Richard E. Mikels

Mr. Mikels has extensive experience in commercial law, workouts, and reorganizations. He is known for representing significant debtor companies (both in chapter 11 and in out-of-court workouts), but also represents creditors' committees, boards of directors, insurance companies, hedge funds, claims traders, and acquirers of businesses.

Mr. Mikels served as an adjunct professor at Boston University School of Law for nine years. He has been listed in Chambers USA since 2003, Best Lawyers in America for Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law and Litigation - Bankruptcy since 1983, and Massachusetts Super Lawyers since 2004. Best Lawyers named him Bankruptcy and Creditor-Debtor Rights Lawyer of the Year in 2010 and Bankruptcy Lawyer of the Year in 2013. In 2004, Boston University awarded Mr. Mikels the Silver Shingle Award for Distinguished Service to the School of Law. He also holds an AV Preeminent Peer Rating, Martindale-Hubbell's highest rating for ethical standards and legal ability. He has been ranked as a star performer in Chambers for Massachusetts from 2008 through 2016, and is currently listed in New York and nationally.

Chambers comments:

•2017: Richard Mikels . . . has a wealth of experience representing clients in complex in-court and out-of-court bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings. Interviewees describe him as a 'very talented' lawyer and draw attention to his 'sheer ability and experience.'
•2016: '. . .a leader, not only of the Boston bar, but also of the national bankruptcy bar. . . . He is a true star and an outstanding lawyer.'
•2015: 'a dynamic individual' and 'a really fine lawyer.'
•2014: '[D]ean of the bankruptcy bar,'. . . considered 'the gold standard in the market. He is highly regarded for his reputation in a range of organizations, notably large debtor companies, in out-of-court workouts and Chapter 11 cases.'
•2013: Star individual Richard Mikels is a revered practitioner with a name for debtor representation in complex restructurings. Clients speak at length about his calming presence during negotiations and his pragmatism, saying 'He has a unique ability to identify issues that should be negotiated as opposed to hard fought and he always finds a good compromise. He has the respect of everybody that he deals with.'

Mr. Mikels earned his B.S.and his J.D. at Boston University.

Programs and Lectures

American Bankruptcy Institute, American Bar Association Business Law Section, Southeastern Bankruptcy Law Institute, the Wharton School, National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, Boston Bar Association, Turnaround Management Association, Commercial Law League of America, West LegaEdcenter, Boston University School of Law

Events

•The Honorable James F. Queenan, Jr. Seaside Chat
26th Annual ABI Northeast Bankruptcy Conference
Newport RI, July 13, 2019
•Hot Topics in Valuation
Association of Insolvency & Restructuring Advisors 35th Annual Bankruptcy & Restructuring Conference
Boston, June 7, 2019
•Healthcare Consolidation and Collaboration-Who Will Be the Winners and Who Will Be the Losers? Managing Constituents in the Face of Industry Disruption and Change
Association of Insolvency & Restructuring Advisors 35th Annual Bankruptcy & Restructuring Conference
Boston, June 7, 2019
•Ninth Annual Forty-Hour Bankruptcy Mediation Training
American Bankruptcy Institute
New York, December 9, 2018
•Current Trends and Developments in Both Crossborder Cases and Municipal Insolvency Matters: A Guide for Distressed Investors
25th Annual Distressed Investing Conference
New York, November 26, 2018
•Litigation Funding in the Bankruptcy Space
American Bankruptcy Institute 12th Annual Credit & Bankruptcy Symposium
Uncasville CT, April 27, 2018
•Professional Bankruptcy Mediators: A Real World View
American Bankruptcy Institute Annual 44-Hour Bankruptcy Meidation Training
New York, December 4, 2017
•Evaluating Competing Alternatives
American Bankruptcy Institute 14th Annual Complex Financial Restructuring Program
Philadelphia, November 2, 2017
•Harborside Chat
24th Annual American Bankruptcy Institute Northeastern Conference
Newport RI, July 22, 2017
•Fifth Annual Forty-Hour Bankruptcy Mediation Training
New York, December 11, 2016
•Mediating Valuation, Intercreditor and Other Issues Affecting Secured Creditors in Bankruptcy
2016 American Bankruptcy Institute Winter Leadership Program
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, December 2, 2016
•“There Must Be Some Other Way Out of Here” - Auctions, Plans, Conversions, (Structured) Dismissals
ABI 13th Annual Complex Financial Restructuring Program
Philadelphia, November 10, 2016
•Where Has Our Business Gone? - Alternatives to Chapter 11
90th Annual National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges
San Francisco, October 28, 2016

News

•Interview with Rick Mikels
A Student Who Became a Mediator, Proud Supporter, and Former Chair of Your Mediation Committee
September 13, 2019
•PSZJ Attorneys Named in Best Lawyers in America
August 15, 2019
•Prestigious Chambers Guides Again Rank PSZJ Among Leading Law Firms
April 25, 2019
•PSZJ Attorneys Named in Best Lawyers in America
August 15, 2018
•Prestigious Chambers Guides Again Rank PSZJ Among the Best Law Firms
May 7, 2018
•Thirty-Five PSZJ Attorneys Named Best Lawyers in America
August 15, 2017
•Prestigious Chambers Guides Again Rank PSZJ Among the Best Law Firms
June 8, 2017
•American College of Bankruptcy Chair of the Board of Regents Richard E. Mikels Joins Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones LLP
October 2016

Publications

•Coauthor, Revel: To Stay or Not to Stay? Third Circuit Reveals the Answer, 35 ABI Journal 12 (Jan. 2016)
•Coauthor, ABI Mediation Committee's Model Guidelines for Mediation, 34 ABI Journal 24 (April 2015)
•Coauthor, Should Bankruptcy Waivers Be Enforceable? 33 ABI Journal 12 (Dec. 2014)
•Coauthor, Is Possession a Requirement for Turnover? 32 ABI Journal 34 (April 2013)
•Coauthor, Can a Counterparty to an Executory Contract Perform Preassumption? 31 ABI Journal 28 (May 2012)
•Coauthor, Bankruptcy's Impact on Financial Markets, 30 ABI Journal 10 (Dec./Jan. 2011)
•Coauthor, Chrysler Reflects Modern Reorganization Practice, 29 ABI Journal 10 (Dec Jan 2010)