Patrick Potter is a member of Dickinson Wright’s Restructuring and Insolvency Practice Group in the firm’s Washington, D.C. office. He advises clients on complex business challenges, with a particular focus on the commercial real estate, healthcare, and hospitality sectors, providing practical and innovative solutions tailored to each matter.
Patrick maintains a national and international restructuring practice and has appeared before more than 50 bankruptcy judges and federal courts across the United States. With more than three decades of experience representing creditors and other stakeholders, his practice is now primarily devoted to serving as lead counsel to debtors in complex restructurings. He is widely recognized for guiding financially distressed businesses through chapter 11 proceedings, preserving enterprise value, and saving thousands of jobs.
In addition to his domestic practice, Patrick has more than a decade of experience advising foreign governments on the development and implementation of modern insolvency laws and restructuring frameworks. He has conducted on-the-ground capacity-building initiatives in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Morocco, Egypt, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and the Republic of Georgia. Patrick regularly speaks, writes, and leads workshops in coordination with the World Bank Group, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Commercial Law Development Program, INSOL International, and other international organizations.
Education & Credentials
Education
University of Michigan Law School
J.D., 1989Michigan State University
B.A., 1986Bar Admission
Acknowledgements
- INSOL International Fellow
- Global Insolvency Practice Course (with honors), 2024–2025
- Best Lawyers
- Bankruptcy/Insolvency & Reorganization, 2019–2026
- Chambers USA
- Bankruptcy/Restructuring (Washington, D.C.), 2021–2025
- Lawdragon
- 500 Leading U.S. Bankruptcy & Restructuring Lawyers, 2020–2023.
- 500 Leading Global Bankruptcy & Restructuring Lawyers, 2020, 2024–2025
- Washingtonian Magazine
- Top Lawyer, Bankruptcy Practice (Washington, D.C.), 2022, 2024
- International Insolvency Institute, Full Membership, 2019
Prominent Assignments
- Represented the official committee of unsecured creditors in the chapter 11 case of one of the largest affordable housing communities in Washington, D.C., involving more than 650 residential units.
- Represented a defendant in a breach-of-fiduciary-duty adversary proceeding improperly commenced by a plan administrator, successfully defending against the asserted claims.
- Represented a public pension oversight board and a related multi-billion-dollar trust established and funded pursuant to the confirmed debt adjustment plan of a U.S. territory.
- Represented the owner of a limited-service hotel located in central Washington, D.C. and operated under a national brand in connection with the restructuring of more than $65 million in senior and junior indebtedness.
- Represented a commercial landlord in the chapter 11 case of a tenant holding company, negotiating plan provisions that reaffirmed the debtor’s guaranty of affiliate lease obligations under a confirmed reorganization plan.
- Represented an international investor in connection with the acquisition strategy for defaulted debt secured by a hotel located in Brooklyn, New York, with the objective of obtaining ownership of the underlying asset.
- Served as lead bankruptcy counsel to the owner of a large hotel and convention center in California, guiding the debtor through a chapter 11 case and post-confirmation transactions. The engagement included confirmation of a plan of reorganization, a competitively bid brand transition, substantial reduction of legacy management claims, negotiated releases related to potential tortious interference, and facilitation of new financing consisting of key money, mezzanine debt, and a restructuring of senior mortgage obligations.
- Represented the board of directors of a residential condominium association as debtor in a chapter 11 case involving more than 200 units. Implemented a section 363 sale through a plan confirmed in under 50 days, followed by a post-confirmation strategy that resulted in full payment to creditors and meaningful distributions to unit owners.
- Represented a commercial real estate owner in an out-of-court restructuring of a financially distressed private club, developing a transaction that allowed owners and users to acquire the facility, preserve jobs, maintain operations, and avoid potential WARN Act exposure.
- Represented a government-contracting technology company as chapter 11 debtor, developing, confirming, and implementing a plan of reorganization in under nine months that restored solvency, preserved over 100 jobs, and maintained critical long-term federal contracts.
- Represented a major engineering and construction company in a complex contractual dispute in a large chapter 11 case, asserting unsecured claims exceeding $300 million and positioning the client among the largest unsecured creditors in the proceeding.
- Represented purchasers of energy and infrastructure assets in multiple bankruptcy cases, developing acquisition and restructuring strategies that restored operational viability, preserved thousands of jobs, and assumed substantial environmental remediation obligations.
- Represented healthcare facility operators as chapter 11 debtors in Washington, D.C., obtaining expedited court approval of a sale of operations that stabilized the businesses, preserved hundreds of jobs, and ensured continued delivery of essential healthcare services to underserved communities.
Professional Involvement
- Co-Chair, ABI Real Estate Committee
- International Insolvency Institute (III)
- International Association of Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy (INSOL International)
- American Bar Association, Section on Business Law
- District of Columbia Bar Association, Bankruptcy Law Sections
- Michigan Bar Association, Section on Bankruptcy Law
- Virginia Bar Association, Section on Bankruptcy Law
- American Bankruptcy Institute
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
- U.S. Supreme Court
Publications/Presentations
- “Key Features of Attractive Jurisdictions,” Panel Moderator, INSOL International and World Bank Group Legislative & Regulatory Colloquium, Hong Kong, March 18, 2025.
- “Hospitality Industry: A Deep Dive into Its Recovery and Lingering Distress,” Moderator, ABI Webinar, June 26, 2024.
- “Bankruptcy and Restructuring Proceedings in Focus – Expert Discourse,” Panel Moderator and Conference Planning Committee, INSOL International and Saudi Bankruptcy Commission, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, January 22, 2024.
- “Practical Solutions to Resolving Challenges Arising in Bankruptcy Going-Concern and Liquidation Sales,” INSOL International and Saudi Bankruptcy Commission, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, November 8, 2023.
- “U.S.–Kuwaiti Judicial Consultations,” U.S. Department of Commerce (Commercial Law Development Program), Washington, D.C., October 31–November 1, 2023.
- “Approaches to Promoting a More Efficient and Effective Restructuring Regime,” Workshop, INSOL International and Saudi Bankruptcy Commission, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, July 12, 2023.
- “First MENA Forum: Insolvency, Business Restructuring & Investment Promotion,” World Bank Group, INSOL International, and U.S. Department of Commerce (CLDP), Cairo, Egypt, June 19–20, 2023.
- “The U.S. Approach to More Efficient and Effective Restructuring Procedures,” Economic Development Board of Bahrain, Manama, Bahrain, January 12, 2023.
- “The Role of Courts in Successful Bankruptcy Procedures and the Protection of Economic Public Policy – Part II,” Commercial Law Development Program, Marrakech, Morocco, December 13–14, 2022.
- “The Role of Courts in Successful Bankruptcy Procedures and the Protection of Economic Public Policy – Part I,” Commercial Law Development Program, Casablanca, Morocco, November 29–30, 2022.
- “U.S. and MENA Insolvency Topics,” Presentations for Egyptian Ministry of Justice Delegation, World Bank Group, Washington, D.C., June 9 and 13, 2022.
- “Charting the Course: Navigating Hospitality Insolvencies,” Moderator, ABI Mid-Level Professional Development Program, November 9, 2021.
- “Bankruptcy Code Changes under the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021,” Panelist, Strafford Webinar, April 7, 2021.
- “Understanding and Navigating Bankruptcy Exposure for Landlords during a Pandemic,” Pillsbury Webinar, September 17, 2020.
- “Real Assets Roundup – Real Estate,” Pillsbury Webinar, April 13, 2020.
- “The Role of Courts in Successful Reorganization Procedures and the Protection of Economic Public Policy,” Bankruptcy Workshop, Casablanca, Morocco, November 13–14, 2019.
- “U.S. Judicial Consultations with Judges from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia,” New York City, July 22–26, 2019.
- “Workshop on Developing an Effective Insolvency Framework: Kuwait Insolvency Law Analysis and Drafting,” United Nations, Vienna, Austria, May 2–3, 2019.
- “The Bankruptcy Commission and Ministry of Commerce’s First Conference on Resolving Bankruptcies,” Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, April 29–30, 2019.
- “Client Satisfaction in the Bankruptcy Context” and “Lessons Learned from Successful and Unsuccessful Bankruptcy Cases,” Singapore, March 31–April 4, 2019.
- “Judicial Workshop on Best Practices in Court Administration,” Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 24–25, 2018.
- “Role of the Courts in Economic Development,” Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, October 21–24, 2018.
- “Regional Insolvency Conference: The Role of Courts in an Effective Insolvency System,” Casablanca, Morocco, September 27–28, 2018.
- “Alternative Dispute Resolution Including Arbitration in Saudi Arabia,” Washington, D.C., June 21, 2018.
- World Bank Group Insolvency and Creditor/Debtor Regimes Task Force (Recycling Entrepreneurs), Washington, D.C., May 4, 2018.
- “U.S. Consultations on Best Practices in Implementing a Successful Bankruptcy System,” New York City, April 16–20, 2018.
- “Regional Insolvency Workshop: Developing a Comprehensive Insolvency System,” Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, January 22–23, 2018.
- “Protecting the Investor in Morocco: Legal Structures and Challenges,” Marrakech, Morocco, February 23, 2018.
- “Judicial Workshop on the Role of Courts in Insolvency,” Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, November 8–9, 2017.
- “U.S. and Republic of Georgia Bankruptcy Legal Issues and Drafting,” Tbilisi, Georgia, October 2–6, 2017.
- “U.S.–Saudi Commercial and Insolvency Roundtable,” Washington, D.C., May 9, 2017.
- “Workshop on Insolvency Law in the United Arab Emirates and the United States,” Dubai, UAE, April 17–19, 2017.
- “Drafting a Comprehensive Insolvency Law,” Singapore, March 14, 2017.
- “Roundtable on the Role of Courts in Insolvency,” Manama, Bahrain, December 5–7, 2016.
- “Future of Gas Gathering, Purchase, and Pipeline Transportation Agreements in Texas,” Bankruptcy Debate, Houston, Texas, October 18, 2016.
- “Addressing Bankruptcy in the Drafting Process,” Pillsbury CLE Marathon, Tysons Corner, Virginia, September 27, 2016.
- “Armenian Insolvency Reform,” Roundtable with Armenian Insolvency and Commercial Law Judges, Washington, D.C., September 20, 2016.
- “The Insolvency of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises,” World Bank Group Insolvency and Creditor/Debtor Regimes Task Force, Washington, D.C., September 19, 2016.
- “Bankruptcy Basics: Chapter 11 Practice,” U.S. Department of Commerce (CLDP), Washington, D.C., August 25, 2015.
- “Best Practices in the Management of Insolvency Cases: The U.S. Example,” Casablanca, Morocco, December 9, 2014.
- “Insolvency & Restructuring: Procedures and Practices,” Regional Insolvency Workshop, Dubai, UAE, November 3–5, 2014.
- “Current Topics in Public and Private Sector Restructurings and Bankruptcies,” Puerto Rico in Crisis Conference, San Juan, Puerto Rico, May 14, 2014.