About Matthew Breen

Matthew Breen is an associate in Katten’s Restructuring practice, where he represents parties across the capital structure in complex bankruptcy cases and insolvency-related litigation. A former clerk on the US Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware, Matt brings a firsthand understanding of the Chapter 11 process to every matter, allowing him to anticipate how issues will be viewed and adjudicated in practice. He has helped guide clients through numerous large, contested restructurings and cross-border disputes.

Leveraging broad experience to maximize recovery in distressed situations

Having represented debtors, secured creditors, committees, sponsors and cross-border stakeholders, Matt brings a balanced perspective that informs litigation strategy and restructuring positioning for every client. He also has significant experience negotiating and documenting the value-maximizing transactions at the heart of such matters, working across the litigation and transactional dimensions of complex restructurings to deliver results that hold up over time.

Representative Experience

  • Creditor Representations
  • Represented the official committee of unsecured creditors in the restructuring of approximately $3 billion of funded debt through a Chapter 11 plan process. *
  • Represented a group of federally qualified health centers in recovering approximately $700 million in wraparound Medicaid and Medicare payments from the Commonwealth through lift stay litigation, plan confirmation objections, and ensuing negotiations. *
  • Represented the founder of a CLO in the defense of approximately $3 billion of claims brought by a litigation trust and monoline insurers, spanning bankruptcy court proceedings and related litigation following the CLO's dissolution. *
  • Represented the defendant on behalf of a liquidator in a French bankruptcy proceeding in a suit brought in the Delaware Court of Chancery. *
  • Represented a private equity sponsor, as DIP lender, in extending debtor-in-possession financing to, and successfully liquidating, a regulated subsidiary through the Chapter 11 Subchapter V process. *
  • Represented ad hoc groups of secured creditors and lenders in restructurings and recapitalizations ranging from approximately $1 billion to $12.5 billion of funded debt, involving extension litigation, the extension of DIP facilities, and credit bidding. *
  • Company Representations
  • Represented the Independent Directors of a television network and multimedia retailer in a contested Chapter 11 restructuring of approximately $6.5 billion of debt.
  • Represented the debtor, an internet backbone provider, in the restructuring of approximately $3 billion of funded debt through a prepackaged Chapter 11 process. *
  • Represented the debtor, an oil and gas exploration and production company, in restructuring approximately $3 billion of funded debt through a free fall Chapter 11 process. *
  • Represented the company in an out-of-court recapitalization of approximately $1.1 billion of funded debt through a debt-for-debt exchange. *
  • Represented the company in an out-of-court restructuring completed through a strict foreclosure on its equity by lenders under an approximately $400 million term loan facility. *
* Experience prior to Katten
Education
  • Emory University School of Law, JD
  • Florida State University, BS
Bar Admissions
  • New York
  • District of Columbia
Court Admissions
  • US District Court, Southern District of New York
Professional & Community Involvement
  • American Bankruptcy Institute
  • INSOL International