Our Team

Steve Hawley works with clients planning and executing debt and equity transactions, focusing on growth-to-exit, transaction planning, and distressed asset turnarounds.  With a background in strategy consulting, Steve has practical experience in process implementation and financial analysis to apply to his clients.

Before joining Shields Legal Group, Steve graduated with a J.D. and an M.B.A. from Southern Methodist University in May 2019, where he graduated with honors and was part of the International Law Review journal.  Steve began his career at a world-class turnaround and restructuring strategy practice where he used his legal and business credentials to design solutions for distressed and insolvent companies and in mergers and acquisitions.

Steve has experience working across many industries, focusing on Automotive and Advanced manufacturing, Life Sciences, and Hospitality; and many transactions, including debt and equity offerings, buy-side due diligence, joint ventures, in-court and out-of-court restructurings, financing arrangements, and debt negotiation.

Insolvency & Restructuring

• Represented lender group during the Chapter 7 sale of its securitized collateral, culminating in efforts to credit bid against new money offers ($325MM asset value – Oil & Gas).
• Represented a Texas private equity firm seeking to purchase undervalued oilfield services assets via a 363 auction ($45MM aggregate bid consideration – Oil & Gas)
• Represented a Florida biotechnology company in restructuring its nationwide operations to relocate laboratories and adjust product portfolio ($89MM in synergies – Biotechnology).
• Represented debtors in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy of a Wisconsin automobile original equipment manufacturer ($550MM in liabilities – Advanced Manufacturing).

Capital Markets

• Provided specialist opinions to public company auditors with respect to ‘Going Concern’ analysis and ‘Goodwill Impairment’ tests related to company credit agreements, contractual obligations, and financial outlook (Life Sciences, Oil & Gas, and Hospitality).

Mergers & Acquisitions

• Represented a large European bottling company in its purchase of U.S. bottling facilities from a name-brand soda company converting to an asset-light business model ($1.25B purchase price – Consumer Packaged Goods).
• Represented a Taiwanese manufacturing company in post-closing working capital purchase price adjustments for an Ohio electric vehicle manufacturing plant ($230MM purchase price – Advanced Manufacturing).
• Represented the Japanese arm of a global HVAC manufacturer in engaging a joint venture to expand its product line ($38MM in synergies – Advanced Manufacturing).

J.D., Southern Methodist University, Dedman School of Law, 2019
M.B.A., Southern Methodist University, Cox School of Business, 2019
B.A., Philosophy, Centre College, 2013

• State Bar of Texas

• Dallas Bar Association

• Dura Automotive Sold in $65m Bankruptcy Deal
  Wall Street Journal, 12.21.2022
  Led efforts to forecast increasing commodity prices impact on input cost and advocate equitable allocation of liabilities according to profitability of the emergent entity.
• Puerto Rico Released From Bankruptcy as Economic Problems Persist
  Wall Street Journal, 01.18.2022
  Member of advisory team that reviewed bond issuances and financing requests to the centralized taxing authority to ensure compliance with PROMESA restructuring provisions and preservation of security priority.