Texas Financial Restructuring & Recovery Attorney

01

Restructuring is a strategic decision, not a last resort.

Most business owners who reach financial-restructuring counsel have been carrying pressure for months — sometimes years — before seeking counsel. In many of those cases, an earlier conversation would have opened structural options that were no longer available by the time the client called. Chapter 11 is not a failure; it is a tool for preserving a viable underlying business while resetting the debt and contract stack around it. Subchapter V, added to the Bankruptcy Code in 2020, has made small-business reorganization dramatically more accessible. Out-of-court workouts often achieve most of the benefit of a formal proceeding at a fraction of the cost. The right tool depends on the facts.

02

The paths we handle.

Financial restructuring is not one path. It is a spectrum of tools, chosen based on the business's viability, creditor composition, and the owner's goals.

• ›Chapter 7 (Liquidation) — for individuals seeking a fresh start, and for business entities that are not viable as going concerns and need an orderly liquidation under trustee supervision
• ›Chapter 11 (Reorganization) — for businesses with a viable underlying operation that needs a formal reset of debt, executory contracts, leases, and equity structure
• ›Subchapter V of Chapter 11 — a streamlined small-business reorganization (available to businesses under the periodically-adjusted debt cap) with faster timelines, no U.S. Trustee committee, and easier confirmation than traditional Chapter 11
• ›Out-of-Court Workouts — negotiated forbearance, debt modification, and creditor arrangements that avoid a formal filing
• ›Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors (ABC) — an orderly, state-law wind-down that often preserves more value than a Chapter 7 for certain businesses
• ›Article 9 sales — for asset transfers from a distressed company to a going-concern buyer

03

What a Chapter 11 engagement includes.

A Chapter 11 reorganization is a substantial engagement. Our role covers the strategic, legal, and coordination layers.

• ›Pre-filing strategy — evaluating whether Chapter 11, Subchapter V, or out-of-court workout is the right path
• ›First-day motions — securing the ability to continue operations (cash collateral, critical vendors, employee wages, insurance, banking)
• ›Debtor-in-possession financing negotiation, where required
• ›Assumption or rejection of executory contracts and unexpired leases
• ›Development of a Plan of Reorganization and Disclosure Statement
• ›Creditor negotiation with secured lenders, trade creditors, and any unsecured creditors' committee
• ›Confirmation hearing and post-confirmation implementation
• ›Coordination with the company's CPA on tax attributes (NOLs, cancellation-of-debt income, § 108 exclusions)

04

For individuals — Chapter 7 or Chapter 13.

For individuals overwhelmed by unsecured debt (medical bills, credit cards, personal guarantees on failed businesses), Chapter 7 remains the primary tool for a legal fresh start. Chapter 13 provides a court-supervised repayment plan when the individual has regular income and wants to preserve assets that Chapter 7 might liquidate. Both proceedings require pre-filing counseling, careful preparation of schedules, and coordination with any related business-entity restructuring. We handle individual bankruptcy for clients whose facts warrant it — and we decline engagements where bankruptcy is not the correct answer.

05

Why an Attorney + CPA matters in restructuring.

Financial restructuring is a tax event. Cancellation of debt income (CODI) under Section 61(a)(11), the § 108 exclusion for bankruptcy debt, net operating loss preservation under § 382, S-corporation-to-C-corporation implications, and the tax posture of the reorganized entity are all decisions that determine whether the client emerges into a viable financial future or a fresh tax problem. Because Darryl is a Certified Public Accountant as well as an attorney, the tax dimension of every restructuring decision is analyzed alongside the legal dimension in real time — not deferred to a post-emergence conversation with a separate tax advisor.