Focusing primarily on corporate bankruptcy, restructuring, and other insolvency-related matters, with an emphasis on creditors’ rights, Monique Almy has practiced for more than 35 years. Her extensive experience in the representation of lender syndicates, institutional investors, financial institutions, and other parties in bankruptcy cases, out-of-court workouts, enforcement of remedies, and related litigation has made her an established and recognized leader in her practice area. Monique regularly represents secured and unsecured creditors, debtors, lessors, and committees in bankruptcy cases throughout the country. She also has experience acting as a court-appointed fiduciary.
Recognized as a results-oriented practitioner with a strong business background, Monique has worked with clients across several industries, including finance, privacy and cybersecurity, transportation, aerospace and defense, health care, and hospitality and leisure. Her unique blend of experience and practicality allows her to find innovative solutions for clients. Able to understand the complexity of the transaction as well as the needs of all parties, Monique can construct a strategy for success even when parties have struggled to do so in the past. She has handled matters across the country, has coordinated with local counsel as appropriate, and has handled multidistrict litigation.
Monique also has extensive real estate experience in the retail and mixed-use spaces, including representing shopping center developers in development projects, representing lenders and investors involved in retail companies and development projects, representing landlord and tenants in retail leasing, and representing retail clients in mergers and acquisitions.
Monique has served as a member of the Panel of Bankruptcy Trustees of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland since 1997 and has served on the Panel of Subchapter V Trustees for Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Alexandria, Va., since its inauguration in 2020. She speaks at bankruptcy-related continuing legal education programs and conducts seminars for commercial lenders and other financial institutions. Monique has been recognized as a leading bankruptcy lawyer in Washington, D.C., by Chambers USA since 2014, where clients reported she is "valued for her experience and judgment." Monique has also been recognized in the 2022 Lawdragon list of "500 Leading U.S. Bankruptcy and Restructuring Lawyers" and in The Best Lawyers in America list for Bankruptcy and Creditors’ Rights Law. She was also selected for inclusion in the list of "Maryland Super Lawyers" (a publication of Law & Politics) as well as being recommended by The Washingtonian in its December 2020 issue under the heading "Bankruptcy—Creditors and Debtors Turn to These Lawyers." In 2019, Forbes created its inaugural "America’s Top Corporate Law Firms" and recognized Crowell & Moring for its bankruptcy practice.
Recognition
- Chambers USA: Bankruptcy, Washington, D.C., 2014-2022
- Lawdragon’s list of Leading U.S. Bankruptcy and Restructuring Lawyers, 2022
- Best Lawyers in America: Bankruptcy and Creditors’ Rights Law, 2022
- Maryland Super Lawyers, 2022
- Washingtonian magazine’s Bankruptcy—Creditors and Debtors Turn to These Lawyers feature, 2020
Affiliations
Professional Activities and Memberships
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American Bankruptcy Institute
- Bankruptcy Bar Association
- Maryland State Bar
Representative Matters
Litigation
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Appointed as the Trustee for BioniCare, which manufactured and sold medical devices featuring a unique technology for pain relief. After months of difficult negotiations, the court approved a multi-million dollar sale and unique settlement structure based on the pre-bankruptcy debt documents. In re BioniCare Medical Technologies, Inc., No. 07-16902 (Bankr. D. Md.).
- Appointed as the Trustee for Insurance Payment Plan after litigation over an involuntary bankruptcy petition and related state court insurance receivership proceedings. In re Insurance Payment Plan, Inc., No. 12-28460 (Bankr. D. Md.).
- Served as lead counsel for government contractor, Alsalam Aircraft Company in dealing with international issues arising in connection with the Aveos insolvency proceedings in Canada. In re Aveos Fleet Performance Inc., No. 500-11-042345-120 (Superior Court, Province of Quebec, District of Montreal).
- Served as lead counsel for FNC Title Services, LLC in investigating a matter of hacking from a foreign entity and the recovery of lost funds. Due to quick action and assistance from the Crowell team, 100 percent of the missing funds were recovered.
- Served as special counsel to debtors national bankruptcy proceedings for several matters, including guidance and counseling on a variety of insolvency and bankruptcy issues, participating in and coordinating negotiations and litigation (both inside and outside of bankruptcy court) with primary bankruptcy counsel, and counseling on multi-district and cross border issues. In re Nortel Networks, Inc., No. 09-10138 (Bankr. D.Del.); In re Tribune Company, No. 08-13141 (Bankr. D.Del.); In re Eastman Kodak Company, No. 12-10202 (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.).
- Appointed as Chapter 7 Trustee for a government contractor that refurbished aircraft and served as lead counsel during the auction process and resulting settlement. In re Aerospace Manufacturing, No. 08-15901 (Bankr. D. Md.).
- Represented Hitachi in defending a preference action in which the demand was more than $700,000. This matter was more complex than most due to the nature of the relationships between Hitachi and the various MPC entities, which pre-dated the various acquisition/spin-off transactions by Micron and Gateway. In re MPC Computers, LLC, et al., No. 08-12667 (Liquidating Trustee v. Hitachi Data Systems Corp., Adv. Pro. 10-54505) (Bankr. Del.).
Transactional
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Represented the lead pre-petition and DIP lender and agent of a billion dollar, syndicated credit facility to a major business in the airline industry. In re US Airways Inc.
- Represented the lead pre-petition and DIP lender and agent of a several hundred million dollar syndicated credit facility to a group of debtors that provides national rail system services. In re Railworks Corporation.
- Represented the lead pre-petition and DIP lender and agent of a multimillion-dollar, syndicated credit facility to a group of debtors that provide metal processing services. In re Lombard Acquisitions, LLC.
Publications
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"Venue Reform May Be Gaining Momentum," Crowell & Moring’s Restructuring Matters
(September 29, 2021).
Authors: Frederick (Rick) Hyman and Monique D. Almy.
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"In the Wake of COVID-19: Protective Actions The Retail Tenant Should Take When Faced With A Landlord’s Bankruptcy," Journal of Bankruptcy Law
(November 2020).
Authors: Monique D. Almy, Gregory D. Call, Thomas F. Koegel, and Randall L. Hagen.
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"Considerations For Lenders During And After COVID-19," Westlaw
(June 6, 2020).
Authors: Monique D. Almy, Randall L. Hagen, Scott Lessne, and Mark S. Lichtenstein.
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"Restructuring Capabilities to Combat the Impact of COVID-19," Crowell & Moring’s Restructuring Matters
(April 2, 2020).
Authors: Cathryn Williams, Paul Muscutt, Mark S. Lichtenstein and Monique D. Almy.
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Deskbook: Guide to Receivership & Foreclosure
(Trigild Inc. ed. 2008-2013).
Co-Authors for District of Columbia and Maryland: Matthew W. Cheney and Monique D. Almy.
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"Effective Communication is the Key to Developing and Implementing Customized Strategies to Solve Complex Financial Issues," Aspatore Books' Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring Client Strategies
(Inside the Minds 2007).
Co-Authors: Monique D. Almy and Matthew W. Cheney.
Client Alerts & Newsletters
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"Spring into Distress with Restructuring Matters by Crowell & Moring,"
Financial Services Alert
(April 8, 2022).
Contacts: Frederick "Rick" Hyman, Monique D. Almy, Scott Lessne, Randall L. Hagen, Cathryn Williams, Paul Muscutt
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"In the Wake of COVID-19: Protective Actions the Retail Tenant Should Take When Faced with a Landlord’s Bankruptcy,"
Corporate Alert
(June 23, 2020).
Contacts: Monique D. Almy, Gregory D. Call, Thomas F. Koegel, Randall L. Hagen
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"Guidance for the Federal Contractor in Dealing with a Financially-Distressed Subcontractor During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic,"
Corporate Alert
(April 28, 2020).
Contacts: Monique D. Almy, J. Chris Haile, Randall L. Hagen
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"Considerations for Lenders During and After COVID-19,"
Corporate Alert
(April 16, 2020).
Contacts: Monique D. Almy, Scott Lessne, Randall L. Hagen
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"This Is Not 2008: U.S. Federal Banking Regulators Respond to COVID-19,"
Corporate Alert
(March 20, 2020).
Contacts: Scott Lessne, Monique D. Almy
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"This Month in International Trade — January 2017,"
International Trade Bulletin
(February 9, 2017).
Contacts: John B. Brew, Edward Goetz, W. Scott Douglas, Patricia L. Wu, Jeffrey L. Snyder, Charles C. Hwang, Daniel Cannistra, Eduardo Mathison, Carlton Greene, David (Dj) Wolff, Lorenzo Di Masi, Gordon McAllister, Robert A. Burton, Lorraine M. Campos, Peter Eyre, Alan W. H. Gourley, James G. Flood, Maria Alejandra (Jana) del-Cerro, Monique D. Almy
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"Don’t Wait for the Federal Rescue Program or Bailout---Auto Suppliers and Servicers Should Take Steps Now to Shore Up Credit Risks and Bankruptcy Exposure,"
Financial Services Alert
(December 10, 2008).
Contact: Monique D. Almy
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"Entitlement to Attorneys’ Fees in Bankruptcy by Unsecured Creditors Remains Uncertain,"
Financial Services Alert
(December 20, 2007).
Contact: Monique D. Almy
Press Coverage
Firm News & Announcements
| June 1, 2022 |
Chambers USA 2022 Ranks 70 Crowell & Moring Lawyers and 37 Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| February 8, 2022 |
Mark Plevin and Monique Almy Named to 2022 Lawdragon 500 Leading U.S. Bankruptcy and Restructuring Lawyers List |
| May 20, 2021 |
Chambers USA 2021 Ranks 63 Crowell & Moring Lawyers and 30 Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| April 23, 2020 |
Chambers USA 2020 Ranks 53 Crowell & Moring Lawyers and 21 Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| October 10, 2019 |
Forbes Names Crowell & Moring to List of America's Top Corporate Law Firms |
| April 29, 2019 |
Chambers USA 2019 Ranks 53 Crowell & Moring Lawyers and 21 Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| May 9, 2018 |
Chambers USA 2018 Ranks 52 Crowell & Moring Lawyers and 24 Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| May 26, 2017 |
Chambers USA 2017 Ranks 53 Crowell & Moring Lawyers and 23 Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| May 27, 2016 |
Chambers USA Ranks 56 Crowell & Moring Attorneys and 19 Leading Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| May 19, 2015 |
Chambers USA Ranks 53 Crowell & Moring Attorneys and 20 Leading Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| May 23, 2014 |
Chambers USA Ranks 51 Crowell & Moring Attorneys and 19 Leading Practice Areas Among Best in U.S. |
| April 23, 2007 |
Crowell & Moring Boosts Financial Services Team With Three Bankruptcy Lawyers |