Gary H. Leibowitz is the head of the Baltimore office, a member of the firm’s Bankruptcy & Corporate Restructuring and Litigation departments, and chair of the firm’s Sports group.

He maintains a national practice concentrated in the areas of corporate bankruptcy, creditors’ rights, and commercial litigation. He also maintains a sports law practice and is a licensed agent. Clients rely on Gary’s strategic and experienced advice to craft comprehensive and creative solutions to complex financial and legal issues.

Experience

Gary has served as debtors’ counsel in the retail, manufacturing, wholesale, real estate, auto and specialty products industries, among others. He has also represented official committees of unsecured creditors in cases across the country in the FinTech, skiing/golf resort and hospitality, gaming, technology, electronics, healthcare and wholesale industries. In these capacities, Gary has successfully restructured hundreds of millions of dollars of debt and coordinated the orderly disposition of a variety of distressed assets. In addition, he represents professional sports teams, DIP Lenders, asset purchasers, trustees, food suppliers, manufacturers, landlords, finance companies and others as creditors or stakeholders in chapter 11 cases and complex bankruptcy-related litigation. Outside of the bankruptcy courts, Gary also regularly advises businesses and individuals in workout and restructuring negotiations with lenders.

Gary also has extensive experience in an array of complex business and commercial litigation, including shareholder disputes, fraudulent transfers, lender liability and business contracts. He has obtained successful trial verdicts and appellate decisions and crafted comprehensive settlements, in both state and federal courts nationwide.

Representative Matters

Gary’s recent representations include the following:

Bankruptcy Court Representations

• Debtor’s Counsel to Premier Kings, Inc. et al. (in AL) which involved the sale of more than 170 Burger King franchise locations in 5 states
• Debtor’s Counsel to Tessemae’s LLC (in MD)
• Co-counsel for the creditor’s committee in ESCO Ltd. d/b/a Shoe City (in MD)
• Debtor’s Counsel to Premier Cajun Kings, LLC (in AL)
• Counsel for the Litigation Trustee for the Think Finance Litigation Trust in fraudulent transfer litigation against a publicly traded fintech lender and certain shareholders which resulted in over $100.0 million of recoveries for the estate and the voiding of $1.0 billion of consumer loans
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee in Eventide Credit Acquisitions, LLC (in TX)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee in Think Finance, LLC et al (in TX)
• Co-counsel for creditor’s committee in Ignite Restaurant Group (in TX)
• Debtor’s counsel for Saturn Corporation (in MD)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Classic Communities Corporation (in PA)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Edge Pennsylvania (in PA)
• Debtors’ Counsel for Western Maryland Transport, Inc., and Western Maryland Lumber, Inc. (in MD) which successfully reorganized under a chapter 11 new value plan
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Tri State Trucking Company (in PA)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee in ZLOOP (in DE)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Dominion Paving & Sealing, Inc. (in VA)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Technology Specialists, Inc. (in MD)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Brown Building Corp. (in VA)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Greek Peak Ski Resort (In re Peak Resorts, Inc.) (in NY)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Wisp Ski Resort (In re D.C. Development, LLC ) and the post-confirmation responsible officer (in MD)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for the Epic Poker and Federated Heartland televised poker tours (In re Federated Sports & Gaming, Inc.) and the post-confirmation responsible officer (in MD)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for Game Trading Technologies, which was publicly traded prior to Chapter 11, and the post-confirmation responsible officer (in MD)
• Counsel for the creditor’s committee for The Merit Group and the post-confirmation administrator with respect to prosecution of over 200 preference claims
• Counsel for professional sports teams and stadiums as executory contract or license parties, and as creditors in numerous chapter 11 cases
• Co-counsel for Debtor for the largest camera and imaging retail business in the country, Ritz Camera Centers, which, at the time of the filing of its chapter 11 case, had 930 retail stores and sales of just under $1 billion, achieving confirmation of a chapter 11 plan while preserving its core business through a sale to its principal
• Co-counsel for Debtor for one of the largest independent homebuilders in the Mid-Atlantic, Gemcraft Homes, and its affiliates, which successfully reorganized under chapter 11 and emerged with ownership intact and shedding over $100 million in secured debt as well as millions in unsecured debt, with exit financing of approximately $65 million
• Co-counsel for Debtor for the largest paper distributor in the greater Washington, D.C. area, Frank Parsons Inc., obtaining confirmation of a chapter 11 Plan and an asset sale that was honored with the 2012 M&A Advisor Turnaround Award – Professional Services Deal of the Year
• Counsel for the DIP Lender in Emivest Aerospace Corporation
• Defense of hospital and physician practices in a preference action exceeding $20 million
• Defense of a mortgage origination company regarding contractual repurchase claims by the trustee of a failed REIT that acquired the mortgage
• Counsel for the first patient care ombudsman in Maryland under BAPCPA (In re Atlantic Health)
• Counsel for creditors and claimants in bankruptcy cases such as MCI/WorldCom, Ames Department Stores, Bombay, Musicland, KB Toys, Sharper Image, Southeast Waffles, and Dippin’ Dots

Federal and State Court Litigation and Appellate Representations

• The State Receiver in Heatworks Technologies, Inc., a tech company
• The Federal Receiver in Independence Lumber, a multi-location lumber mill and timber company in NC
• The Federal Receiver in AgTech Scientific, a large scale food supplement provider and manufacturer in KY
• The State Receiver in SGSL Fee Owner, an assisted living center in FL
• An international food supplier in close to 100 cases in federal and state courts nationwide, recovering in excess of $20 million
• Former executives of a national subprime mortgage lender against a mortgage investment company involving multimillion-dollar claims in federal court for fraudulent transfers, breach of contract and non-payment of wages
• An officer and director of a construction company in the successful reversal by an appellate court of a state trial court’s decision on the alleged enforceability of a personal guaranty
• An international lender in the construction and agriculture industries in various contract claims
• A national automobile finance company in the defense of contract, statutory violation and consumer protection claims
• An automobile dealership in defense of a class action in state court for a multimillion-dollar statutory violation and consumer protection claims
• National automobile rental companies in state court in the defense of multimillion-dollar contract, statutory violation and regulatory claims
• A real estate holding company in litigation in state court involving a restrictive stock agreement and shareholder dispute, successfully preventing an injunction and restraining order

Sports Law Matters

• Represent MLB and NFL teams and stadiums in arbitration concerning contractual disputes
• Review and revision of concessionaire agreements, PSL and luxury suite agreements, advertising agreements and vendor/supplier agreements for MLB teams
• MLB and NFL teams and stadiums as executory contract or license parties, and as creditors in numerous chapter 11 cases nationwide, including those involving American Airlines, Arena Media, Dippin’ Dots, Mattress Discounters, and Coach USA
• MLB teams and stadiums in state court insolvency proceedings, including the Spanish Beisbol Network case
• The wife of a minority shareholder of a MLB team in litigation with respect to a real estate financing deal
• The New York Racing Association in the Rosecroft Raceway case (In re Cloverleaf)

noteworthy decisions:

• Bryce v. Maxim Crane Works, LP, Md. Ct. Spec. App., Sept. Term 2011 (decided March 28, 2013)
• In re Skeen, Goldman LLP, 2007 WL 4556683 (Bankr. D. Md., Dec. 20, 2007)
• In re Shippers’ Choice of Virginia, Inc., 2006 WL 4667129 (Bankr. D. Md., July 21, 2006)

Networks & Affiliations

Gary is a past president of the Bankruptcy Bar Association for the District of Maryland. He also served on the Bankruptcy Bar Association’s Judicial Nomination Committee, Debtor Assistance Project Committee and Joint Committee on Changes to the Local Bankruptcy Rules. The Joint Committee assisted the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland in revising the Local Bankruptcy Rules to reflect the changes contained in the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act. The Bankruptcy Bar Association was awarded the 2011 Maryland Pro Bono Service Herbert S. Garten Special Project Award while Gary was president for its work on establishing the Debtor Assistance Project.

Gary frequently speaks to corporate credit departments and lectures at conventions and conferences on creditors’ rights and bankruptcy issues.

He is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, Maryland State Bar Association, Sports Lawyers Association and the Beth Tfiloh Community School’s board of trustees.

Honors & Awards

Described by clients as “knowledgeable, tenacious and a wonderful advocate,” Gary is consistently recognized for his work in complex bankruptcy proceedings and related litigation.

• In 2022 Gary was selected by the Global M&A Network as a top 50 restructuring professional and was awarded the Community Impact Restructuring Award, at the Global M&A Network Awards.
• His practice has been recognized by Chambers USA where he is listed as Band 1 for Bankruptcy/Restructuring in Maryland.
• In 2021, Gary was selected as “Lawyer of the Year” in: Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law in Baltimore by Best Lawyers, where he has also been listed since 2011 in the areas of (i) Bankruptcy, Insolvency and Reorganization Law, and (ii) Litigation – Bankruptcy. He is also listed on both Super Lawyers and IFLR1000 for Maryland.
• In 2021, Gary was awarded the Best Value-Creating Transaction of the Year – Chapter 11 Restructuring – Small Market, at the Global M&A Network Awards.
• He was the recipient of Baltimore SmartCEO Magazine’s Power Player of the Year Award (Attorney) for 2014.
• U.S. News & World Reports recognized him and his partners in Baltimore as being among the best law firms and best lawyers, earning a first-tier ranking in bankruptcy and reorganization law and bankruptcy litigation.
• He was also selected for inclusion in The Daily Record’s “VIP List” in 2010, the list of top bankruptcy lawyers by The Deal in 2006 and 2007, and Baltimore Business Journal’s “40 Under 40” in 2005.

See Award Methodology.