Attorney Profile
Joel I. Sher is Chairman of Shapiro Sher and heads the firm’s financial restructuring and bankruptcy practice. He provides counsel and representation to debtors, creditors, investors, and creditors’ committees in Chapter 11 bankruptcy cases and counsels clients in complex out-of-court restructurings. He has been described as “a wonderful attorney…very effective, very smart, knowledgeable and experienced,” and possessing a “formidable track record in corporate restructurings, creditors’ rights mandates, and bankruptcy litigation.” Mr. Sher has successfully represented clients in numerous high-stakes litigation matters in federal and state courts throughout the United States resulting in millions of dollars in recoveries for his clients.
Mr. Sher’s experience in representing clients in sophisticated restructurings, litigation and bankruptcies has covered a wide array of industries including commercial real estate, shopping centers, general and specialty retail, hotels, mortgage REITS, financial services, health care, real estate development, construction management, governmental contracting, manufacturing, and telecommunications. He has also represented numerous clients in the sale and acquisition of distressed assets. A trusted advisor, Mr. Sher also serves as personal advisor to a number of clients providing advice and counsel with respect to business and legal matters.
Most recently, Mr. Sher served as the Chapter 11 Trustee for TMST, Inc. (formerly known as Thornburg Mortgage, Inc.), a multi-billion-dollar REIT which was one of the nation's largest residential mortgage originator, servicer, and investor. Among other things, Mr. Sher supervised and sold the company’s mortgage servicing platform, directed litigation against various repo counterparties and confirmed a plan of liquidation resulting in a significant distribution to creditors. Mr. Sher has also been appointed as an operating trustee and liquidating agent for numerous businesses, including: a developer of real estate and business interests in Europe and Australia; a government contractor for the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA; a national bottling company; and a variety of food and hospitality businesses.
Notable Representations
- Counsel in a series of litigation matters brought against eight of the largest investment banks arising from the TMST, Inc. case concerning, among other things, the liquidation of mortgage-backed securities, resulting in over $115 million in settlement payments and the waiver of over $2.5 billion in claims against the TMST, Inc. estate;
- Counsel to Creative Hairdresser’s Inc., a Chapter 11 case involving the 800 store Hair Cuttery chain;
- Counsel to a beneficiary of the trust at issue in the Dauman v. Sumner Redstone litigation concerning the Redstone family holdings in CBS and Viacom;
- Counsel to investors in the acquisition of distressed assets from the Toys R US bankruptcy cases.
- Counsel to Novation Companies, Inc., f/k/a NovaStar Financial, Inc. in its successful Chapter 11 reorganization;
- Counsel to Fieldstone Mortgage Company, a mortgage originator that emerged as an operating entity from its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case;
- Counsel to Luminent Mortgage Capital, Inc., a mortgage investor in its successful Chapter 11 case;
- Counsel to the Bankruptcy Trustee in the case of Merry-Go-Round Enterprises, Inc., a 1400-store national retail chain;
- Counsel to the Bankruptcy Trustee in the case of Just For Feet, Inc., a 300-store national retail chain;
- Counsel to Pharmakinetics, a generic drug testing company in its successful Chapter 11 reorganization;
- Counsel to Combined Properties, a Washington, D.C. real estate firm with a diversified portfolio of shopping centers, in its successful Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization;
- Counsel to the Bond Holders Committee in the case of National Energy & Gas Transmission, a merchant energy producer and subsidiary of PG&E;
- Counsel to the Creditors Committee in Sunterra Corporation, one of the world's largest timeshare companies;
- Counsel to the Creditors Committee in Frank's Nursery and Crafts, Inc., a retail nursery and garden store chain;
- Counsel to the Creditors Committee in PhyAmerica Physicians Group, Inc., a national physician practice management company;
- Counsel to the Creditors Committee in Railworks Corporation, a supplier to and servicer of the railroad industry; and
- Counsel to a regional developer and home builder in its successful Chapter 11 reorganization.
Affiliations
- Member, Past Chair, Baltimore Chapter of the Bankruptcy Bar Association of Maryland
- Member, Maryland State Bar Association
- Member, Baltimore City Bar Association
- Member, Baltimore County Bar Association
- Member, Association for Commercial Finance Attorneys
- Member, American Bankruptcy Institute
- Member, Commercial Law League of America
News & Publications
Barclays Capital, Inc., offers to pay $23 million to settle claims brought by Joel I. Sher, the court-appointed trustee overseeing the liquidation of TMST, Inc., formerly known as Thornburg Mortgage.
Barclays Capital's motion for summary judgement was denied by the US District Court in Maryland, in litigation brought against Barclays by TMST trustee and Shapiro Sher partner, Joel I. Sher. Law360 reported on this latest development in the long-running case.
The Baltimore Sun interviews Shapiro Sher partner Joel I. Sher
Bloomberg, Dow Jones, Law360 and other media report on a significant development in the Thornburg Mortgage bankruptcy case.
The Deal Magazine quotes Shapiro Sher' partner Joel I. Sher in an article.
Media outlets report on Shapiro Sher partner Joel I. Sher, in his role as U.S. Trustee for Thornburg Mortgage.