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JANE KIM

Managing PARTNER
direct: 415.364.6793
email: jkim@kbkllp.com
EDUCATION:
  • Columbia College, Columbia University (B.A., cum laude, 1999)
  • Harvard Law School (J.D., cum laude, 2002)
ADMISSIONS:
  • California State; Northern and Central Districts of California (federal)
  • New York State; Southern and Eastern Districts of New York (federal)
BIOGRAPHY

Jane Kim is a partner at Keller Benvenutti Kim, a San Francisco-based corporate bankruptcy and restructuring boutique law firm, where she represents debtors in possession, distressed companies, and other parties, in both in-court and out-of-court situations.

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Jane's recent engagements include representing In-Shape Health Clubs, LLC, a premium regional fitness club chain in California, and Ravn Air Group, Inc., a regional airline in Alaska, in each of their chapter 11 cases filed in Delaware. Jane also serves as bankruptcy co-counsel for Pacific Gas & Electric Company in its chapter 11 case, the largest chapter 11 filing in the Northern District of California in over a decade, which emerged from bankruptcy in July 2020 through a confirmed, largely-consensual plan of reorganization.

 

Before moving to California and joining Keller Benvenutti Kim in 2014, Jane practiced in New York at the law firm Cleary Gottlieb for over a decade.

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Jane is a fellow in the American College of Bankruptcy and has been recognized as a leading lawyer by numerous publications and organizations including Chambers USA. She was named Lawyer of the Year in the 2023 edition of Best Lawyers and included on Global M&A Network’s Annual Top 100 Restructuring Professionals in 2022 and the Daily Journal’s list of Top Bankruptcy Lawyers of 2022. She is a frequent speaker on a wide range of bankruptcy-related subjects, including the intersection of bankruptcy and arbitration, mass torts bankruptcy cases, asset sales, and cross-border insolvency issues.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Keller Benvenutti Kim LLP

Partner

(2014 – present)

Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP
Associate
(2002 – 2014)
sPEAKING & WRITING engagements

  • Expert Webcast: Leading Women Dealmakers in Bankruptcy and Restructuring – Outlook for 2023 (May 2023) – virtual program

  • California Bankruptcy Forum, 35th Annual Insolvency Conference: Fold and Live to Fold Again: Perspectives on Mass Torts (May 2023) – Palm Springs, California

  • Top Ranked Legal May Newsletter: Bankruptcy Being Used (or, in the View of Some, Misused) to Resolve Mass Tort Litigation (May 2023) – [link to article]

  • American Bankruptcy Institute, Annual Spring Meeting: Non-Monetary Defaults (April 2023) – Washington D.C.

  • Federal Bar Association, Orange County Chapter: Civil Practice Seminar: Resolution of Mass Tort Liabilities (April 2023) – Costa Mesa, California  

  • American College of Bankruptcy and Temple University, 2023 Bankruptcy Forum: Mock Oral Arguments Based on the Purdue Pharma Case (January 2023) – Philadelphia, PA

  • Bar Association of San Francisco, Commercial Law and Bankruptcy Section; Bay Area Bankruptcy Forum: Recent Developments in Business Bankruptcy (November 2022) – San Francisco, California

  • National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges: The Role of International Courts and Forums in Insolvency Dispute Resolution – Past, Present, and Future (October 2022) – Orlando, Florida

  • International Association of Korean Lawyers: What Makes the U.S. Bankruptcy Code Such a Powerful Tool, Why Should Korean Companies Care, and How Can You Maximize its Benefits for Your Client? (October 2022) – Los Angeles, California

  • ADR Services, INC.: Navigating Bankruptcy Without Sinking the Ship (July 2022) – virtual program

  • "Fifth Circuit in CJ Holding Declines to Find 'Excusable Neglect'," American Bankruptcy Institute Journal (July 2022) (co-authored)

  • American Bankruptcy Institute, Spring Meeting: So We Own a Plane in Mexico: Asset Recovery and Cross-Border Insolvency (April 2022) – Washing, DC

  • American Bankruptcy Institute, Battleground West: Mass Tort Bankruptcies in Review (March 2022) – Los Angeles

  • National Asian Pacific American Bar Association: No Releases for You! Purdue Pharma, the 'Texas two-step' and other recent developments in managing mass tort liabilities (March 2022) – virtual program

  • National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges: Pickin’ Up the Pieces – The Collision Between Arbitration and Bankruptcy (October 2021) – Indianapolis, Indiana

  • Bar Association of San Francisco, Commercial Law & Bankruptcy Section: The Automatic Stay – Advanced Topics (September 2021) – virtual program

  • AIRA, 37th Annual Bankruptcy & Restructuring Conference: Wildfires and the Future of Winemaking in California (July 2021) – virtual program

  • American Bar Association, Business Law Section Annual Meeting: Buying Assets in a 363 Sale for the M&A Generalist (September 2020) – virtual conference

  • The Bar Association of San Francisco: Rules of Engagement: Conflicts, Ethics and Bankruptcy (January 2020) – San Francisco, California

  • American Bankruptcy Institute, Winter Leadership Conference: The Intersection of the Federal Arbitration Act and Bankruptcy (December 2019) – Rancho Palos Verdes, California

  • National Asian Pacific American Bar Association National Convention: Perspectives on Crisis Management (November 2019) – Austin, Texas

  • Bay Area Bankruptcy Judges’ Conference: Ethical Issues in Chapter 11 (September 2019) – San Francisco, California

  • Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference: Bankruptcy Issues Spawned by the Supreme Court’s Recent Arbitration Decisions (July 2019) – Spokane, Washington

  • Select Counsel CLE Presentation: Standing Guard – Protecting Privilege and Work Product (October 2018) – webinar

  • International Association of Korean Lawyers, 2018 Annual Conference: Comparative Review of Pre-Packaged Restructurings in Korea, US, UK and Canada (September 2018) – Atlanta, Georgia

  • Select Counsel CLE Presentation: What GCs Need to Know About Vendor, Customer and Competitor Bankruptcies (May 2018) – webinar

  • National Asian Pacific American Bar Association National Convention: Wheel of Misfortune: Dealing with Financially Distressed Tech Companies (November 2017) – Washington, D.C.

  • Bar Association of San Francisco: Bankruptcy Basics for Booming Businesses (September 2017) – San Francisco, California

  • “Bankruptcy Basics for Booming Businesses,” California Business Law Practitioner (Summer 2018) (co-author with J. Hayes)

organizations & groups
  • American College of Bankruptcy, DEI Committee, External Subcommittee Chair (present)
  • National Asian Pacific American Bar Association, Bankruptcy and Restructuring Committee Co-Chair (present)
  • Northern District of California, Lawyer Representative (present)
  • National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges, Education Committee (2020)
  • International Women’s Insolvency & Restructuring Confederation (Northern California Network), Secretary (2018-2020)
  • Minority Bar Exchange, Member (present)
Awards & Honors
REPRESENTATIVE ENGAGEMENTS

  • Speedboat JV Partners, LLC, USBC, N.D. Cal. (2022) – represented debtor in refinancing debt on Lake Tahoe property worth over $12 million, successfully opposing chapter 7 foreclosure sale, and obtaining dismissal of chapter 7 case.

  • Confidential Technology Company, Out of Court (2022) – counsel to technology company in acquisition of business in friendly foreclosure.

  • Confidential E-Commerce Company, Out of Court (2022) – counsel to assignee in assignment for the benefit of creditors in negotiating sale of business, intellectual property, and other assets.

  • In-Shape Holdings, LLC, et al., USBC, D. Del. (2020-present) – lead debtors’ counsel for premium regional fitness club chain in California, with debtor-in-possession filing and asset purchase agreement with purchase price of over $45 million plus assumption of liabilities.

  • Ravn Air Group, Inc., USBC, D. Del. (2020) – debtors’ counsel for Alaska’s largest commuter airline in its chapter 11 case, resulting in a confirmed liquidating plan and the sale of different business lines and assets in over a dozen transactions, resulting in anticipated aggregate proceeds of over $60 million.

  • Imperial Toy LLC, USBC, N.D. Cal. (2020) – represented DIP lender/stalking horse bidder in negotiating debtor-in-possession financing.

  • Pacific Gas & Electric Company, USBC, N.D. Cal. (2019-present) – co-counsel for debtors in chapter 11 case of $71 billion public utility employing over 24,000 employees and servicing 16 million customers.

  • JadooTV, Inc., USBC, N.D. Cal. (2019-present) – lead debtor’s counsel for internet protocol TV provider focused on South Asian and Middle Eastern content.

  • Confidential Vehicle Manufacturer, Out of Court (2018-present) – lead counsel to assignee in assignment for the benefit of creditors in negotiating sale of intellectual property and other assets.

  • Confidential Nutritional Supplement Manufacturer, Out of Court (2018-2019) – lead counsel to nutritional supplement manufacturer in negotiating and closing sale of business.

  • Confidential Software Company, Out of Court (2017-2018) – counsel to venture-backed software company in negotiating its wind-down budget, wind-down financing package, and terms of a “friendly foreclosure” to first lien lender.

  • New Cal-Neva Lodge, LLC, USBC, D. Nev. (2016-2018) – debtor’s counsel for historic casino and resort in chapter 11 case involving sale of resort and confirmation of plan.

  • Delivery Agent, Inc. et al., USBC, D. Del. (2016-2017) – debtor’s counsel for e-commerce company chapter 11 case involving divestiture of one business and sale of the core business to venture lender after auction.

  • Stemcells, Inc., Out of Court (2016) – represented publicly-traded biotechnology company in wind-down negotiations and coordination of reverse merger (securities work performed by associated firm).

  • In re Fisker Automotive, USBC, D. Del. (2014-present) – represent Hybrid Technologies, LLC as senior secured lender in post-confirmation claims resolution and class action litigation brought by former employees.

  • In re Nortel Networks, Inc., USBC, D. Del. (2009-2014) – represented U.S. debtors in multi-billion dollar cross-border insolvency through multiple sales.

  • Lehman Brothers (2008) – advised the Federal Reserve System in preparation for Lehman Brothers’ bankruptcy filing

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* Other representations available upon request.

Speaking & Writing
Professional Experience
Organizations & Groups
Awards & Honors
Representative Engagements
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