10 lawyers who navigated the biggest bankruptcies in history are set for a huge boom in business as the coronavirus fuels a restructuring surge

• As the novel coronavirus sweeps the globe, it will fall on a cadre of elite attorneys at the nation's top law firms to help guide companies through an unprecedented hit to revenue.
• Restructuring and bankruptcy attorneys are working around the clock to field calls from clients.
• Outside of being the go-to advisors to help corporate execs through this turmoil, these attorneys represent a bright spot in an otherwise grim picture in their own profession.
• Business Insider identified 10 restructuring and bankruptcy lawyers to keep tabs on as the business landscape shifts dramatically in 2020.
• These attorneys have played leading roles on everything from the Detroit bankruptcy, to Toys R Us, to Lehman Brothers.
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As the novel coronavirus sweeps the globe, it will fall on a cadre of elite attorneys at the nation's top law firms to help guide companies through an unprecedented hit to revenue.

Restructuring and bankruptcy attorneys are working around the clock to field calls from clients about loan covenants, payment obligations to creditors and - in some instances - the prospect of filing for bankruptcy.

Outside of being the go-to advisors to help corporate executives through this turmoil, these attorneys represent a bright spot in an otherwise grim picture in their own profession, with law firms considering pay cuts and staff reductions as clients push back on fees in other areas of legal work.

"Clients are now in cash-flow crunch and are pushing back on paying invoices until Q3," said Heidi Gardner, a lecturer at Harvard Law School and advisor to law firms. But, she said, "I don't think they are cutting legal spend in areas that are mission critical."

Business Insider, based on talks with attorneys, consultants, and recruiters, along with a review of some of the largest bankruptcies over the past decade, identified 10 restructuring and bankruptcy lawyers to keep tabs on as the business landscape shifts dramatically in 2020.

These attorneys have played leading roles on everything from the Detroit bankruptcy, to Toys R Us, to Lehman Brothers.

For matters that wind up in Chapter 11 court proceedings, the fees they charge are lucrative. The federal government has called on firms to provide more transparency into their billing practices.

Weil Gotshal, for instance, earned as much as $399 million for its work handling the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy, while Detroit's bankruptcy cost the city $178 million in fees and expenses for teams of lawyers and consultants, with the top biller being Jones Day.

We don't yet know what kinds of profits the coronavirus will heap on firms like Jones Day in the coming years, but we do know restructuring is already becoming a busy field and coronavirus has yet to reach its peak in the United States.

"The number of new distressed matters rivals 2008," said Rachel Strickland, the co-chair of the restructuring practice at Willkie Farr & Gallagher. "The onset of new matters due to COVID-19 has been much, much faster."

Susheel Kirpalani, the head of Quinn Emanuel's bankruptcy practice, said that a wave of bankruptcies and restructurings will hit a variety of sectors, including all consumer facing sectors with high fixed costs.

"I don't think it will be focused on any particular industry," he said. "It will be the weakest in every industry."

Here to sort it all out are the 10 attorneys who sources tell us will be at the center of the action going forward, and a sampling of some of their most high-profile past work. Representations listed include both creditors and debtors as clients.

Read more: Restructuring bankers are suddenly Wall Street's hot commodity as they're getting swamped with calls from clients facing a cash crunch

Read more:'All hands on deck': Restructuring lawyers say a sudden collapse of revenues is accelerating work with the retail and energy sectors

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