Taft Detroit’s Bankruptcy and Restructuring team is being honored at the TMA Transaction of the Year Award dinner on May 7 for its strategic counsel and implementation of Chapter 11 proceedings for Ark Laboratory.

The Taft team, led by attorneys Judith Greenstone Miller and Kim Ross Clayson represented the Unsecured Creditor’s Committee in the Chapter 11 case of Ark Laboratory. Ark was a medical testing lab that expanded its lab services to meet the unprecedented demand for COVID-19 testing services. When demand for Ark’s services dropped in late 2021, the company was unable to quickly act to reduce its operations to its pre-COVID-19 footprint. This marketplace swing, combined with debt service obligations and other financial pressures, drove the company into bankruptcy last year.

Through Taft’s diligence, Miller and Clayson discovered Michigan State University had been researching Ark as a potential acquisition, which would allow debt funding to become available. Through a series of negotiations, many of the administrative costs, solutions for a potential dividend for unsecured claims and even measures to save some of Ark’s jobs were outlined by the team.

“When we talk about Taft being an invested partner to clients, winning the TMA Transaction of the Year Award is, in legal terms, our best presentation of evidence,” said Miller. “Receiving this award is a testament to the dedication, hard work, and passion of our team and clients we serve,” noted Clayson.

The Turnaround Management Association (TMA), a non-profit association, cultivates business recovery plans for financially challenged companies by fostering connections among those in commerce, business, trade or the profession of turnaround management and corporate counsel.

Taft will be honored for their accomplishments on Tuesday, May 7, at the Kingsley Hotel in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan.

About Taft

As the modern law firm, Taft is fully committed to delivering the highest level of service to today’s organizations. The firm operates under a non-headquartered model, with offices across nine primary Midwest markets and the District of Columbia—875 attorneys strong. The legal performance of Taft attorneys is recognized nationally by peers and industry colleagues, with inclusion in the Am Law 100, Chambers USA, U.S. News Media Group Best Law Firms ranking, Best Lawyers®, Super Lawyers, and more.

For over 135 years, Taft has maintained an outstanding legacy, devoted to serving our clients and their evolving needs. Today, Taft is keeping that commitment and discovering new ways to think forward as the modern law firm.