Mr. Fidler graduated Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude from the University of California at San Diego with a B.A. in Quantitative Economics and Decision Sciences. He received his J.D. from the UCLA School of Law in 1997. He is co-author of several articles and papers, including “Purchasing Claims to Block Bankruptcy ‘Cramdown’ Plans: A New Weapon For Creditors”, 115 Banking Law Journal 4 (January 1998), and “Recent Developments Concerning Intellectual Property and Bankruptcy” (2010).
Mr. Fidler has represented several large chapter 11 debtors, including Frederick’s of Hollywood, Inc. (a world-renowned retailer of innovative specialty apparel), Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios (an iconic film entertainment company); Avado Brands, Inc. (a large restaurant operator with over 120 locations in 20 states); and Brotman Medical Center, Inc. (one of the largest private hospitals in California).
Mr. Fidler has also represented numerous bondholder and lender groups in several large chapter 11 cases, including Windsor Woodmont Black Hawk Casino (a casino operator in Blackhawk, Colorado); Magna Entertainment Corp. (one of the largest racetrack operators in the country); Pliant Corporation (a large food packaging company); Deb Shops, Inc. (a large retailer of specialty apparel for young women); and Pappas Telecasting, Inc. (one of the largest privately held broadcasting companies in the country).
In addition, Mr. Fidler has represented several large individual creditors and lenders in chapter 11 cases, such as Paramount Pictures Corp. (creditor in several large chapter 11 cases, including Blockbuster Entertainment, Circuit City, Tower Records and Midway Games), Sanmina-SCI Corporation (one of the largest trade creditors in the chapter 11 cases of Nortel Networks, Inc.); Shochiku Ltd. (creditor in the Franchise Pictures, Inc. chapter 11 cases); Ableco Finance, LLC (an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management); and Farallon Capital Management. Finally, Mr. Fidler has represented acquirers of assets, including Suzuki Motor of America, Inc. (acquirer of assets of chapter 11 debtor American Suzuki Motor Corporation) and Isotis, S.A. (Swiss biotechnology company that acquired assets of Gensci Orthobiologics) and was one of the principal draftspersons of the 1,400-page examiner report filed in the Tribune Company Chapter 11 cases.
Mr. Fidler is a member of the State Bar of California (Business Law Section), the Los Angeles County Bar Association, the American Bar Association, and the Financial Lawyers Conference of Los Angeles. He is admitted to practice before the Ninth and Tenth Circuit U.S. Courts of Appeals and the United States District Courts for the Central and Northern Districts of California.