Craig Sowman

Craig advises variety of stakeholders and debtors (and their officers) in complex international restructurings where significant amount of debt is being restructured with cross-border elements. He also regularly advises insolvency practitioners and office holders (examiners, liquidators and receivers) in the discharge of their duties and in disputes arising in the insolvent estate and on the realisation of assets. Craig also advises secured creditors in significant security enforcements including receiver appointments across some of the largest and complex real estate development portfolios in the State. He also has extensive expertise in complex shareholder disputes and commercial litigation.

Recent significant work includes:

• advising Irish headquartered aircraft leasing group, Nordic Aviation Capital, in the restructuring of $6.8bn debt ultimately through US Chapter 11 proceedings in a complex capital structure across various lender groups and in numerous jurisdictions;
• advising Grant Thornton as examiner of Irish headquartered Weatherford International plc in the global restructuring of $8bn debt across the Weatherford Group through parallel US Chapter 11 proceedings and Irish examinership.
• advising US creditor with regard to the proposed compromise of its debt in the Irish examinership of Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA;
• advising PwC as receiver and manager of significant commercial development property and as Plaintiff in Irish Commercial Court proceedings relating to interference in the disposal of that property by the chargor’s principal;
• advising a prominent Irish hotelier with regard to the high-profile shareholder dispute in the Irish Commercial Court;
• advising the newly appointed Boards of the aircraft leasing group Montrose Global on duties and contentious matters following a secured lender share enforcement and following their nomination and appointment to the parent and subsidiaries of the group by the share receiver;
• advising an Irish re-insurance company on the impact of US rehabilitation proceedings of a co-subsidiary and contractual counterparty and in the bankruptcy of its parent in Delaware under Chapter 7 of the US bankruptcy code.
• advising Baker Tilly Ireland (now Azets Ireland) as the joint liquidators of the Caritas Convalescent Centre DAC and as Examiner in numerous domestic restructurings through Irish Examinership including FCR Media (t/a Golden/Yellow Pages) , Regan Developments and Brady’s pharmacy chain;
• advising RSM Ireland as Liquidator of Eurosurgical Limited (In Liquidation) in High Court in obtaining a landmark judgment in the amount of €18 million against former officers of the Company misappropriated assets and breaches of governance and disqualification orders against the former officers for periods ranging from 9 years to 15 years;
• advising in many high profile retail sector restructurings and/or insolvencies including advising Debenhams Ireland and Mothercare Ireland in restructuring through examinership and advising Deloitte as liquidators of Karen Millen;
• advising Naval Energies and Naval Group as largest creditors in the international liquidation of the Irish headquartered OpenHydro group with debts of over €300m.

Craig lectures in the Law Society of Ireland on professional training and development courses and is a member of Restructuring and Insolvency Ireland and R3 Business Recovery Professionals. Craig also leads William Fry’s Sports & Entertain sectoral group and is a disciplinary officer for the IRFU and the Leinster Branch with regard to disciplinary matters arising in rugby union.