Stephenson Harwood LLP played a pivotal role in the restructuring of Monarch Airlines which completed on Friday 24 October 2014. This was a huge restructuring, involving very many different angles as the Group needed to streamline certain operations and relieve itself of a significant part of its debt burden.

Stephenson Harwood acted for the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) to advise in connection with the restructuring of the substantial pension deficit. Absent a solution to this deficit, no third party was prepared to inject funds.

The restructuring resulted in private equity firm, Greybull Capital, injecting capital in return for 90% of the equity, and the PPF receiving 10% of the equity as well as other elements of mitigation.

The Stephenson Harwood team was led by restructuring partner Sue Moore, and included corporate partner Andrew Edge, senior associate Tom Page and consultant Jessica Boxford.

Sue commented: "This restructuring was multi-faceted, requiring solutions to be negotiated and implemented with very many key stakeholders, and the arrangements with the PPF to resolve the substantial pension deficit were crucial. The PPF received 10% of the equity in the Group as well as other elements of mitigation, and the negotiation of the necessary terms was challenging, affected by the (often moving) arrangements with numerous other stakeholders. Ultimately, all of the parties were able to settle on acceptable arrangements, enabling the Group to move forward with its new business strategy."

Another Stephenson Harwood team, comprising of finance partner Richard Parsons and restructuring partner Libby Elliott, advised another major creditor in connection with the restructuring.