Mette H. Kurth Partner

Mette H. Kurth

Los Angeles, CA - Century City

Tel: 310.228.4402 Fax: 310.556.9828 [email protected]

Mette represents clients facing complex, financially distressed situations and bankruptcy issues. Named one of California’s leading bankruptcy and restructuring attorneys by Chambers USA, Mette has a reputation for providing unwavering and dogged representation in sophisticated workouts, restructurings, distressed M&A transactions and bankruptcy matters to help ensure her clients attain the best possible outcome.

Clients hailing from a range of industries – retail, restaurant, hospitality, agriculture, fitness, financial services, health care, real estate, and media and entertainment – praise Mette’s skill in the insolvency world, referring to her as “a pit bull in heels” and a “rock-hard…negotiator.” Others note Mette is:

• “Very direct, has a plan of action and goes on the attack with it.” • “A dynamic attorney. She is smart and thinks outside the box.”

• “Professional, articulate and one of the brightest bankruptcy attorneys I know.”

• “An extremely skilled bankruptcy attorney who has the ideal balance of being technically skilled and practically balanced, always with one eye on delivering value to her clients.”

• A “tireless and creative” advocate.

• “Particularly effective and rare as an attorney due to her experience and people skills in navigating tricky distressed investing deals.”

Utilizing her razor-sharp business acumen and a practical approach to her clients’ financial challenges, Mette

representsdebtors, creditors, investors, creditor committees and other parties in all areas of reorganization, distressed sales and acquisitions, liquidations and bankruptcy-related litigation.

With a high degree of emotional intelligence, Mette also possesses a keen ability to adeptly and effectively manage the most challenging people and situations that often arise in bankruptcy. With this trait, she has gained a reputation for successfully and smoothly handling confrontational negotiations in her client representations.

Before Fox Rothschild

Mette has practiced at various pre-eminent bankruptcy boutiques and national law firms before joining Fox Rothschild. Before practicing law, Mette was a Bank Liquidation Specialist with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Dedicated to community service, Mette has been actively involved in numerous community efforts. Most recently, she assisted the Jubilee Campaign in raising funds through its Education After Escape campaign to assist the Nigerian schoolgirls who escaped from their Boko Haram kidnappers in seeking refuge in the United States, where they have obtained scholarships to continue their education in safety.

She previously served as a member of the resource board of Sojourn Shelter, which provides battered women and children a safe space to regroup, rebuild and re-establish their self-esteem and lives. In 2008, she helped raise more than $25,000 for the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer. And in 2003, Mette's family was recognized by the City of Los Angeles as the North Hollywood YMCA's "Family of the Year" in recognition of the assistance they provided to the financially troubled North Hollywood facility and their successful efforts to prevent the closure of the highly respected YMCA preschool.

Additionally, she is deeply involved with the executive committee of the national Turnaround Management Association and currently serves as its Vice President of Communications and a member of its Board of Directors and Executive Committee.

Honors & Awards

• Selected for inclusion in the Super Lawyers “Top Female Attorneys” in Southern California (2015) • Los Angeles Business Journal’s Women Making a Difference Award Nominee (2015)

• Named as one of the leading Bankruptcy/Restructuring attorneys in California by Chambers USA (2013-2014) • Recipient of the “Transaction of the Year: Mid-Sized Company” award by the Turnaround Management

Association in connection with her representation of the Contessa creditors’ committee (2012)

• Received M&A Advisor's “Turnaround Award of the Year Award – Lower Middle Market” in connection with her representation of The Walking Company

• Included by U.S. News & World Report and Best Lawyers in their inaugural rankings for Bankruptcy and Creditor-Debtor Rights Law (2010-2011)

• Selected for inclusion in the Southern California edition of Super Lawyers for Bankruptcy & Creditor/Debtor Rights (2009-2015)

• Recognized by The Daily Journal as One of the Top Women Lawyers in California (2011, 2012 and 2013) • Included in the list of "The Best Lawyers in America" in the area of Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/

Insolvency and Reorganization Law (2009-2016)

Practice Areas

• Financial Restructuring & Bankruptcy • Bankruptcy Trustee • Appellate Practice • Litigation • Real Estate

Bar Admissions

Court Admissions

• U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of California • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of California • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of New York • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of New York • U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Delaware

• U.S. District Court, Northern District of California

Education

• University of California, Los Angeles (J.D., 1996) • Trinity University (B.A., cum laude, 1990)

Memberships

• Turnaround Management Association

o Executive Committee Member and Vice President of Conferences (2016) o Executive Committee Member & Vice President of Membership (2013) o National Board of Directors & Member of Various Committees (2008-present) o President, Officer & Board Member, Southern California Chapter (2004-2008) • American Bankruptcy Institute

• American Bar Association • Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum

• International Women’s Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation (IWIRC)

Representative Matters

Debtors

• Currently representing a fast-food franchisee with approximately 100 locations nationwide in out-of-court workout negotiations and contingency planning.

• Reorganized The Walking Company, an $80-million publicly traded retailer of specialty footwear, in a

successful and rapidly executed Chapter 11 case that resulted in the payment in full of all unsecured creditors; a $10-million recapitalization of the company; renegotiation of significant lease obligations; and the

preservation of all of the company’s stores, substantially all of its employees and its management team. • Represented New Meatco, a Southern California importer and distributor of meat, poultry and seafood

products, in its Chapter 11 liquidation, which centered on the investigation, preservation and prosecution of significant avoidance actions, D&O claims and other bankruptcy-related litigation.

• Guided a $35-million Southern California manufacturer and distributor of toner cartridges through an out-of-court workout, followed by the sale of its two operating subsidiaries.

• Secured a significant restructuring and reduction of the secured obligations of Nomoto Investments, LLC, a single-asset real estate debtor operating a shopping center and strip mall, through mediation and confirmation of a Chapter 11 plan.

• Successfully represented Cynergy, a single-asset real estate debtor, in avoiding a receivership, arranging for a sale of its real estate holdings and resolving various member disputes, resulting in the payment in full of creditors and distributions to equity holders.

• Participated in the representation of the Siena Hotel Casino & Spa in its Chapter 11 case, which resulted in the successful sale of the businesses at a bankruptcy auction.

• Represented a national tanning salon franchisor with an assignment for the benefit of creditors. The

transaction involved a strategic roll-up of various operating entities, followed by the assignment of its assets, which enabled the company to resolve its liabilities and improve its operating structure in a fraction of the time and expense of a traditional bankruptcy.

• Represented International Norcent Technology, Inc., a $13-million manufacturer and marketer of consumer electronic products, in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding in response to a $45-million federal court judgment for patent infringement.

• Represented Sun World International, Inc., a publicly traded fresh vegetable and fruit grower and shipper generating $115 million in revenue, in its successful Chapter 11 reorganization.

• Represented Custom Food Products, Inc., a publicly traded meat and poultry processor with $109 million revenue, in the implementation of Chapter 11 reorganization through a Dutch auction that successfully took the company private.

• Represented Steel Horse Automotive, Inc., a $70-million manufacturer and distributor of after-market automotive accessories, in conducting orderly sales of its operating divisions. All sales were successfully completed on time, despite a fire that destroyed a main manufacturing facility three days before the scheduled auction.

• Represented World Bazaars, Inc., a $55-million importer, in disposing of the assets in its 600,000 square foot warehouse – and in the process, quelling an employee walkout and picket of the debtor’s facilities and obtaining employee support for the liquidation effort.

• Represented numerous individuals and companies, including real estate developers, trucking companies, hospitals, medical practice groups, medical equipment manufacturers, retailers and printing companies in successful workout negotiations and other out-of-court solutions to financial challenges ranging from ongoing business losses, potentially catastrophic litigation claims and judgments, failed pension plans, receivership actions, over-leverage and insufficient liquidity.

Official Committees of Unsecured Creditors

• Representing the creditors’ committee for Todd-Soundelux, LLP, the largest post-production sound studio in the nation, with respect to its pending Chapter 11 bankruptcy case

• Represented the creditors’ committee of Contessa Premium Foods, Inc. in Chapter 11 proceedings,

successfully opposing an initial quick sale process and instead securing an auction process that resulted in the approval of the highest and best bidder for the debtor’s assets, resulting in 100 percent recoveries for

unsecured creditors.

• Represented the creditors’ committee for AuraSound and played an instrumental role in ensuring that a litigation trust was established, and certain policy provisions were properly addressed, so as to preserve and pursue potentially significant D&O litigation claims for the benefit of creditors.

• Represented the creditors’ committee of Little Tokyo Partners, LP in the Chapter 11 case for the New Otani Hotel and the adjacent retail center in downtown Los Angeles, successfully achieving 100 percent recoveries for unsecured creditors.

• Represented the creditors’ committee of McGrath’s Publick Fish House, Inc. in the Chapter 11 case of this $17-million restaurant chain. Successfully obtained an additional $1.5 million cash payment for unsecured creditors.

• Represented the creditors’ committee for Right Start, one of the largest national specialty retailers of juvenile products, and Baby Style, an online retailer of maternity and baby clothes and products, in their liquidating Chapter 11 case.

• Represented the creditors’ committee in the Chapter 11 case for real estate developer Norman J. Salter, with a large number of real property interests and personal guaranty liability in the hundreds of millions of dollars. The representation included a significant investigation of potential claims and the resolution of tax issues to provide creditor distributions.

• Represented the creditors’ committee of Crew Creative Advertising, LLC, a $10-million advertising company, in Chapter 11 proceedings.

• Represented the creditors’ committee of California real estate investor Robert Henry Bisno in Chapter 11 proceedings.

• Represented the creditors’ committee of Karawia Industries, Inc., a Southern California security and janitorial company, in Chapter 11 proceedings.

• Represented the creditors’ committee of Bodies in Motion, a regional fitness club, in connection with efforts to sell its business. Successfully opposed the debtor’s proposal to sell the company to an insider and instead secured the approval of the highest and best bidder for the debtor’s assets, as selected by the committee, resulting in significant additional recoveries for unsecured creditors.

• Served as co-counsel to the creditors’ committee for The Walking Company, an $83-million revenue footwear retailer. Successfully opposed the debtor’s sale efforts and insider-sponsored plan, resulting in the sale of the company to a third party and significantly enhanced creditor recoveries.

Other Insolvency Matters

• Representing the successful acquirer of a software company at a bankruptcy auction in the Northern District of California.

• Represented the successful acquirer of the assets of bankrupt shoe retailer Steve’s Shoes at a bankruptcy auction in Kansas City, as well as numerous other investors evaluating potential distressed transactions and/or bidding at bankruptcy auctions.

• Successfully represented secured and unsecured creditors seeking to propose and confirm creditors’ plans in pending Chapter 11 cases.

• Represented trustees of creditor trusts established pursuant to liquidating Chapter 11 plans, individual committee members and unsecured creditors asserting claims or defending against avoidance actions in bankruptcy cases across the country and various other parties with interests in Chapter 11 cases. • Represented one of the largest commercial banks in the country in its capacity as indenture trustee in

connection with significant Chapter 11 cases in the telecommunications, airline and steel industries.

• Currently representing the acquirer of certain assets and litigation rights in the defense of an appeal pending in the Northern District of California.

• Represented several parties in both pursuing and defending against appeals of bankruptcy court orders, including orders approving a bankruptcy sale, bankruptcy settlement and denying a bankruptcy claim. • Advise boards of directors with respect to bankruptcy-related matters such as the risks associated with

potential defaults or bankruptcies by third parties – vendors, customers and landlords – minimizing preference and credit risk exposure when dealing with financially distressed business and resolving preference litigation. • Advised companies regarding the use of complex financial tools such as accounts receivable put option

contracts designed to minimize credit risk.

• Represented the trustee appointed under the Securities Investor Protection Act in the SIPC liquidation proceeding for a Glendale, California, securities firm.

Publications

Shuffling the Deck: The Rebalancing of Creditor Rights Proposed by ABI Commission’s Final Report

American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

February 2010

Emerging Strategies for Bankruptcy Financing

Inside the Minds: Debtor-in-Possession and Exit Financing

July/August 2006

Bankruptcy Practitioners, Get Your Guns: Haberbush and Sherwood Partners Set the Stage for a Showdown Between the Code and State ABC Law

July 18, 2005

Ride-through Revisited (Again) — The Strategic Use of the Ride-through Doctrine in the Post-Catapult Era

American Bankruptcy Institute Journal

Third Quarter 2005

The UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency Gains Momentum With its Incorporation into the United States Bankruptcy Code

INSOL World

January 2005

List of Defendants Grows in Deepening Insolvency Cases: Advisors, Investment Bankers and Lenders Are All at Risk

The Journal of Corporate Renewal

June 2004

The Search for Accountability: The Emergence of ‘Deepening Insolvency’ as an Independent Cause of Action

Corp. Corruption Lit. Reporter

Events

There and Back Again: Delaware Bankruptcy Venue, Procedure and Law

June 10, 2014

Hosted by: San Francisco Bar Association Commercial Law & Bankruptcy Section

How to Conduct a Better Sale Process: 363 Sale Issues and Bid Procedures

April 21, 2014

Hosted by: ABA Business Law Section Spring Meeting

Anything But Bankruptcy! Non-Bankruptcy Alternatives are the Preferred Solutions

November 29, 2013

Hosted by: Commercial Finance Association

Financing Into and Out of Bankruptcy

November 1, 2013

Hosted by: International Women’s Insolvency Confederation and Association of Insolvency & Restructuring Advisors

Fundamental Skills Track

September 11, 2012 Hosted by: BPI Southwest

Mastering Series on Bankruptcy

September 14, 2011 Hosted by: Rossberg Group

Business Bankruptcy Boot Camp: Chapter 11 Demystified

September 22, 2010

Seeking ‘Safe Harbor’ During an Economic Storm

June 15, 2010

Hosted by: Association of Insolvency & Restructuring

Strategies for Distressed Retailers and Restaurants

May 17, 2010

Hosted by: Association of Insolvency & Restructuring Advisors

Prepackaged and Prenegotiated Chapter 11 Reorganizations

June 16, 2009

Hosted by: Strafford Teleconference

Strategic Options in Today’s Difficult Economy

April 15, 2009

Hosted by: Association for Corporate Growth Los Angeles

Valcon 2009: Risk, Restructurings, Real Estate and Retail

February 4, 2009

Hosted by: Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Advisors

Structuring & Completing Distressed Transactions in California: What Investors and Lenders Need To Know

November 20, 2006

Whose Case is it Anyway? Taking Control Through a Creditor Plan of Reorganization

April 2, 2006

Hosted by: American Bar Association

News

CVS Gets Third Fresh & Easy Store

The San Diego Union Tribune

October 29, 2015

TMA Global Elects Fox Rothschild's Mette Kurth as 2016 VP of Conferences

ABL Advisor

August 19, 2015

69 Fox Attorneys Named “Best Lawyers” for 2016

May 5, 2015

Four Fox Partners Nominated for 2015 Women Making a Difference Award by LA Business Journal

April 13, 2015

2015 Women Making a Difference: Symposium & Awards

January 29, 2015

Coming and Going Concerns

The Wall Street Journal Law Blog

January 26, 2015

On the Move

The Recorder

January 23, 2015

Bankruptcy Pro Joins Fox Rothschild in LA

Law360

January 20, 2015