Maria Sountas-Argiropoulos heads the Corporate Practice Group.
Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos concentrates her practice on financing transactions of all kinds, including leveraged acquisitions, private placements, secured and unsecured syndications, mezzanine debt, asset-based loans, subscription lines and debtor-in-possession financing, with a focus on restructuring transactions both in and out of court. In addition, Ms. Sountas- Argiropoulos has substantial experience in the purchase and sale of distressed debt and assets, traditional merger, sale and acquisition transactions, and corporate governance matters.
Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos represents private equity sponsors, corporations, funds, issuers, investors, agents and senior and subordinated lenders across a wide variety of sectors and industries including retail; hospitality and food service; healthcare; technology; media, communications and streaming; sports and entertainment; agriculture; oil and gas; and manufacturing.
On the lender and investor side, Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos has represented private equity firms such as Cerberus Capital Management, Caspar Capital, New Heritage Capital, FLC Credit Partners, Z Capital Partners, Tennenbaum Capital Partners, Callidus Capital, large and middle-market financial institutions, investment banks (domestic and foreign), the largest provider of credit to American agriculture, the largest single-profession pension fund in Canada and various small, middle and large capital investment managers specializing in credit-related investments. On the borrower and equity sponsor side, Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos has represented, among others, BLST/Bluestem, APX/Apex Parks, MBI, LRN Corporation, Ferrandino & Son, Garden Fresh, RM Holdco/Real Mex Restaurants, Mrs. Fields/Famous Brands, PacSun, Guess?, Yahoo!, Western Digital, Microsemi Corporation.
Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos received her Juris Doctor from Osgoode Hall Law School, where she graduated as the Silver Medalist and received numerous awards, including the McCarthy Tétrault LLP Prize, the Christopher Robinson Memorial Prize, the Bruce Leonard Prize in Insolvency Studies, and the Alexander David McKenzie Scholarship. Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos received her Bachelor of Arts with Honours from the University of Toronto (joint specialist in Political Science and History).
Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos is a current member and past president of the Board of Governors of the Financial Lawyers Conference and a past Chair of the Commercial Law and Bankruptcy Section of the Los Angeles County Bar Association. She is also a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the American Bar Association and the Canadian and Ontario Bar Associations. Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos is a contributing author to Directors’ Duties in Canada by the Corporate Governance Group at Bennett Jones LLP.
Ms. Sountas-Argiropoulos is admitted to practice law in the State of California and the Province of Ontario, Canada.
Representative Presentations
- Bankruptcy Waivers in First Lien-Second Lien Intercreditor Agreements – Reviewing the Bidding after Momentive and TXU/EFH December 8, 2016, Financial Lawyers Conference. read more
- Don’t Take It Personally: The Pitfalls of Personal Guarantees June 8, 2015, Los Angeles County Bar Association
- Nuts & Bolts of Intercreditor Agreements June 5, 2015, Financial Lawyers Conference
- You Authorized WHAT?! – A Cautionary Tale in Three Acts April 2, 2015, Financial Lawyers Conference
- LLC Membership Interests as Collateral and as Property of the Bankruptcy Estate: Value More “Limited” Than You May Think April 10, 2014, Financial Lawyers Conference
- After the Final Default: Foreclosures Under UCC Article 9 April 2, 2014, Los Angeles County Bar Association