Slaughter and May has advised Cineworld in connection with its financial restructuring
Slaughter and May has advised Cineworld in connection with its financial restructuring, including the successful emergence of entities making up its US and UK and Irish businesses (together, the “Chapter 11 Companies”) from their Chapter 11 cases and the pre-packaged administration of Cineworld Group plc.
Cineworld is one of the largest cinema chains in the world, operating in 10 countries with 672 sites and 8,181 screens.
On 7 September 2022, Cineworld announced that the Chapter 11 Companies had commenced Chapter 11 cases in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas, Houston Division. The Chapter 11 Companies’ plan of reorganisation, which set out the terms of a debt-for-equity restructuring transaction agreed with an ad hoc group of Cineworld’s lenders, was confirmed by the Bankruptcy Court on 28 June 2023. The Chapter 11 Companies subsequently emerged from their Chapter 11 cases on 31 July 2023.
As part of the steps to implement Cineworld’s restructuring, a pre-packaged sale of the business and assets of Cineworld Group plc to a newly incorporated parent company owned and controlled by Cineworld’s lenders was implemented. In order to execute this sale, Simon Appell, Catherine Williamson and Ian Partridge of AlixPartners UK LLP were appointed as joint administrators of Cineworld Group plc on 31 July 2023, and are also being advised by Slaughter and May. Following the appointment of the joint administrators, Cineworld Group plc was delisted from the London Stock Exchange on 1 August 2023.
Slaughter and May has worked as part of an integrated team with Cineworld’s in-house legal team and Kirkland & Ellis LLP. PJT Partners, Inc. has acted as financial adviser to Cineworld in connection with the restructuring and AlixPartners LLP has acted as restructuring adviser. Ashurst LLP and Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP have acted as independent counsel to the Board of Cineworld Group plc (in relation to English and US law respectively).