Lindquist & Vennum - Professionals

George is a member of Lindquist & Vennum’s Financial Restructuring and Bankruptcy Group and practices in the area of corporate and commercial law, including finance, financial restructuring and bankruptcy. George’s extensive finance experience includes years of negotiating senior and subordinated financing arrangements, structuring credit facilities, perfecting finance documentation and secured transactions.

As a former business analyst for Dun & Bradstreet, George is well-equipped to provide sound business advice and frequently advises publicly and privately held companies regarding corporate governance, debt and equity financings, licensing issues and risk management. He serves as corporate counsel on behalf of buyers and sellers and venture capitalists in complex merger, acquisition, divestiture, and joint-venture transactions. George has significant experience in construction financing and restructuring matters for ethanol and biodiesel plants, a practice which takes him across the nation.

As a seasoned bankruptcy practitioner, George’s knowledge of the Bankruptcy Code and the Uniform Commercial Code provides his clients with well-rounded advice in all aspects of credit extension, workouts, restructurings and distressed-sale transactions. George regularly represents lenders, lessors, funds, committees, business debtors, guarantors and creditors in financial workouts, restructurings, distressed-sale transactions, successor liability issues, and preferential and fraudulent transfer litigation.

Representative Experience

Secured Transactions. George regularly represents banks, commercial finance companies, private equity firms and borrowers in all aspects of structuring, documenting and enforcing secured loan arrangements and resolving defaults and intercreditor issues.
Loan Participations. George has served as counsel for lead lender in real estate loan participations, and handled the restructuring, workout and foreclosure of a multi-million dollar real estate project.
Distressed Transactions. As bankruptcy and M&A counsel to a financial institution debtor, George was able to save the subsidiary bank from being closed by federal and state regulators through a recapitalization.
Chapter 11 Debtor Representation. As bankruptcy, corporate and M&A counsel to Chapter 11 debtors in In re Polaroid Corp. et al., George oversaw the auction and sale of assets in a contested § 363 sale that generated in excess of $87.6 million for the benefit of creditors.
Chapter 11 Trustee Representation. George serves as counsel for the Chapter 11 Trustee and Receiver in connection with Thomas Petters Ponzi scheme and related bankruptcy cases of In re Petters Company, Inc. et al. (Bankr. D. Minn.), which involve claims in excess of $3.8 billion and the prosecution of over 200 “claw-back” actions commenced on behalf of the Trustee.
Section 363 Sales. George serves as bankruptcy and M&A counsel to buyers in Section 363 sales throughout the country, including In re Genmar Holdings, Inc. (Bank. D. Minn.), In re Hitchcock Industries, Inc. (Bankr. D. Minn.) and In re Fleming Co. (Bankr. D. Del.).
Creditors Committee. George served as co-counsel to the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors, as well as the designated litigation representative, in the Chapter 11 proceeding of In re Intrepid U.S.A., Inc. (Bankr. D. Minn.), which along with its affiliated debtors was one of the largest home healthcare providers in the United States.
Private Equity. George represented a consortium of private equity firms holding subordinated secured debt and equity instruments in connection with resolution of intercreditor disputes, renegotiation of senior secured credit facility and restructuring of debt in the Chapter 11 reorganization of In re M.A. Gedney Co. (Bankr. D. Minn.).
Ethanol Industry. George has represented ethanol lenders, bondholders and creditors in ethanol bankruptcy cases and complex workouts throughout the country, including In re Aventine (Bankr. D. Del.), In re Gateway Ethanol, LLC (Bankr. D. Kan.), In re Northeast Biofuels, LLC (Bankr. N.D.N.Y.), In re Pine Lake Corn Processors, L.P. (PLCP) (Bankr. D. Iowa), In re Otter Tail Ag Enterprises, LLC (Bankr. D. Minn.) and NEDAK Ethanol, LLC (Nebraska).
Equipment Lessors. George represented equipment lessors in connection with their claims and interests in various bankruptcy proceedings, including In re HomeBanc Mortgage Corp. et al. (Bankr. D. Del.), In re S&B Surgery Center (Bankr. C.D. Cal.) and In re Winona Printing Co. (Bankr. D. Minn.).
Landlords. George represented landlords and landlord groups in various bankruptcy matters throughout the country, including In re Sun Country Airlines (Bankr. D. Minn.), In re WorldCom (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.), In re Allegiance Telecom (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.), In re 2nd Swing, Inc. (Bankr. D. Minn), In re Video Update (Bankr. D. Del.) and In re VICORP (Baker’s Square) (Bankr. D. Del.).

Before joining Lindquist & Vennum, George served as a staff attorney for the National Bankruptcy Review Commission, which reported to the President, Congress, and U.S. Supreme Court and made recommendations for reform that were considered in connection with the adoption of The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. George also served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Nancy C. Dreher, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the District of Minnesota, and to the Honorable William A. Hill, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge for the District of North Dakota.

George serves as an adjunct professor of law at the Hamline University School of Law where he teaches courses on Secured Transactions and Bankruptcy. He is a frequent lecturer on corporate and commercial law subjects and has provided professional commentary for a number of media outlets and periodicals, including Fox News, WCCO Radio, Minnesota Public Radio, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and the Pioneer Press.

Recent Publications

“TOUSA: Fraudulent Transfer Risks in Loan and Restructuring Transactions," Pratt's Journal of Bankruptcy Law, 2012
Bankruptcy Practice in Minnesota Deskbook, Chapter Author
“The Art of the (Bad) Deal: Securing the “Break-Up Fee” in Bankruptcy Sales,” Lindquist & Vennum, Dealmaker Counsel
“The Lender’s Guide to Second-Lien Financing,” 125 Banking L.J. 199.
“A Snapshot of the Polaroid Sale and Certain Considerations in 363 Sales,” Lindquist & Vennum, Dealmaker Counsel

Recent Presentations

“Hidden Liens and the Search for First Priority: Select Issues under the UCC and Other Applicable Law for Bankruptcy Lawyers,” MSBA Bankruptcy Section Presentation
“Bankruptcy Sales-Section 363, Liquidation Auctions,” Minnesota CLE Distressed Assets Seminar
“Bankruptcy: Minimizing Surprise and Maximizing Recovery,” Lindquist & Vennum Advanced Lending Seminar
“Purchase and Sale of Assets In and Out of Bankruptcy,” Minnesota Business Law Institute

Honors and Awards

Minnesota Super Lawyers, 2006–2012
Raeder Larson Public Service Award, MSBA Bankruptcy Section
Leonard Lindquist Pro Bono Recognition Award
American College of Bankruptcy, Commendation
National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, Commendation
U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Distinguished Service Award
Martindale-Hubbell “AV” rated

Community Involvement

Sojourner Project, Inc., Chairman of Board of Directors
(domestic violence services organization, providing shelter, education and advocacy)
Adjunct Judicial Officer – Judicial Referee, Dakota County Conciliation Court
(serve as Judicial Referee and preside over proceedings involving various debtor-creditor, landlord-tenant and other civil litigation matters)

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George H. Singer