Mr. John R. Ashmead

John R. Ashmead is a partner with Seward & Kissel LLP and heads its Corporate Restructuring and Bankruptcy Group in New York. He specializes in workouts, chapter 11 liquidations and foreign insolvency proceedings, where he represents trustees, agents, creditors committees, lenders, bondholders and other creditors, borrowers, equityholders, directors, acquirers and debtors. In addition to restructurings, his engagements include bankruptcy litigation, private equity and strategic investments, acquisitions, plan sponsorship and structured finance transactions. Mr. Ashmead was recognized as a leading lawyer in bankruptcy by New York Super Lawyers from 2010-24 and The Best Lawyers in America from 2022-25, and he was highly ranked by Chambers USA from 2019-24. He also is a Fellow of the American College of Investment Counsel. Mr. Ashmead has been involved in numerous distressed shipping matters advising company-side, lenders, investors and creditors in workouts, chapter 11 and chapter 15 cases and in foreign insolvency proceedings, including in matters involving TOISA, International Shipholding, Nautilus Holdings, OSG, TMT, Harvey Gulf and Hanjin. He appears before bankruptcy courts nationwide. Mr. Ashmead regularly authors articles in and lectures on the bankruptcy and restructuring area. In addition, he is a contributor to Seward Kissel’s Corporate Restructuring Bankruptcy blog, Back in (the) Black. Mr. Ashmead previously clerked for Hon. Cornelius Blackshear of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York from 1990-992 He is empaneled as a mediator in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware. Mr. Ashmead received his B.S. in 1987 from St. John’s University and his J.D. from Brooklyn Law School in 1990.