C. Hall Swaim is a retired partner in the firm's Corporate and Transactional and Intellectual Property Departments. He joined the firm in 1971 and retired in 2009. Mr. Swaim is a former chair of Hale and Dorr's Commercial Department.
Practice
Mr. Swaim's practice focused on commercial law, with an emphasis on Chapter 11 reorganizations, out-of-court restructurings, loan documentation, workouts and contract negotiations, with emphasis on technology-based companies and technology transfer.
Highlights
- Representation of a client and its officers and directors defending against claims of the bankruptcy trustee of a former subsidiary
- Representation of a client in the defense of a preferential transfer recovery action by the Lernout & Hauspie bankruptcy trustee
- Representation of Genaissance Pharmaceuticals in the acquisition of DNA Sciences out of a Chapter 11 proceeding
- Representation of the Creditors’ Committee in the Wang Laboratories, Inc. Chapter 11 reorganization
- Representation of the debtor, Nets, Inc., in its Chapter 11 reorganization
- Strategic uses of Chapter 11 and out-of-court proceedings to acquire technology assets
Professional Activities
Mr. Swaim lectured on commercial law and creditors' rights for Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, Inc.; the Franklin Pierce Law Center; the Federal Energy Bar Association, the National Business Institute and the American Bankruptcy Institute. He has spoken at conferences sponsored by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in Paris, Vienna and Moscow that addressed the topic of US corporate bankruptcy and reorganization.
Mr. Swaim is a board member and former president of the New England Chapter of Turnaround Management Association. He is also a member of the American, Massachusetts and Boston Bar Associations, the Commercial Law League and the American Bankruptcy Institute.
Honors and Awards
- Fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy
- Recognized as a leading practitioner of bankruptcy and commercial law in the Legal Media Group's Guide to the World's Leading Insolvency and Restructuring Lawyers, 6th Edition
- Selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America (2005-2006, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010)
- Selected for each edition of Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business since 2003
- Named a "New England Super Lawyer" (formerly "Massachusetts Super Lawyer") in bankruptcy and workout in the 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009 issues of Boston Magazine
- Awarded the Robert B. McKay Award by the New York University School of Law
Publications
Representative publications of Mr. Swaim's include:
- "The Practical Implications of the Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1994 on Chapter 11 Reorganizations." Butterworth’s Journal of International Banking and Financial Law(1994).
Speaking Engagements
- Turnaround Management Association and Hale and Dorr-client seminars – Director and Officer Duties and Liabilities in Distressed Company Situations – January 2002
Community Involvement
- President, Massachusetts Prostate Cancer Coalition
