Joseph Samet
Partner
Practice Areas
Financial Restructuring, Creditors' Rights, Transactions, Bankruptcy, Insolvency and Reorganizations
Practice Focus
National and International Workouts, Transactions, Sales, Chapter 11 Reorganizations, and Bankruptcy.
Practice Description
Mr. Samet was Chair of the firm's Global Recovery, Restructuring and Bankruptcy Group. He currently heads the Restructuring / Creditors' Rights/Bankruptcy practice in the New York office. Since 1975, Mr. Samet has been immersed in a national and international workouts and restructuring, chapter 11 reorganizations, distressed sales of assets, SIPC and bankruptcy practice representing all parties in interest. This includes cross-border issues, section 304 ancillary proceedings and chapter 15 cases. He counsels parties in interest and corporate and transactional lawyers on potential creditors' rights/bankruptcy implications of deals, sales, and distressed investments they are considering, structured finance, corporate governance, and on pre- and post-bankruptcy litigation. He counsels on insurance and monoline related issues, bank liquidations, advises boards of directors and covers debtor-in-possession financing. He analyzes executory contract issues, including licenses for businesses in the e-commerce economy, and gives written opinions and analysis in transactions, including in securitizations. A significant portion of his practice has involved diverse commercial businesses, including in manufacturing, retail, service, airlines, energy, healthcare, real estate, e-commerce, sports, insurance and telecommunications. The work includes prosecution and defense of preference, fraudulent conveyance, equitable subordination, substantive consolidation actions, officer/director liability issues, Ponzi scheme issues, and related litigation. He counsels professional firms and their partners and shareholders. Mr. Samet has testified as an expert witness in jury trials and in an international arbitration.
Professional Affiliations
Mr. Samet is a member of the American Bar Association, the American Bankruptcy Institute, the Commercial Law League of America, the New York State Bar Association, and the Association of the Bar of the City of New York. He has served as a member of the boards of directors of the American Bankruptcy Institute and the New York Chapter of the Turnaround Management Association, and as a member of the Steering Committee of the Barry Zaretsky Roundtable at Brooklyn Law School.
Awards, Honors & Skills
Mr. Samet has been regularly selected by Euromoney Legal Media Group Guide as one of the "World's Leading Insolvency and Restructuring Lawyers." He received the 2004 Burton Award for Legal Writing as co-author of the article entitled "When Worlds Collide: Intellectual Property and Arbitration Rights in Bankruptcy Cases."
Education & Bar Admittance
Mr. Samet received his J.D. from Brooklyn Law School, where he later became an adjunct professor, and his B.A., with honors, from Queens College. He is admitted to practice in the State of New York, the U.S. District Court, Eastern and Southern Districts of New York, the U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit and the U.S. Supreme Court. He has appeared in many bankruptcy courts, pro hac vice, throughout the country.