Patrick Birney co-chairs Robinson+Cole’s Bankruptcy + Reorganizations Group and is a member of the Business Litigation Group. Patrick has focused his practice on complex transactional, litigation, and advisory work related to the debtor/creditor relationship, including restructurings, Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases, workouts and “pre-packaged” Chapter 11 matters, and commercial finance.

He has extensive experience representing secured and unsecured creditors, trustees, debtors, official and ad hoc creditors’ committees, and other parties in Chapter 11 restructurings, adversary proceedings, state court receiverships, and out-of-court workouts. In 2023, Patrick became a duly elected Connecticut Probate Judge for the Town of Wallingford, which provides a unique perspective on legal proceedings.

Paul Garcia makes good on that promise, guiding providers and clinical laboratories through their highest-stakes reimbursement, litigation, and regulatory challenges. His strategic counsel is informed by firsthand experience developing policy within California’s Medicaid program (Medi-Cal), giving him a unique insider’s perspective on how government payors operate and where the law and business realities collide.

Paul’s clients, including hospital associations, hospital systems, and clinical laboratories, turn to him for his expertise on state Medicaid, Medicare, and audits and investigations. He provides actionable counsel on internal investigations of potential overpayments under the 60-Day Rule, develops compliance programs to protect clients from costly government scrutiny, and represents clients in litigation, particularly related to reimbursement disputes. His forward-looking guidance was critical during the COVID-19 pandemic and continues to help clients navigate the operational impact of significant new rulemaking from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

As Co-President of A&G Real Estate Partners, Andy Graiser brings nearly 30 years of experience as a go-to resource for a variety of real estate services on behalf of healthy and distressed entities. His key areas of expertise include lease mitigation, real estate dispositions, facilitating growth opportunities, valuations, and acquisitions.

He co-founded A&G in 2012 with Co-President Emilio Amendola. Previously, in 1992, they founded and then later sold DJM Realty.

Mr. Graiser and his team have achieved rent-reduction and occupancy-cost savings approaching $8 billion on behalf of 650+ clients in every real estate sector, while selling more than $12 billion of non-core properties and leases. The clients he is most closely associated with include Mattress Firm, Claire’s, RadioShack, rue21, Dowling College, A&P Supermarkets, Party City, Christmas Tree Shops, Tailored Brands, Chico’s, Ruth’s Chris, GNC, and Tuesday Morning.

Doug Greenspan is an accomplished real estate professional with over 15 years of experience providing strategic consulting, investment and distressed property sales and lease advisory/mitigation services for both healthy and distressed clients throughout North America. He specializes in navigating complex real estate challenges within a variety of sectors, including retail, restaurants, hospitality, healthcare, multifamily, industrial and recreation.

Doug’s track record includes leading and executing on complex projects for clients including Bed Bath & Beyond, Christmas Tree Shops, David’s Bridal, GNC, Guitar Center, Party City, Summit (Hardees franchisee), Toms King (Burger King franchisee), Tuesday Morning, Rite Aid, West Marine, and Zoe’s Kitchen/Cava.

Doug holds an MBA with a focus on real estate from George Washington University and is committed to ongoing professional development through his active involvement in the Turnaround Management Association, American Bankruptcy Institute, and International Council of Shopping Centers.

Charvi Gupta, senior director, joined Getzler Henrich in 2018, and has over ten years of experience across corporate turnarounds, operational and financial restructuring, M&A, and bankruptcy situations. She specializes in working with underperforming companies to develop and implement business-transformation strategies, performance-improvement approaches, and turnaround plans. Her experience spans multiple industries including food & beverage, retail, healthcare, commercial real estate and hospitality, security alarm, automotive, consumer products, and restaurants.

Previously, she was an investment banking associate at MTS Health Partners, where she focused on M&A and private placements in the healthcare industry. Prior to that, she was an investment banking senior analyst at Deutsche Bank in Mumbai and Hong Kong, where she focused on M&A and financing in the consumer and retail industry. Charvi has also worked in project finance at one of the leading infrastructure companies in Mumbai.

Mr. Kumar is a seasoned corporate finance professional with over 30 years of experience spanning financial forensics, damages, valuation, solvency, and other complex financial analyses. His expertise has been instrumental in a broad range of restructuring, litigation, and advisory matters involving debtors, creditors, financial institutions, and private equity sponsors. Mr. Kumar is frequently retained as an expert witness, having provided deposition and trial testimony on issues including damages, solvency, and valuation in high-profile corporate disputes. He is a Certified Valuation Analyst and a Certified Fraud Examiner, and his work has covered numerous industries including chemicals, home products, media, semiconductors, residential mortgages, financial services, and energy.

Mr. Kumar has led major financial advisory engagements involving solvency and fraudulent conveyance analyses in cases such as AbitibiBowater, Adelphia Communications, Art Van Furniture, ASARCO, Bridger Logistics, Chem Rx, Coudert Brothers, Ellen Tracy, Hexion v. Huntsman, Imperial Home Décor, LyondellBasell, Qimonda, Refco, Tribune Company, and Ultra Petroleum. His valuation and damages work has included assignments for Asia Global Crossing, Borden Decorative Products, Corporate Resource Services, Essential Therapeutics, Glasstech, GMAC Bank, Mortgage Lenders Network, Moscot Group, SunEdison, SiO2 Medical Products, TOUSA, and Ultra Petroleum. He has also led forensic investigations and financial analyses for clients such as Enron, MCI/WorldCom, Hertz, Ditech, and Residential Capital, among others. Notable recent expert assignments include serving as damages and solvency expert in the Art Van Furniture, Eddystone Rail, and Ultra Petroleum cases.

Samuel R. Maizel is a partner in Dentons US LLP’s Los Angeles office. Sam’s practice focuses on restructuring, insolvency and bankruptcy, in- and out-of-court in all industries, but he leads the firm’s healthcare industry restructuring efforts nationwide. He has served as lead bankruptcy counsel to healthcare industry debtors, including in the recently completed chapter 11 bankruptcy cases of Verity Health System of California, Inc., and 15 related companies, the second largest hospital bankruptcy in American history, and in the Astria Health bankruptcy cases in Yakima, Washington.

Before joining Dentons, Sam was a partner at a national bankruptcy boutique firm (1997-2015), and previous to that he represented the federal government nationwide as a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Commercial Litigation Branch (1991-1996). He has also served in U.S. Army’s The Judge Advocate General’s Corps (1985-1991), including service in Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm, for which he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal, as well as an Infantry Officer in the U.S. Army (1977-1985).

Sam has lectured extensively, is widely published, and been interviewed on television and radio on topics related to the healthcare industry and bankruptcy. Among many other honors, he is a Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy, is ranked in Chambers in both Bankruptcy and Healthcare, and has regularly been named a “Super Lawyer” in an annual region-wide peer survey. Sam has his J.D. from George Washington University National Law Center (1985); an M.A. from Georgetown University (1983); and a B.S. from the United States Military Academy at West Point (1977).

Endicott (Kit) Peabody, IV has more than 16 years’ experience advising clients on transactional and general corporate matters. This includes significant work representing public and private companies across industries, private equity firms, commercial banks, other major lending institutions, and real estate developers in structuring, documenting and negotiating, complex M&A transactions; senior and junior lending transactions (secured, unsecured and multi-tranche financing); syndicated financing transactions; and problem and distressed loan restructurings, loan workouts and bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings. Kit is a member of our firm’s Business Transactions group.

Mr. Schechtman leads the Middle Market Team of Meridian Investment Sales as a Senior Executive Managing Director, overseeing a team of originators, analysts and other professionals.

Mr. Schechtman is widely recognized as one of the industry’s most visible and well-respected investment sales professionals. Trained for years at one of the world’s largest law firms, Mr. Schechtman has personally sold more than 904 deals representing more than $9 billion in his eighteen-year career to date. Recognized as an industry “Titan,” “Power Broker”, “Jack of all Trades” and one of the “25 Most Visible New York City Real Estate Players” by the Commercial Observer, The Mann Report and The Real Deal, respectively, Mr. Schechtman is regularly engaged by private families, institutions, lenders, estate lawyers and their counsel and advisors to value, market and see through to closing the sale of multifamily properties, development sites, buildings ripe for repurposing, retail condominiums and co-ops, unsold shares, and loft office and industrial buildings throughout New York City. Mr. Schechtman has also represented more than 25 lenders in the disposition of performing and defaulted notes and assets in Chapter 11, Section 363 Sales.

Prior to joining Meridian, he held the position of Principal and Executive Managing Director at Eastern Consolidated, where he was named “Broker of the Year” on multiple occasions. Prior to Eastern, Mr. Schechtman was a practicing attorney at DLA Piper in New York, where he specialized in commercial and property-related bankruptcy and litigation.

Mr. Schechtman holds a J.D. from the Benjamin Cardozo School of Law where he graduated Magna Cum Laude and a B.A. from University of Delaware. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Commercial Committee of the Real Estate Board of New York and several other boards and charities. He is a frequent guest lecturer at Columbia University, the Real Estate Board of New York and law firms throughout the tri-state area on foreclosure and bankruptcy asset sales.

Lauren Crawford Shaver is a Senior Managing Director at FTI Consulting and Head of the Healthcare & Life Sciences (“HCLS”) sector in the Americas, based in Washington, D.C.

Ms. Crawford Shaver’s professional experience comprises a combination of public and private sector tenures. Most recently, she led and expanded an integrated, full-service public affairs team focused on impactful reputation, policy, crisis and advocacy campaigns for companies and coalitions across the HCLS sector at a bipartisan government and public affairs advocacy firm.

Previously, she served as Director of Expansion States for Hillary for America. In the Obama Administration, she was Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs for Healthcare at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, where she oversaw issues related to the Affordable Care Act, Medicare, Medicaid, HealthIT, prescription drug pricing, health centers and health research.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Crawford Shaver held senior-level positions at professional consulting firms and numerous campaign leadership positions, including at the Hillary Clinton for President Campaign in Iowa, Nevada, and Washington, D.C. in 2008, Obama for America in Ohio and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (“DCCC”) in Illinois.

Ms. Crawford Shaver completed her B.A. in International Relations and Communications and Political Science from the University of San Diego and earned her M.A. in Government from Johns Hopkins University, Magna Cum Laude.