George A. Davis, Co-Chairman of Cadwalader's Financial Restructuring Department, is a leading practitioner with more than 20 years of experience representing debtors, secured lenders and agents, unsecured creditor groups and investors in complex corporate reorganizations, debt restructurings, and distressed mergers and acquisitions across a wide array of industries, including chemical, real estate, gaming, financial, retail, telecommunications, energy, airline, steel and manufacturing.

He is consistently recognized in the United States by Chambers USA, Legal 500, Corporate Counsel and as well as in IFLR 1000, being lauded, as "superb and fantastic" and, in part, "due to his success in building consensus among groups with extremely different viewpoints." George achieved national "litigation star" status in Benchmark Litigation.  He is also regularly acknowledged in The Best Lawyers in America in which clients praised him as, "extremely smart and thoughtful" and noted his "ability to find solutions to difficult problems and to build consensus amongst warring factions" and "would recommend George to run any deal."  Named an Outstanding Restructuring Lawyer for 2011 and 2010 by Turnarounds & Workouts, a distinction given to only 12 lawyers, George was also praised for his exceptional achievements throughout each year.

In 2011 and 2010, George led teams in the following high profile restructurings:

• LyondellBasell Industries: In addition to securing the largest commercial DIP financing and handling the largest LBO fraudulent conveyance case in the history of chapter 11, George guided this chemical company giant in its highly acclaimed global reorganization, paving the way for plan confirmation and a global discharge in just fifteen months.Lyondell emerged from chapter 11 with a substantially reduced debt load of $7.2 billion in consolidated debt, over $3 billion of liquidity and $10 billion of stockholder equity value. The plan discharged over $24 billion of secured debt against LyondellBasell, all of which was guaranteed by non-debtor European affiliates and secured by their assets, without the commencement of any restructuring proceeding other than the chapter 11. Under his leadership, Cadwalader was named winner of the Restructuring Deal of the Year by IFLR Europe, the Turnaround Award of the Year and the Industrial Goods and Basic Resource Deal of the Year by the M&A Advisor and the Restructuring Deal of the Year by Investment Dealers' Digest in recognition for work on this complex and time-sensitive restructuring; and received top recognition from the Financial Times in its US Innovative Lawyers Report in which the firm's work in Lyondell was one of only three restructurings named to the "Standout" category.
• Centro Properties Group: George led the representation of JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. as lender and agent for a syndicate of four other US banks under an unsecured $2.5 billion bridge loan facility, George led extensive negotiations with major stakeholders around the world in this global restructuring of one of the largest owners and managers of shopping centers in the United States and Australia achieving a final resolution of borrowings of over $13 billion owed to JPMCB, Australian lenders and various mortgage lenders. This transaction received the 2009 Merger Market Turnaround Atlas Award for Out-of-Court Restructuring of the Year.
• Caribbean Petroleum Corporation: George assisted this Puerto Rico-based petroleum company in a complex restructuring and voluntary chapter 11, including obtaining approval of DIP financing, addressing myriad operational and environmental problems, negotiating with major creditors and regulatory agencies, and in an extremely successful section 363 sale.
• BLB Worldwide Holdings, Inc./Twin River Casinos: George led Cadwalader's team in the representation of Bank of America Merrill Lynch, as administrative agent, and the first lien lenders in assuming ownership and obtaining state finance concessions, in connection with this highly successful casino restructuring.
• Dynegy: George is leading therepresentation of the trustee for certain notes and pass through certificates issued as part of several financing transactions Dynegy Roseton and Dynegy Danskammer entered into in 2001. Additionally,George is advising the trustee regarding the treatment of its claims under chapter 11 should Dynegy follow through with its current threat to file for bankruptcy.
• AES Eastern: George is leading the representation of an ad hoc group of holders of certain pass-through certificates issued in connection with the 1999 leveraged lease transaction effectuated by AES Eastern Energy, L.P. (AEE) and certain owner trusts.
• EME Homer City: George is leading the representation of an ad hoc group of holders of certain bonds issued by Homer City, an affiliate of Edison Mission Energy regarding a restructuring.

George also played a leading role in the successful restructurings of many other corporate clients, including:

• Bethlehem Steel Corporation
• Carmike Cinemas, Inc.
• DIMAC Holdings
• Factory Card & Party Outlet Corporation
• IMPATH Inc.
• Marvel Entertainment, Inc.
• McCulloch Corporation
• The Portland Trailblazers
• Saint Vincent's Catholic Medical Centers
• Sunbeam Corporation

George acted on behalf of creditors, lenders and investors in the following restructurings:

• Adelphia Communications - represented ad hoc group of unsecured claims purchasers
• CalGen Corporation - represented ad hoc group of third lien lenders
• Calpine Corporation - represented ad hoc group of unsecured noteholders and pass-through certificate holders for Southpoint, Broad River and Rock Gen leverage lease facilities
• Crescent Resources - represented Morgan Stanley as equity sponsor
• Delta Air Lines - represented GE Capital as DIP lender
• Eagle Pitcher Corporation - represented Goldman Sachs as DIP and exit lender
• Foamex LP - represented Chilton Investment Company as lender
• Fred Leighton - represented Merrill Lynch as secured lender in the chapter 11 cases
• Galey & Lord Industries - represented GE Capital as prepetition secured lender and roll-up DIP lender
• Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical - represented ad hoc group of senior noteholders
• Lehman Brothers Holdings - represented Citigroup, Inc. in the chapter 11 case
• Local Insight Media - represented the independent members of the board
• Pliant Corporation - represented Merrill Lynch as prepetition secured lender and roll-up DIP lender
• SunCal Companies - represented Lehman Brothers as agent for the first lien lenders
• US Airways and Independence Air - represented GECAS as primary aircraft lessor
• VeraSun Energy - represented ad hoc group of secured bondholders and roll-up DIP lenders
• WCI Steel, Inc. - represented Citibank as proposed exit lender
• Werner Holding Co. - represented Brencourt Advisors as first lien lender and acquirer

Also active in distressed asset purchases and sales, George represented the bidders, purchasers or prospective purchasers of substantially all the assets of the following chapter 11 debtors:

• Cable and Wireless plc
• FAO Schwarz
• Metalforming Technologies
• New Century Financial Corporation
• Pegasus Satellite Communications
• Scott Cable Communications
• Sterling Jewelers
• Steve & Barry's
• TLC Home Health Care
• USA Commercial Mortgage

An adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center, teaching Bankruptcy and Creditors' Rights, George is a frequent writer and speaker on restructuring topics and an active member of the Committee on Bankruptcy and Corporate Reorganizations of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York, the American Bankruptcy Institute and the Turnaround Management Association (TMA). George recently spoke on the panel, "The Success of the LyondellBasell Restructuring" at the TMA Houston Chapter meeting.

George received his B.S., magna cum laude, from the State University of New York - Binghamton, and his J.D., with distinction, from Hofstra University School of Law.