Happy Saturday, and welcome to a special edition of CEO Speaks for Saturday, July 15th, 2023, today sponsored by TMA Year Round Elevation partner Gordon Brothers.
This year, TMA celebrates its 35th Anniversary. As part of the year-long festivities marking this momentous occasion, we will honor our 4th class of industry luminaries who will be inducted into the TMA Hall of Fame at TMA Annual, to be held in San Francisco, CA, October 3-6th.
The TMA Turnaround, Restructuring and Distressed Investing Hall of Fame was created in 2008, as TMA celebrated its 20th anniversary year, to honor those whose outstanding individual contributions have made a lasting positive impact on an industry dedicated to stabilizing underperforming companies, rebuilding corporate value, and retaining jobs.
This year the TMA Hall of Fame committee, chaired by TMA Global Chair Jane Mitnick along with committee members TMA Global Secretary Sally Barton, former TMA Global chairs David Cohen and Mark Indelicato, former TMA Philadelphia/Wilmington President and Global leader Rob Katz and TMA 2018 Hall Fame inductee Bill Henrich, were charged with selecting five stand out industry professionals to receive the great honor of induction into the 2023 TMA Hall of Fame.
In a year with a record number of nominations for this coveted honor, it was no easy task for this committee to choose five stand-out inductees from a group of so many professionals who exemplify industry excellence, all in their own right, worthy leaders and industry stalwarts.
Thank you to this committee of TMA leaders and luminaries, who, over several months, worked tirelessly to discuss, debate, and create the stand-out class of professionals we will honor this fall.
And now, I present to all of you the 2023 TMA Hall of Fame Inductees.
Jay Goffman is currently the client chair of Teneo, practiced restructuring law for 37 years, the final 24 of which were as a partner and Global Head of the Corporate Restructuring Department at Skadden Arps. Jay is widely recognized as the godfather of pre-packs, having invented and then pioneered the use of pre-packed restructurings. Jay further stands out for his charitable work with the China Institute and Cerebral Palsy Alliance Research Foundation. He is currently on the board of the Third Option Foundation, which aids in the healing, helping, and honoring of the CIA’s special operations community and families.
Kelley Cornish, the first-ever female partner in Paul Weiss’ pre-eminent Restructuring Department, is an industry trailblazer, consistently recognized amongst the nation’s leading restructuring attorneys. As one of the few women nationwide leading major public and private company restructurings, Kelley has consistently attracted brand-name clients who rely on her skill and finesse to navigate some of the most complex bankruptcy issues of our time. Kelly is a fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and was appointed as an inaugural member of its 2021 Commission on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. A highly respected DE&I leader, Kelley is a dedicated advocate of the LGBTQ+ community and for women’s advancement and women’s welfare.
Laura Davis Jones, who many call a pillar of the restructuring community for several decades, started her career as a judicial law clerk in the Bankruptcy Court in the District of Delaware. Laura quickly rose to the top ranks of our profession, gaining immediate notoriety early in her career as debtors counsel for Continental Airlines. Laura is well known as a fierce advocate, entrepreneurial in the managing and building of Pachulski Stang Ziegler & Jones’s practice, and mentor to many over the course of her illustrious career. Laura was recently recognized by Tina’s Wish for her support of that organization’s mission to raise critical research funds for early detection and prevention of ovarian cancer.
William Snyder, Founding Partner at CR3 Partners LLC. A TMA Certified Turnaround Professional, William has stood for exemplary industry excellence, having started his career in 1989 when he joined Buccino and Associates. An active TMA member and advocate, William is an industry-leading mentor to many. He has many notable career highlights as a CRO, including serving in that role in the Texas Rangers baseball team’s bankruptcy and Pilgrim’s pride restructuring showing Willliam’s professional agility and diversity that has become an example for others to follow.
And lastly, as part of this year’s TMA Hall of Fame Class, Al Togut, known as a “dean” of the bankruptcy bar and one of the luminaries of our industry, having practiced for the last 45 years, and having served as counsel to debtors, official committees of unsecured creditors, and principal owners of some of the largest and most high profile chapter 11 cases ever filed. Al is a fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy and International Insolvency Institute as well as having served on numerous industry commissions and task forces, a testament to how he has been an integral part of the evolution of the corporate restructuring industry for a generation.
Please join me in congratulating these five industry luminaries, each of whom has made a difference in so many defining ways, setting the example for industry excellence and for lighting the way forward for the next generation of professionals who will follow in their footsteps.
We are better together for the work they have done, the efforts they have advanced for diversity and inclusion, and for the example they will now always stand for as inductees in the 2023 TMA Turnaround, Restructuring and Distressed Investing Hall of Fame.
I hope you will join me in personally congratulating these outstanding honorees at their gala induction ceremony and celebration, graciously sponsored by Gordon Brothers, which will be held at TMA Annual at the San Fransisco Fairmont Hotel on October 5th.
The road to TMA Tomorrow is paved by these stand out members of our profession who are truly trailblazers in every imaginable way. We at TMA are grateful for what they stand for, having paved the way and lighting the way forward for the example they set professionally and personally.
Congratulations, Jay, Kelley, Laura, Willam, and Al. You stand for what it means to be better together and TMA proud.
As always, thanks for taking the time to listen today. In that one connection that is you, your input is critical, your contributions paramount, and your engagement is the foundation that will create a better TMA for all our members.
Thanks again to Gordon Brothers for sponsoring this week’s CEO Speaks. For information about further CEO Speaks sponsorship opportunities, contact Team TMA Director of Sponsorships & Business Development Scott Zeller.
Until next time, I’m Scott Stuart. Be safe, resilient, and TMA Proud.