Vynessa Nemunaitis

Vynessa is recognized as a leading lawyer for Banking & Finance in Texas by Chambers USA 2024, where clients note she is “very thorough and impressive” and “pushes matters forward in a very effective manner." She is recognized as a “Rising Star” for Banking in the U.S. by IFLR1000. Vynessa was named a 2023 “40 Under 40” Honoree by Dallas Business Journal, a 2021 “Emerging Leader” for Banking & Finance by The M&A Advisor, a 2021 and 2022 “Rising Star” for Banking & Finance by Expert Guides and among the 2020 “Rising Stars” in the U.S. for Euromoney Legal Media Group’s Americas Rising Star Awards. She was also named among the 2021 “On the Rise” honorees by Texas Lawyer at the Texas Legal Excellence Awards and shortlisted as “Finance Rising Star” for Euromoney Legal Media Group’s Americas Women in Business Law Awards for 2020 and 2022. Vynessa has been recognized as a “Rising Star” in Banking by Texas Super Lawyers* 2018-2023. She is also recognized “Best Lawyer” for Banking and Finance Law in Dallas by Best Lawyers in America** 2024 and is recommended for Bank Lending by Legal 500 US.

Experience

• AMC Entertainment Inc. (a subsidiary of Dalian Wanda Group Co.) in its $1.2 billion senior secured term loan facility; $860 million incremental and bridge facilities to finance in part its $1.1 billion acquisition of Carmike Cinemas, Inc.; $1.3 billion incremental and bridge facilities to finance in part its approximately £921 million acquisition of Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group Limited; an amendment and restatement of its senior secured term facility to incrementally increase commitments by $500 million to finance in part its acquisitions of Odeon & UCI Cinemas and Carmike Cinemas; $675 million incremental term loan and $325 million bridge facility commitments to finance its $964 million acquisition of Nordic Cinema Group Holding AB; and $414 million offering of cash and payment-in-kind toggle senior secured exchangeable notes by a subsidiary of AMC 
• Apergy Corporation (n/k/a ChampionX Corporation) in its acquisition of ChampionX, creating an entity with a combined $7.4 billion enterprise value and ChampionX Corporation (f/k/a Apergy Corporation) in $687 million senior secured facilities to finance cash payments to the seller (Ecolab) required as part of the acquisition of ChampionX (f/k/a Nalco Champion)
• Aptive Environmental, LLC (a portfolio company of Citation Capital Management, LLC) in its senior secured term loan and revolving facility
• AYR Wellness Inc. in the issuance of $243 million of senior secured notes due 2026, subordinate voting shares and warrants to purchase subordinate voting shares
• Basic Energy Services, Inc. (a publicly traded company backed by Ascribe Capital) in a senior secured debtor-in-possession term facility to finance business operations during its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and subsequently the sale of substantially all of its assets
• CCMP Capital Advisors in $555 million senior secured credit facilities to finance its acquisition of Eco Services
• ChampionX Corporation in $1.3 billion amended & restated senior secured revolving and term facilities and in its pending sale to SLB
• Chicago Bridge & Iron Company NV in connection with the negotiation of a new $500 term loan, the amendment and increase of its $800 million revolving credit facility and the amendment of its existing $1 billion term loan and $1.35 billion revolving credit facility, which are all investment grade facilities
• Chisholm Oil and Gas Operating LLC in a $15 million senior secured revolving facility with a $15 million initial borrowing base and a $40 million first lien second out term facility, to finance business operations upon emerging from its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings
• Corporate subsidiary of publicly-held master limited partnership in its acquisition of $50 million investment tax credits generated by battery energy storage system in Texas
• Dexter Axle Company (a portfolio company of The Sterling Group) in more than $600 million of senior term, revolving and mezzanine facilities to finance its acquisitions of Alois Kober GmbH and Quality/Century Holdings Corp.
• Diversified Healthcare Trust in a $941 million offering of zero coupon senior secured notes due 2026
• Emergent BioSolutions Inc. in its $250 million senior secured term loan facility and its $100 million senior secured revolving facility
• EP Energy Corporation in a $315 million senior secured superpriority debtor-in-possession facility to finance business operations during its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and a $629 million reserve-based revolving facility to finance business operations upon emerging from its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings
• Evergreen (a portfolio company of The Sterling Group) in $41 million amended and restated senior secured notes purchase agreements to finance growth and maintenance projects and an incremental amendment, increasing to $30 million the amount of its existing senior secured revolving facility
• Fieldwood Energy LLC (n/k/a QuarterNorth Energy Holding Inc.) in a $100 million senior secured debtor-in-possession facility to finance business operations during its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and $119 million first lien exit term, $185 million second lien exit term and $200 million senior secured revolving facilities to finance its business operations upon emerging from chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and to refinance existing indebtedness
• Frontline Road Safety (a portfolio company of The Sterling Group) in first lien facilities to finance its acquisition of PK Contracting, Inc. and refinance certain existing indebtedness
• GC Services LP in its $105 million first and second lien facilities and $40 million asset based revolving credit facility to finance business operations upon emerging from chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings
• Graycliff Partners in senior secured revolving and term facilities to finance its acquisition of a majority stake in Landmark Structures and to refinance certain of Landmark Structures' existing indebtedness
• Infostretch Corporation (a portfolio company of Goldman Sachs Asset Management) in secured revolving and term facilities to finance its acquisition of Apexon
• IPC Systems, Inc. (a portfolio company of Centerbridge Partners) in senior secured multicurrency facilities to finance its acquisition of Etrali Trading Solutions
• J.C. Flowers in a second lien incremental term facility to finance its acquisition of Jefferson Capital Systems, LLC
• Kendra Scott, LLC (a portfolio company of Berkshire Partners) in amended and extended senior secured credit facilities
• Kingfisher Midstream, LLC and its subsidiaries in their 363 bankruptcy sale of midstream assets to BCE-Mach III LLC in connection with their chapter 11 cases, which are jointly administered with the chapter 11 cases of Alta Mesa Resources, Inc. and its subsidiaries
• Life Time Fitness, Inc. in an amendment to its $1.1 billion secured multicurrency credit facilities
• Montagu Private Equity in first and second lien senior secured multicurrency credit facilities to finance its acquisition of the healthcare devices and prescription retail business divisions of Rexam PLC in the United States, Germany and France
• NatureSweet Limited (a portfolio company of Silver Brands Partners) in $100 million senior secured facilities
• Office Properties Income Trust, a REIT, in its $300 million 144A/Reg S offering of 9.000% senior secured notes due 2029
• OMERS Private Equity in aggregate $418 million senior multicurrency facilities to finance its €670 million ($787 million) acquisition of Trescal SA
• ORG GC Midco, LLC (Midco), parent of GC Services LP, in Midco’s $6 million senior secured debtor-in-possession facility, to provide liquidity during its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings
• Pioneer Metal Finishing, LLC (a portfolio company of Aterian Investment Partners) in senior secured incremental term facilities to finance its acquisition of Electrochem Solutions, Inc., 32500 Central Avenue, LLC and Indianhead Plating, Inc.
• Polychem Corporation in senior secured and mezzanine facilities to finance its acquisition by The Sterling Group and an incremental senior secured term facility to, in part, repay existing indebtedness
• PQ Corporation (a portfolio company of CCMP Capital Advisors) in $200 million asset-based revolver and $1.2 billion senior secured multicurrency term facility to finance the reorganization and combination of PQ and Eco Group Services Holdings LLC (also a portfolio company of CCMP Capital Advisors)
• Providence Equity Partners in senior secured facilities to finance its growth equity investment in TAIT, LLC (f/k/a TAIT Towers Inc.)
• Safe Fleet Acquisition Corp. (a portfolio company of The Sterling Group) in incremental first and second lien credit facilities to finance the acquisition of Seon Design Inc., an incremental second lien subordinated credit facility and an incremental first lien credit facility to finance its acquisition of Elkhart Brass Manufacturing Company, Inc.
• Serta Simmons Bedding, LLC in its first lien senior secured term loan
• Software Luxembourg Holding S.A. (n/k/a Skillsoft Corporation) in $520 million first and second lien exit facilities to finance business operations upon emerging from its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and a $160 million incremental senior secured term facility to finance its acquisition of Codecademy
• Southeastern Grocers, LLC in its $1.1 billion term, ABL revolving and FILO facilities to finance operations following its bankruptcy proceedings
• The Sterling Group in senior secured term, revolving and mezzanine facilities to finance the acquisition of Time Manufacturing Company; senior secured facilities to finance its acquisition of Process Equipment, Inc.; and Frontline Road Safety in first lien facilities to finance its acquisition of Stripe-A-Zone, Inc., Hi-Lite Equipment and Griffin Pavement
• Stripes Group and its portfolio company, Garza Food Ventures (d/b/a Siete Foods), in its $1.2 billion sale to PepsiCo, Inc.
• Trinity Acquisition PLC (a subsidiary of Willis Towers Watson PLC) in an amended and restated $1.5 billion senior unsecured revolving facility to refinance existing indebtedness
• Waypoint Leasing Limited in a $49 million debtor-in-possession facility to provide liquidity during its chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings
• Willis North America Inc. (a subsidiary of Willis Towers Watson PLC) in connection with multiple senior unsecured notes offerings totaling over $3 billion in aggregate
• Willis Towers Watson in a $1.1 billion unsecured term facility to finance the acquisition of TRANZACT
• World Triathlon Corporation (a portfolio company of Providence Equity Partners) in $250 million secured credit facilities
• WPX Energy, Inc. in its $2.5 billion acquisition of Felix Energy

Vynessa was selected for the 2021 Fellows Program of the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity (LCLD), a national organization of the legal profession’s top general counsels and managing partners. She has also been honored by the North Texas Business Council for the Arts, for being one of 40 graduates of its 30th Anniversary Leadership Arts Institute class, a program to develop the next generation of business leaders for the arts in North Texas. She was recognized by the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program as the 2010 Outstanding New Pro Bono Lawyer.

Vynessa is an active member of the Dallas Area Young Lawyers and the Dallas Hispanic Bar Association. She also sits on the Board of Governors for the Texas Ballet Theatre and currently serves as a leader of WeilLatinX, the Firm’s Hispanic affinity group.

Vynessa received her J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School and her B.A. from the University of Texas.

** Best Lawyers (in America) is by Levine Leichtman Capital Partners

* Super Lawyers recognition is a Thomson Reuters service