Ian heads our Restructuring and Insolvency group and advises across the full spectrum of restructuring, refinancing and insolvency matters. He has significant experience advising companies (and their boards), lenders, investors and buyers on complex and international restructuring and distressed situations. Ian also frequently advises governments, central banks and insolvency practitioners.
Ian sits on the City of London Law Society’s Insolvency Committee and was included in The Lawyer’s Hot 100 in 2020. He is ranked in Chambers UK, 2022 which says that “he has particular strength in advising on high-value mandates” and that he is “a leading light, very experienced, very calm and very measured”. He is also listed as a “Leading Individual” by the Legal 500, 2022, and is a “Highly Regarded” practitioner in the IFLR 1000, 2022.
Highlights:
- Valaris plc, an industry leading offshore drilling service provider that operates one of the largest global fleets in the sector on its ongoing restructuring through Chapter 11. Approximately $7.1 billion of debt facilities were restructured under the matter and it represented a comprehensive financial restructuring.
- Seadrill Limited, one of the world’s largest oil contractors, on two comprehensive Chapter 11 restructurings which involved restructuring billions of dollars of bank and bond debt.
- Atlas Mara, the sub-Saharan African financial services group, on its strategic options and debt restructuring which included negotiations with multiple bilateral lenders, new money providers and convertible bondholders.
- Interserve plc, one of the world’s leading support services and construction groups, on the development and implementation of a deleveraging plan designed to reduce the group’s debt by approximately £485 million and provide £110 million of fresh liquidity.
- The Board of Thomas Cook Group plc, in connection with the proposed recapitalisation plan, the liquidation of Thomas Cook Group plc and the subsequent parliamentary inquiry.
- Credit Suisse, in relation to the financial restructuring of Danaos Corporation.
- Carillion, in relation to its restructuring efforts, as well as the Official Receiver and Special Managers (PwC) in connection with the sale of certain businesses.
- HM Treasury, the Central Bank of Cyprus, the Irish Government and the Portuguese Ministry of Finance in connection with the financial crisis and bank resolution and recapitalisation options.
- The administrators of CashEuroNet (Grant Thornton) in connection with all aspects of the administration process.
- The Wonga Group, which was previously the UK’s largest payday lender, on a potential restructuring before its entry into administration, and subsequently the administrators in relation to the conduct of the administration.
"Ian Johnson is immensely able. He is very bright and creative, calm under fire and unfailingly courteous. In addition, he is very good with clients and with fellow advisers, so he engenders trust and collaborative behaviour, which is very important in a restructuring." "He's a leading light, very experienced, very calm and very measured - his advice is spot on." "Ian is a tremendous performer and consummate professional who is never flustered." Chambers 2022
“The outstanding Ian Johnson is at the forefront of the new UK restructuring plan and the ability to use this in a number of different situations and circumstances.” Legal500 2022