Robert M. Saunders is a restructuring, bankruptcy, and distressed transactions attorney in the Los Angeles office of Pachulski Stang Ziehl & Jones LLP. He advises debtors, creditors’ committees, assignees, private equity firms, portfolio companies, lenders, strategic buyers, and other stakeholders in chapter 11 cases, assignments for the benefit of creditors (ABCs), distressed acquisitions, cross-border restructurings, and other special situations matters throughout the United States and in matters with international dimensions.
Rob has served in leading roles in significant restructuring matters, including representing the chapter 11 debtor investment manager Highland Capital Management L.P. and the tort claimants’ committee for abuse survivors in the Boy Scouts of America chapter 11 case. He initiated and helped lead the representation of JRV Group USA, an aftermarket Jeep modifier, in its chapter 11 case and in negotiations with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration concerning an automotive recall. He also served as a principal attorney for paper manufacturer Plainwell in its chapter 11 case, handling complex negotiations with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency involving a Superfund site and successfully arguing for plan confirmation over a former site owner’s objection.
Rob is also widely recognized for his work in ABCs, distressed transactions, and governance-sensitive matters. He has substantial experience representing assignees and acquirers in state-law ABCs and serves as an advisor to the Uniform Law Commission’s drafting committee for the Uniform Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors Act. He is co-author of “General Assignments for the Benefit of Creditors: The ABCs of ABCs” (6th Edition), published by the American Bankruptcy Institute, and he holds the NACD Directorship Certification (NACD.DC), reflecting his experience in board-level and distress-related governance issues.
He has held numerous leadership roles in the Turnaround Management Association, including serving as 2023 President of TMA Southern California and later as Vice Chair and Chair of TMA Global’s Chapter Presidents Council. He currently serves as TMA Global’s Vice President, International Relations, and also serves on TMA Global’s Executive Board, Board of Trustees, and Governance Committee, having previously served on its Nominations Committee. Rob is also Secretary and a member of the Board of Governors of the Financial Lawyers Conference, and a board member of the Los Angeles Bankruptcy Forum. He was named the 2023 Lawyer of the Year in Litigation-Bankruptcy for Los Angeles by “Best Lawyers in America”, and has also been recognized as a Southern California Super Lawyer and as one of Lawdragon's top “500 Leading Global Bankruptcy and Restructuring Lawyers”. Rob earned a B.A. in Economics from the State University of New York at Buffalo and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School, and is admitted to practice in California, New York, and Florida.
Publications
•General Assignments for the Benefit of Creditors: The ABCs of ABCs (6th Edition), April 2025
•GP-led Secondary Fund Restructurings: Considerations for Limited and General Partners, April 2019
News
Rob Saunders Appointed VP International Relations on the 2026 Turnaround Management Association (TMA) Executive Board
December 16, 2025
Eighteen PSZJ Attorneys Named to the Lawdragon '500 Leading Global Bankruptcy & Restructuring Lawyers' Guide for 2025
LawdragonJune 27, 2025
Rob Saunders to Become Chair of TMA's Chapter Presidents Council for 2025
November 12, 2024
PSZJ Attorneys Named in 2025 Edition of Best Lawyers in America and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch
August 15, 2024
Eighteen PSZJ Attorneys Named to the Lawdragon 500 Leading Global Bankruptcy & Restructuring Lawyers for 2024
LawdragonJune 14, 2024
Robert M. Saunders Elected to TMA Global's Leadership Nominations Committee
May 15, 2024
Nineteen PSZJ Attorneys Named to 2024 Southern California “Super Lawyers” List
January 10, 2024
Rob Saunders Elected Vice Chair of TMA's Chapter Presidents Council
October 1, 2023
PSZJ Attorneys Named in 2024 Edition of Best Lawyers in America
August 17, 2023
Eighteen PSZJ Attorneys Named to the Lawdragon 500 Leading Bankruptcy & Restructuring Lawyers for 2023
LawdragonJune 16, 2023
Eighteen PSZJ Attorneys Named to 2023 Southern California’s “Super Lawyers” List
January 1, 2023
Robert Saunders Elected 2023 President of TMA SoCal
December 5, 2022
PSZJ Attorneys Named in 2023 Edition of Best Lawyers in America
August 18, 2022
James Stang and Robert Saunders Named 'Lawyers of the Year” in 2023 Edition of Best Lawyers in America
August 18, 2022
Seventeen PSZJ Attorneys Named to 2022 Southern California’s “Super Lawyers” List
January 20, 2022
PSZJ Attorneys Named in 2022 Edition of Best Lawyers in America
August 19, 2021
Nineteen PSZJ Attorneys Named 2021 Southern California “Super Lawyers”
January 1, 2021
PSZJ Attorneys Named in 2021 Edition of Best Lawyers in America
August 20, 2020
Twenty-One PSZJ Attorneys Named 2020 Southern California “Super Lawyers”
January 15, 2020
PSZJ Attorneys Named in Best Lawyers in America
August 15, 2019
Rob Saunders Contributes to Institutional Limited Partners Association (ILPA) Guidance for GP-Led Secondary Transactions
April 11, 2019
Twenty-One PSZJ Attorneys Named 2019 Southern California “Super Lawyers”
January 30, 2019
PSZJ Attorneys Named in Best Lawyers in America
August 15, 2018
Twenty PSZJ Attorneys Named 2018 Southern California “Super Lawyers”
January 31, 2018
Thirty-Five PSZJ Attorneys Named Best Lawyers in America
August 15, 2017
WARNing: PE Firm May Be Liable for Terminating Its Portfolio Company’s Employees
PSZJ Bulletin No. 14June 1, 2013
Events
Assignments for the Benefit of Creditors May Soon Go Uniform
2025 National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges Chicago, IL
September 3, 2025
U.S. Chapter 15 Applied: Accessing Relief Unavailable in Chapter 11
Turnaround Management Association (TMA) International Symposium & Annual European Conference Paris, France
June 4, 2025
The Proposed Uniform or Model Assignment for the Benefit of Creditors Act: Navigating the ABCs of an ABC
American Bar Association Business Law Section Conference Spring Meeting New Orleans, LA
April 11, 2025
Retail and Real Estate: Crisis at a Cross-Border Crossroads
TMA International Symposium & Annual European Conference London
June 11, 2024
Strategic Decisions in Assignments for the Benefit of Creditors
Financial Lawyers Conference (FLC) Los Angeles
September 29, 2022
“Zombie Land” - How to Bring a Company Back to the World of the Living
Los Angeles
November 18, 2010
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respected by their peers for high professional achievement and ethical standards.
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