Jill Nicholson

Jill Nicholson is a partner and trial lawyer with Foley & Lardner LLP and chair of the firm’s national Bankruptcy & Business Reorganizations Practice. She concentrates her practice in commercial bankruptcy and insolvency matters, creditors’ rights, out-of-court workouts and restructurings, and complex multidistrict financial services litigation. She is also a member of the firm’s Real Estate Practice.

Ms. Nicholson has represented a broad array of clients in bankruptcy and insolvency proceedings, including secured lenders, special servicers, creditors’ committees, SIPA trustees, bondholder committees, foreign representatives, unsecured creditors, Chapter 11 debtors, indenture trustees, commercial landlords, governmental agencies, and federally chartered entities. Ms. Nicholson has also served as a court- appointed receiver for the Securities & Exchange Commission. Her experience encompasses all facets of bankruptcy and insolvency, including Chapter 11 plan restructuring and relatedlitigation,363sales, valuation disputes, single asset real estate, debtor-in-possession financing, tax credit bond finance deals, adversary actions, bankruptcy appeals, assignments for the benefit of creditors, broker-dealer liquidations, and receiverships.

Ms. Nicholson counsels a number of Fortune 500 companies regarding best practices with respect to bankruptcy and insolvency issues, including distressed real estate, commercial lending, special servicing, and automotive restructuring.

In 2015, Ms. Nicholson was recognized by Super Lawyers® as one of the Top 100 Lawyers in Illinois and also one of the Top 50 Women Lawyers in Illinois. In 2014 and 2013, Global M&A Network selected Ms. Nicholson as one of the top 100 restructuring professionals in the world, which recognizes the 100 most influential and innovative consultants, investment bankers, lawyers, and providers from the restructuring, distressed M&A and insolvency communities. In 2014, Ms. Nicholson was featured by Law360 as a Female Powerbroker in the legal industry. In 2013, Ms. Nicholson was named by Turnarounds & Workouts magazine as one of twelve Outstanding Young Restructuring Lawyers under the age of 40 in the United States. Ms. Nicholson was selected for inclusion in the 2015 and 2014 Illinois Super Lawyers® list and has been named to the list of Illinois Super Lawyers– Rising Stars® (2008 – 2013) for her work in the field of bankruptcy. She was selected as a Leading Lawyer, Finance – Corporate Restructuring, by Legal 500 US (2014, 2013 and 2010) and is Peer Review Rated as AV® PreeminentTM, a mark of excellence in Martindale- Hubbell’s peer review rating system. Ms. Nicholson is board certified as a business bankruptcy specialist by the American Board of Certification. She is a fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America, an invitation-only trial lawyer honorary society composed of less than one half of one percent of American lawyers.

Ms. Nicholson received her juris doctor degree, with honors, from the University of Illinois College of Law, where she served as an editor of the University of Illinois Elder Law Journal. While in law school, she received the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Medal for excellence in bankruptcy and the American Bankruptcy Law Journal Prize and was named the Rickert Scholar for excellence in trial advocacy, legal writing, and legal publications. Ms. Nicholson received her undergraduate degree, with honors, from the University of Chicago, where she was selected as a Norman Maclean scholar. She also served as president of the University of Chicago Debate Team.