Michael R. Caruso

How Michael Helps Clients

Michael helps clients with secured debt under distress and default. His practice focuses on secured lender and creditor representation in commercial loan workouts and restructurings, complex mortgage foreclosures, receiverships, Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and business insolvency. Mike’s practice adds value to clients across several industries including banking and finance, commercial real estate, equipment leasing, and healthcare. 

Mike has more than 15 years of experience representing financial institutions, private lenders, and commercial real estate (CRE) investors. He also has significant experience representing court appointed receivers and trustees, equipment lessors, drug and medical device companies, surety companies, among other creditors of insolvent businesses.

Mike advises on all aspects of loan and lease obligations from default to disposition across several asset classes such as office, retail, multifamily, hospitality, industrial, and equipment. He regularly handles guarantor recourse liability and lender liability defense. He is efficient in navigating lien priority disputes and fraudulent transfer litigation. Mike litigates and resolves disputes in the state and federal courts of New York, New Jersey and in bankruptcy courts nationally across multiple jurisdictions.

Mike is an effective advocate in Chapter 11 bankruptcy. His bankruptcy experience includes asset sales, plan negotiation and confirmation, claim allowance and recovery, relief from the automatic stay, lease assumption and assignment, cure disputes, preference defense, and adversary proceedings.

Clients rely on Mike to lead important transactions for working out troubled loans and obtaining recoveries in special asset situations. He negotiates and closes loan purchase and sale agreements. He resolves and restructures defaulted loans through modifications, extensions, assignments, and forbearance agreements. Mike also helps CRE investors acquire distressed real estate through judicial and non-judicial measures.

What Clients Can Expect

Clients can expect Mike to find practical solutions to legal problems with the goal of limiting risk and exposure while maximizing recovery.

Outside the Office

Outside the office, Mike spends his time rooting for his son’s club soccer team and his daughter’s gymnastics team. Mike also enjoys cooking, family and holiday dinners.

Proof Points

• Successful foreclosure, receivership, sale or other disposition of nearly a billion dollars of debt secured by mortgaged office buildings, shopping centers, industrial sites, hotels, mixed-use and multi-family properties, among other commercial real estate throughout New York and New Jersey.
• Advised a CRE investor on the acquisition of tax liens and ultimately title to beachfront property critical to the waterfront redevelopment of Asbury Park, New Jersey.
• Won a pre-answer dismissal of claims alleging fraudulent transfers in an inter-creditor dispute under the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act saving litigation time and costs.
• Recovered surplus foreclosure sale proceeds in payment of a junior lienholder’s claim and obtained judicial confirmation of the sale of allegedly contaminated property over an objecting bidder’s motion to set aside the sale.

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