Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr.

Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr.

Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr., chair of the firm's Business Reorganization and Financial Restructuring Group, concentrates his practice in the areas of commercial litigation and creditors' rights.

He is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the American Bar Association and its Business Law Section, the Commercial Law League of America, the Pennsylvania Bar Association and the Business Law Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association. He is listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, 2006-2008 editions, as one of the top bankruptcy and restructuring lawyers in the country.

A 1981 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a graduate summa cum laude of Lehigh University, where he became a member of Phi Beta Kappa, Mr. Di Massa currently represents various secured and unsecured lenders in bankruptcy cases pending in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Southern District of New York, as well as a number of European companies doing business in the United States.

Areas Of Practice

· Bankruptcy Law

· Insolvency Law

· Chapter 11 and Commercial Reorganization

Representative Matters

· (A.S.K. Plastics, Inc.) - Represent turnaround consultant in litigation with debtor (malpractice and fraudulent transfer claims)

· (Annlick Farm Supply, Inc.) Successfully represented secured lender, Business Loan Express, an SBA lender, in bankruptcy case and in connection with claims of fraud brought against former shareholders (M.D. Pa.).

· (North Philadelphia Financial Partnership) Represented NPFP, a community lending institution formed for the purpose of lending funds to start-up businesses in North Philadelphia, in successful litigation regarding the purchase of senior bank debt, subsequent foreclosure sale and suits with various creditors.

· (Mondo Inc.) Represent Italian clothing manufacturer in connection with claims against US distributor. Case involved negotiating terms of Letter of Credit issued by client as well as pursuing claims of over $5 million.

· (BT Holdings NY, Inc.) Counsel to a secured creditor, an affiliate of Deutsche Bank, in the chapter 11 case of Front Line Capital Group, an office and conference space operator, in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

· (Reliance Group Holdings, Inc.) Represent various Fortune 500 defendants in insurance liquidation. The liquidator sued our clients to recover as preferences payments made pursuant to claims under a credit insurance policy with Reliance. Successful at the Commonwealth Court level, Mr. DiMassa recently argued to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

· (DVI, Inc.) Represented creditor as claimant in a bankruptcy case in Delaware and in connection with claims against the trustee of special purpose entity.

· (Federal-Mogul Global) Successfully represented Big 3 automakers in connection with a declaratory judgment action involving Bankruptcy Code Sections 105 and 524 (g) in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

· Representation of an individual with claims of over $20 million against other heirs in connection with a dispute arising from their proportionate interests. Have taken a security interest in a tribal art collection to settle the dispute and are currently seeking to foreclose on some or all of the collection.

· (Bank of New England) Successfully completed real estate workouts that resulted in the client/lender receiving deeds in lieu of foreclosure to properties it had financed.

· (BMW Financial Services) Representation of automotive lessor and retail financing lenders of a major German auto manufacturer in connection with dealer loans throughout the country for the acquisition and construction of dealerships, real estate loans to auto dealerships and revolving automotive floor plan and lease line documents.

Professional Activities

· American Bar Association
- Business Law Section

· American Bankruptcy Institute
- Board Member
- Former Co-Chair, Mid-Atlantic Conference

· Pennsylvania Bar Association

· Philadelphia Bar Association
- Business Law Section

· Eastern District of PA Bankruptcy Conference

· Commercial Law League of America

· Justinian Society

Experience

· Duane Morris LLP
- Chairman, Business Reorganization and Financial Restructuring Practice Group, 2001-present
- Partner, 1989-present
- Associate, 1981-1988

Board Memberships

· Advisory Board, Hudson United Bank

Civic and Charitable Activities

· Pro Bono Attorney, Support Center for Child Advocates, Philadelphia, PA

· Member of Board of Directors, Filitalia

· Volunteer Attorney, St. Thomas More Society

· Volunteer Attorney, Archdiocese of Philadelphia

· Former Chairman, United Way Campaign Committee, Duane Morris LLP

Honors and Awards Listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, the Client's Guide, 2006-2008 editions

· Listed in Continental Who's Who Registry of National Business Leaders, 2006 edition

Selected Publications

· Staff Writer, The Legal Intelligencer, December 2000 to present - Bankruptcy Update Article (approximately every six weeks)

· Co-author, "Court Imposes $650,000 in Sanctions on Lender, Servicer and Counsel," The Legal Intelligencer, June 6, 2008

· Co-author, "Bankruptcy Court Decides Indemnification Claims Against Debtors' Directors, Officers," The Legal Intelligencer, April 18, 2008

· Co-author, "Assumption and Assignment of IP License Agreements in Bankruptcy: Circuit Split Continues," ABI Journal, March 2008

· Co-author, "A Cautionary Tale: The Crime of Concealing Assets in Bankruptcy," The Legal Intelligencer, October 5, 2007

· Co-author, "A Split in the Circuits Over Assumption of an Executory Contract," The Legal Intelligencer, August 31, 2007

· Co-author, "Collateral Fractionalizing and the Risk of Hidden Interests," The Legal Intelligencer, April 13, 2007

· Co-author, "A Look at the 'Realist' Underpinnings Of the Uniform Commercial Code," The Legal Intelligencer, June 22, 2007

· Co-author, "Claim Traders Beware: When Equitable Subordination Applies," The Legal Intelligencer, January 6, 2006

· Co-author, "IRS Allowed to Offset Debtors' Tax Overpayment Against Unpaid Debt," The Legal Intelligencer, December 2, 2005

· Co-author, "Is the Insolvency Pendulum Swinging Back in the Lender's Favor?" The Legal Intelligencer, May 20, 2005

· Co-author, "Preliminary Injunction May Issue to Preserve Assets in Adversary Proceeding," The Legal Intelligencer, April 15, 2005

· Co-author, "Channeling injunction will not apply to nondebtors," The Legal Intelligencer, March 7, 2005

· Co-author, "Claim Sounding In Breach of Contract May Not Be An Unsecured Claim," The Legal Intelligencer, November 7, 2003

· Co-author, "Mickowski v. Visi-Trak Worldwide and Successor Liability," The Legal Intelligencer, August 27, 2004

· "Deepening Insolvency Concerns Secured Lenders in Bankruptcy," The Legal Intelligencer, October 3, 2003

· "Do Pre-Confirmation Real Estate Transfers Qualify for Tax Exemption?" The Legal Intelligencer, July 25, 2003

· "Creditor's Accounts Receivable Rights Upheld Security Interest Survives Dissolution of 'A Civil Action' Firm," New Jersey Law Journal, April 14, 2003

· "Interpretation Prohibits Cancellation Of FCC Licenses for Non Payment," The Legal Intelligencer, April 4, 2003

· Co-author, "Indemnifying Financial Adviser for Negligence Claim 'Reasonable'," The Legal Intelligencer, February 28, 2003

· "Bankruptcy Court May Enjoin Non-Consenting Creditors' Claims," The Legal Intelligencer, November, 8, 2002

· "Pre-Petition Employee 'Stay-on Benefits' Not Entitled to Administrative Priority," The Legal Intelligencer, October 4, 2002

· "Can Chapter 13 Debtors Modify Plans to Surrender Cars?" The Legal Intelligencer, August 23, 2002

· "9th Circuit: Some Attorneys Are Deluded," The Legal Intelligencer, July 19, 2002

· "Property Held in Trust and Commingled Funds," The Legal Intelligencer, March 29, 2002

· "11th Circuit Tackles Handling of Attorneys' Fees," The Legal Intelligencer, January 18, 2002

· "Latecomer Can't Reopen Closed Chapter 11 Case," The Legal Intelligencer, December 14, 2001

· "4th Circuit Approves Prepayment of Mortgages," The Legal Intelligencer, May 11, 2001

· "Debtor Obligated to Protect Assets Held in Escrow," The Legal Intelligencer, April 6, 2001

· "Court Gives Practitioners a Lesson on Rule 7004," The Legal Intelligencer, March 2, 2001

· "How Long is the Reach of Section 544(b) and UFTA Over Assets Transfers Between Husband, Wife?" The Legal Intelligencer, January 26, 2001

· "Does Bankruptcy Code Section 1329 Allow a Debtor to Modify a Chapter 13 Plan?" The Legal Intelligencer, December 15, 2000

Selected Speaking Engagements

· "Intellectual Property Issues in Bankruptcy," Eastern District of Pennsylvania Bankruptcy Conference, Reading, Pennsylvania, December 14, 1999

· "Commercial Lending Requirements and Loan Documentation in Pennsylvania," Lorman Education Services, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, October 23-24, 2001; October 23-24, 2002; October 23, 2003; October 28, 2004

· Universita degli Studi di Urbino, September 27-28, 2002, American Bankruptcy Overview

· "Intellectual Property Issues in Bankruptcy," Philadelphia Bar Association, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 30, 1999