It has been hobbled by higher costs than its competitors, who have all used bankruptcy proceedings mainly to restructure their labor contracts.
First comes its bread and butter, the restructuring business, which has done well recently as companies have needed to restructure debt, go through bankruptcy proceedings and so forth.
While many airlines have sought Chapter 11 protection to restructure their operations, Mr. Tilton used the lengthy proceedings to force pay and benefit cuts on flight attendants, pilots and mechanics, and slashed employee pensions.
Sometimes, that results in the acquired company placed in bankruptcy proceedings either to liquidate its assets to pay off the debt or to restructure, a process Bain also experienced.
Frequently, lawyers are brought in before a company files for bankruptcy protection, to advise on ways either to restructure the business to prevent a filing or to make the proceedings themselves as smooth as possible.
Mike McKeever, a lawyer who represents participating lenders, said the banks had cooperated because agreeing to restructure a loan or forgive some arrears was cheaper than going through foreclosure proceedings.
"They have to restructure.
We need to restructure code".
— to try to restructure its liabilities.
