Sidney Levinson is a partner and Co-Chair of the firm’s Restructuring Group and a member of the Special Situations team. Mr. Levinson has extensive experience advising a range of clients, including bondholders, secured lenders, debtors, trustees and creditors’ committees in large and complex restructuring and bankruptcy proceedings. His representations include major league sports teams, the retail and gaming industries, airlines and real estate developers, among others. Among his recent engagements are the noteholders of Guitar Center, Bon-Ton Department Stores, Hot Topic and numerous other retailers; 1.5 lien noteholders of Hexion; term lenders of NYDJ Apparel and Fontainebleau Las Vegas; second lien noteholders of Caesars Entertainment Operating Company; DIP lenders of Alpha Media and Barney’s; and the agent for lenders of subsidiaries of HNA Group. He also has represented companies in out-of-court restructurings and in Chapter 11 cases, such as the Los Angeles Dodgers and, on behalf of the Chapter 11 trustee, Hawaiian Airlines. In addition, Mr. Levinson has served as lead trial counsel in a number of high-profile cases, including representing Hawaiian Airlines in obtaining an $80 million judgment (plus attorney fees of $3.9 million) against Mesa Air Group arising from Mesa's breach of a confidentiality agreement and representing a group of noteholders of Premier Entertainment Biloxi in winning a $9.5 million judgment (plus an award of $1.5 million in interest) against a solvent debtor for violation of a no-call provision.
Throughout his career, Mr. Levinson has been recognized as a leading lawyer by various legal directories and trade publications and has spoken and written extensively on restructuring issues, and recently co-authored “Debevoise Discusses Key Questions Recent Crypto Bankruptcy Filings May Answer” for CLS Blue Sky Blog (July 2022). Mr. Levinson is ranked as a leading restructuring lawyer by Chambers USA, where clients note that he is “a very thoughtful and creative thinker in complex situations.” He is also recommended by The Legal 500 US.
Mr. Levinson is a fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy and previously served as a subcommittee co-chair for the ABA's Business Bankruptcy Committee. He served on the board of directors of the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum from 2007 to 2011 and is a former editor of the California Bankruptcy Journal. From 1992 until 1995, Mr. Levinson was a trial attorney in the U.S. Department of Justice (Civil Division), specializing in bankruptcy and commercial litigation. He received his J.D. from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1988 and his B.A. cum laude from Brandeis University in 1985.