Our Legal Insights Blog

In today's rapidly evolving markets, precise credit decisions have never been more critical. But here's the challenge: what happens when the fine print becomes your biggest obstacle? For many credit teams, legal covenants feel like navigating through dense complexity. They recognize these clauses are essential but lack the confidence to interpret them with certainty.

The market was buzzing this week over Urbaser’s inclusion of tariffs in their litany of add-backs to EBITDA, but the reality was actually worse than that for lenders. The provision was ultimately removed from the terms of the borrower’s debt, but its inclusion portends of future borrower flexibility – and wise lenders will prepare.

Liability Management Exercises (LMEs) have evolved from niche, back-pocket tools to headline-making market strategies in leveraged finance. But how did they get here, what’s happening now, and where is the market heading? Whether you're advising clients, reviewing documentation, or negotiating new deals, understanding the rise, risk, and reach of LMEs is critical to staying competitive and protected.

Welcome back to Part 2 of our series on the emerging developments in Co-ops and LMEs. In Part 1, we discussed the evolving landscape of European credit and the transformation of Cooperation Agreements (Co-ops). We covered the initial considerations when a Co-op agreement lands on your desk. Now, we shift our focus to how minority shareholders can navigate this new frontier, the debate around "Omni-Blockers," and address some key concerns.

The world of European credit is changing at a breakneck pace. With liability management exercises (LMEs) becoming more common and Co-operation Agreements (Co-ops) rapidly evolving, understanding the nuances of documentation is no longer just good practice – it's crucial for survival and success.

The rise in financial market volatility has put increasing pressure on finance professionals to make decisions quickly and efficiently. At the same time – and not a moment too soon – AI tools have opened the door to a paradigm shift in professional training, which FLT intends to deploy to meet the finance industry's legal and credit risk analysis needs.

In this week’s webinar, founder of Fox Legal Training, Sabrina Fox, and distressed debt specialist, Glenn Zahn, looked at practical tips to navigate covenant analysis in stressed and distressed scenarios with confidence. This sector keeps changing. Markets shift faster. But the fundamentals of analyzing troubled companies remain essential for making smart financial decisions.

While AI tools show remarkable potential in enhancing education, they will not replace the critical importance of human agency, decision-making and creative thinking. This is why Fox Legal Training will continue to deploy excellence in legal training whilst incorporating AI tools to support our legal upskilling resources. In this blog, we reveal our AI roadmap.