Christian Pilkington

Partner, London
[email protected]
LinkedIn profile

Biography

Christian “is very experienced, knows what is going on in the market and has good judgement.” He has a broad restructuring and insolvency practice with particular expertise advising on cross-border matters. Another client notes: “He’s fantastic both on the deal side and on the technical side.”
Chambers UK 2020

Overview

Christian advises clients on all aspects of highly complex insolvency and restructuring work, helping to rescue businesses and to secure the interests of creditors. He is head of White & Case's non-contentious Financial Restructuring and Insolvency team in EMEA, a group dedicated to representing clients in all aspects of restructuring, workouts and insolvency matters. With experience of working with overseas counsel and coordinating advice across multiple territories, he has been noted for his leadership role in numerous significant cross-border restructurings. He has worked with the full spectrum of insolvency practitioners and creditors, as well as with the directors of companies which find themselves in financial difficulty. In a relatively short time, Christian has amassed an impressive track record, and has been particularly noted for his pioneering efforts using UK schemes of arrangements for European restructurings, including for clients The Wind Hellas Group and Primacom. Christian is a respected authority on insolvency and restructuring matters, and regularly authors articles for professional journals and magazines. He is active in insolvency industry circles, and is a member of several leading associations, including the Insolvency Lawyers' Association, R3, the Turnaround Management Association (UK and Global), and INSOL International. He is also a member of the EHYA Insolvency Law Reform Committee.
Bars and Courts
England and Wales
Education
LLM
Commercial and Corporate Law
London School of Economics
LLB
University of Nottingham
Languages
English

Experience

Financial Restructuring and Insolvency
Financial Institutions
Financial Institutions Advisory

African Bank
Currently advising the committee of senior creditors on the restructuring of African Bank.

Kaupthing hf
Advised Kaupthing in relation to its winding up proceedings, the fifth largest bankruptcy ever.

New World Resources Plc (NWR)
Advised NWR on its comprehensive, cross-border balance sheet restructuring, which won “2014 Industrial Goods and Basic Resources Deal of the Year” at M&A Advisor’s Turnaround Awards.

Anchorage Capital Group
Advised Anchorage Capital Group on their joint venture with Barratt Developments PLC, Rose Shared Equity LLP, to acquire, hold and manage non-interest bearing shared equity loans originated by BDW Trading Ltd.

Anchorage, Oak Hill and Canyon Capital
Advised Anchorage, Oak Hill and Canyon Capital as investors in the New Look Group under a PIK Loan Facility Agreement and its refinancing.

Zolfo Cooper
Advised Zolfo Cooper on a pre-pack administration sale of Iridium France S.A.S., a holding company of Marken Group, a life sciences conglomerate.

Investors in the Bulgaria Telecom Group
Advised the new investors in the restructured Bulgaria Telecom Group, implemented pursuant to UK schemes of arrangement.

Findus Group
Advised the co-ordinating committee of senior lenders of the Findus Group, in relation to its ongoing restructuring.

Primacom
Advised Primacom, a leading provider of communications products in Germany, on its restructuring, which was implemented pursuant to a UK scheme of arrangement.

Joint administrators of Peverel Ltd.
Advised the joint administrators of Peverel Ltd., the holding company of the group which manages 200,000 residential units throughout the UK.

Joint administrators of Powerfuel plc
Advised the joint administrators of Powerfuel plc, the entity behind one of the UK's most innovative 'green power' projects.

Wind Hellas group
Advised The Wind Hellas group, the Greek telecommunications operator, on all aspects of its €1.8 billion restructuring, which was implemented by way of a scheme of arrangement and 'pre-packaged' administrations.

Publications

Schemes of arrangement: 'sufficient connection' in cross-border restructurings, Butterworths Journal of International Banking and Financial Law, December 2013, (co-author)

Balance Sheet Insolvency: Supreme Court Dismisses the Appeal in Eurosail, International Corporate Rescue Volume 10, Issue 4, 2013, (co-author, with Kevin Heverin)

London Calling – Schemes of Arrangement, International Financial Law Review, March 2013, (co-author, with Michael Mount and Ben Prior)

Cortefiel: The Use of Schemes of Arrangement for 'Amend & Extends', International Corporate Rescue Volume 10, Issue 2, 2013, (co-author, with Hayley Mitchinson)

Balance Sheet Insolvency: Supreme Court Dismisses the Appeal in Eurosail, International Corporate Rescue Volume 10, Issue 4, 2013, (co-author, with Kevin Heverin)

Credit bidding: law and practice, Journal of International Banking and Financial Law, May 2013

Testing the limits of UK Schemes of Arrangement, IFLR Magazine, 20th February 2013, (co-author)

Re Primacom Holding GmbH: To Scheme or Not to Scheme – That was the question.... Clarification on the Jurisdiction of the English Courts to Sanction Schemes of Arrangement for Overseas Companies, International Corporate Rescue, Volume 9, Issue 2, 2012, (co-author)

Schemes of Arrangement – current hot topics and market trends, Lexology, 1 April 2011, (co-author)

Awards and Recognition

Leading Lawyer, Chambers UK 2015
Restructuring/Insolvency - London (Firms)

Recommended Lawyer, The Legal 500 UK 2014
Corporate Restructuring and Insolvency

Leading Lawyer, IFLR 1000 2014
Financial Restructuring; Restructuring and Insolvency

40 Under 40
In 2013, Christian won a 40 Under 40 Recognition Award in the Legal Advisor category from The M&A Advisor, an award scheme which recognizes emerging industry leaders in M&A, private equity and restructurings.

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