For more than 40 years, Hugh Ray has played a lead role in many of the country’s most recognizable bankruptcy proceedings. In addition to making several appearances before the House and Senate Judiciary Committees to testify on proposed amendments to the Federal Bankruptcy Code, Hugh has served in leadership positions with several notable bankruptcy and business groups and co-authored three books on bankruptcy. His decades of involvement in prominent bankruptcy cases has earned him recognition by Chambers USA a Senior Statesperson in Texas for bankruptcy matters. Read below to learn more about one of the state's most esteemed bankruptcy lawyers.
Why do clients hire you?Clients hire us because our firm has a richly deserved reputation for trying cases and achieving strong results in bankruptcy litigation. We avoid the primary areas of law firm conflicts by not representing the large banks that frequently hold reorganizations hostage. We are not reluctant to litigate with lenders, debtors, or any other adverse parties in a bankruptcy. Restructuring to a successful conclusion frequently involves protecting financial interests in the bankruptcy courts where the Federal Rules of Evidence are of equal importance as the Bankruptcy Code. |
Discuss a noteworthy matter you’ve handled over the past year.One case that immediately comes to mind is our representation of Waco-based Brazos Electric Power Cooperative as special conflicts counsel in its Chapter 11 proceedings. We received a Turnaround Atlas Award for Chapter 11 "Restructuring of the Year" as a result of our involvement in the case. Brazos filed for Chapter 11 after the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) hit the company with a $1.9 billion bill for electricity sold to Brazos during Winter Storm Uri, a massive four-day storm in 2021 that caused blackouts across Texas due to historically low temperatures, snow, and freezing rain. |
What differentiates your practice from others?Our bankruptcy practice is comprised of experienced litigators and trial lawyers. In most firms that do reorganization work, their bankruptcy section is part of the banking section or business law section. Having lawyers who actually try cases handle reorganizations is not the usual situation. This gives us a powerful advantage in negotiations and positions our team with significant leverage to provide superior outcomes in contested matters. |