Overview

Jim Sullivan is a partner in Chapman’s Banking and Financial Services Department and member of the firm’s Special Situations and Restructuring Group and Litigation Group. Jim is involved in complex commercial banking restructurings and workouts, in- and out-of-court, on behalf of national and regional financial institutions, private equity funds, insurance companies, and other creditors. Jim represents creditors, both secured and unsecured, in bankruptcy proceedings throughout the country. His financial institution representation also focuses the Uniform Commercial Code, federal and state banking statutory and regulatory compliance, fraud claims, employee rights issues, and consumer finance claims.

Representative Recent Matters

  • Representation of major national and regional banks on numerous multimillion-dollar credits outside of and in bankruptcy courts throughout the country.
  • Representation of regional landlords and national REITs in large national retail Chapter 11 proceedings, including lease review, store closing negotiations with debtor tenants and liquidators, lease rejection and assumption disputes, stub rent and cure claims.
  • Multimillion-dollar accounts receivable recovery from community bank’s defunct borrower’s customers which included simultaneous litigation of UCC Article 9 issues in jurisdictions throughout the county.
  • Advise rapidly-growing, international manufacturer in wide range of corporate law including litigation avoidance, contract negotiations and disputes, employment related disputes and resolutions and real estate related transactions.
  • Successful liquidation of large regional foundry assets for international bank which included successful negotiations with municipality and utility company to maintain operations following ownership abandonment.
  • Obtained dismissal for lender in multimillion-dollar federal racketeering lawsuit involving allegations of commercial lending fraud.
  • Obtained fraudulent conveyance judgment against former wife of banking client’s borrower and successfully defended appeal of judgment in Illinois First District Appellate Court (and subsequently collected entirety of judgment and post-judgment interest from judgment debtor).
  • Pro bono representation of disabled individuals before the Illinois Human Rights Commission and Equal Opportunity Employment Commission; pro bono representation of not-for-profit organization committed to serving low income Chicago families.

Memberships

American Bankruptcy Institute

American Bar Association

  • Member of Business Law, Litigation, Business Bankruptcy and Consumer Rights Litigation Committees

Turnaround Management Association

Admitted

Illinois, 1998

Wisconsin, 2020

U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois

U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit

U.S. District Court, Central District of Illinois

U.S. District Court, Southern District of Indiana

Education

DePaul University College of Law, J.D., 1998

University of Illinois, B.A., Political Science, 1994

Insights

Publications

Presentations

  • Presenter, "The Small Business Reorganization Act of 2019: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly," The Honorable Robert E. Ginsberg Annual Program on Commercial Bankruptcy Law, November 12, 2019
  • Presenter, "Checking Out?: Retail Bankruptcy Issues for Lenders and Lessors," Chicago Mortgage Attorneys Association, December 18, 2018
  • Presenter, "Blockchain: Why It's So Much More Than Bitcoin (and here to stay, maybe)," Chapman and Cutler's 2018 CLE Marathon, May 2, 2018. 
  • Moderator, "Checking Out?: Retail Bankruptcy Issues for Lenders and Lessors," 6th Annual Bank & Financial Institutions Special Assets Forum on Real Estate, C&I and SBA Loans, September 15 – 16, 2016.
  • Panelist, “Financial Institutions Beware — The Fair Labor Standards Act: What it Means, Upcoming Changes and Tips to Avoid Liability,” Chapman’s CLE Marathon, May 11, 2016.
  • Moderator, "Receivers: When and How Should You Use Them," Midwest Bank & Financial Institutions Special Assets Forum on Real Estate, C&I and SBA Loans, September 17-18, 2015.
  • Featured Panelist, "Recent Developments in Bankruptcy," Chicago Mortgage Attorneys Association, March 18, 2015.

We have always been focused on finance.

  • 1913
    TS Chapman partners with Henry Cutler to form Chapman and Cutler
  • 1st
    Chapman's first client in 1913 is still a client of the firm today
  • 22
    Diverse financial practices serving regional, national, and global clients
  • 6
    Offices across the country and in key US financial centers

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