We assist commercial and government clients with a full range of workouts, debt restructuring, and foreign direct investment (FDI) dispute resolution.  We distinguish ourselves by bringing to bear skill and sophistication derived from decades of living and working in emerging markets and by working with governments, lenders, and investors to understand all sides of investment matters. 

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Our legal professionals have been principal counsel in all aspects of debt and restructurings in a wide range of sectors.  We are recognized industry leaders and have served on the U.S. government’s International Development Finance Corporation (DFC, formerly the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, OPIC) panel of outside counsel.  One of our attorneys is the only practicing lawyer currently serving on the U.S. government’s Millenium Challenge Corporation (MCC) Advisory Council.  Our professionals have worked for and with multilateral development banks (MDBs), large hedge funds and other private financial institutions, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and sovereign governments in a variety of foreign investment capacities. 

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Select Representations:

 

Because of the sensitivity surrounding many workouts and FDI disputes and the desire of several clients for confidentiality, we have not included identifying information for these matters.

          

Sovereign Debt

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• Island country.  Representing island country facing default on several foreign sovereign loans, an unsustainable debt burden, and the loss of economic and political autonomy as a result.

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Energy

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• Geothermal Power Project.  Negotiated restructuring of $300 million debt on which the Government had defaulted in a two-phase geothermal power project.
   

• Electricity Generation Projects.  Led negotiations on behalf of consortium of private and government lenders and equity sponsors involving approximately $ 1 billion of loans and Turkish state-owned-enterprise’s defaulted offtake payment obligations for multiple electricity generation projects.    
   

• Cogeneration facilities.  Represented lender in restructuring of more than $ 1 billion of loan obligations and dispute resolution involving two energy projects in Indonesia.
   

• Electric Power Distribution Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of dispute between the Ministry of Energy and the project operator relating to rate setting, grid regulation and expansion, and additional investment in connection with an electric power distribution concession.

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Infrastructure and Telecommunications

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• Solid Waste Management Project.  Negotiated restructuring of payment obligation from Egyptian government agency to project company. 
   

• Wireless Telecommunications.  Negotiated restructuring of payment obligations from government regulator (with Ministry of Finance guarantees) to project investor.
   

• Port Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of disputes between the project enterprise and the government of Djibouti relating to the expansion and privatization of the port.
   

• Desalination Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of dispute relating to the offtake agreement for a desalination project.
   

• Waste Management Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of dispute between government and the project operator relating to the operation of a solid waste management concession.
   

• Telecommunications.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of disputes among a private cellular telephone company, the guarantors of the financing provided to the company, and the government of Benin relating to the issuance of operating licenses for the company and the amount and funding of licensing fees payable by the company.
   

• Telecommunications.  Defended African state-owned telecommunications company against commercial and international law claims brought by an American company.

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Financial Sector

     

• Financial Services Company.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of dispute relating to expropriation of a financial services company.
   

• Microfinance Fund.  Represented a microfinance investment company in connection with the restructuring of a fund that supports microfinance loans.
   

Extractive Industries

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• Mining Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of a dispute between the project operator and the government relating to the operation of a gold, silver, and copper mine.
   

• Mining Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of claims of equipment expropriation and damage resulting from political violence.

 

Hotel and Real Estate

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• Hotel.  Negotiated restructuring of defaulted, multi-million-dollar loan that had financed the building, equipping, and start-up operations of a major hotel.
   

• Hotel.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of disputes between the project investor and the Ministry of Finance relating to environmental issues and governmental funding of payments for project employees in connection with hotel construction.
   

• Hotel.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of claim of political violence involving damage to a hotel.
   

• Mediation.  Appointed mediator in land expropriation dispute.

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Food and Agribusiness

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• Agribusiness.  Representing U.S. investors in commercial and expropriation dispute with Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Finance over commercial rice farm and processing facility.
   

• Agribusiness.  Represented political risk insurer in the successful defense of and arbitral award with respect to an expropriation claim regarding a cashew production facility.
   

• Sugar Processing Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of claims relating to political violence, including fires, work disruptions, and equipment sabotage, adversely affecting the sugar processing plant’s operations.
   

• Food Processing Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of claim of political violence affecting food processing plant.
   

• Food production. Represented political risk insurer in the successful defense of and arbitral award with respect to an expropriation claim regarding food production facility.

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Other

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• Import Port Scanning Project.  Negotiated restructuring of payment obligations and other terms of contract between government of Sierra Leone and project operator.
   

• Computer Plant Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of dispute relating to expropriation of a computer assembly plant.
   

• Customs Project.  Represented political risk insurer in resolution of dispute between a private company and the government of Nigeria relating to provision of customs inspection services.