to representing clients in a wide variety of contested matters, including bankruptcy-related litigation and issues concerning postpetition financing. Among other things, Ms. Kalnit was part of the team representing the Orchard Brands litigation trustee in prosecuting $310 million dividend recapitalization litigation against the former owners of the debtor and other participants.
She also participated in the representation of Crabtree & Evelyn in its Chapter 11 case. The case was named the "Chapter 11 Reorganization of the Year" by the Turnaround Atlas Awards.
Ms. Kalnit obtained her J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, cum laude, where she was elected to the Order of the Coif and served as an editor for the Arts and Entertainment Law Journal. She earned her BA, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania in Communications and Psychology. Prior to joining the Firm, Ms. Kalnit was an associate at King & Spalding LLP in that firm's New York office.
In 2013, Ms. Kalnit was named a New York Rising Star by New York Super Lawyers magazine. Ms. Kalnit is admitted to practice before the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York. She is a member of the Turnaround Management Association, the International Women's Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation (IWIRC) and the New York State Bar Association.
