Commercial Real Estate Loan Defaults: Lender Remedies, Borrower Defenses, and Workout Strategy

Andrew T. McClain | Troutman Pepper Locke

Andrew T. McClain is Counsel at Troutman Pepper Locke in the firm’s Chicago and Detroit offices, where he serves as a trusted advisor and litigator focused on creditors’ rights and distressed real estate. He counsels secured lenders, special servicers, government-sponsored enterprises, and other creditors on enforcement strategies, out-of-court workouts, restructurings, and post-judgment enforcement proceedings. His broad experience includes judicial and nonjudicial commercial foreclosures, receiverships, loan sales, and UCC Article 9 sales. Andrew’s commercial litigation practice includes matters involving real estate, business, and construction disputes in state and federal courts, arbitrations, and mediations.

• Education & Credentials

Andrew earned his J.D., cum laude, from Michigan State University College of Law, where he was a member of the Michigan State Law Review, and a B.S. from Fordham University. He is admitted to the Illinois and Michigan Bars.

• Recognition & Leadership

Andrew has been named a Recognized Lawyer by The Legal 500 in Restructuring (including Bankruptcy): Corporate (2025), a Super Lawyers Illinois Rising Star (2019–2023), and Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch in Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law (2021–2024).

• Professional Involvement

Andrew is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute’s Real Estate Committee, the Commercial Real Estate Finance Council, and the National Association of Federal Equity Receivers. He co-authored “Receivership Law May Streamline Real Estate Sales In Illinois” in Law360.

• Experience

Andrew has represented multiple secured lenders, special servicers, and government-sponsored enterprises in numerous SEC receiverships and court-appointed receivers in complex commercial foreclosure actions. He represented a special servicer in a commercial foreclosure and receivership action and obtained a favorable decision from the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Michael B. Kind | Troutman Pepper Locke

Michael B. Kind is a Partner at Troutman Pepper Locke in Chicago, where he advises commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) special servicers, banks, nonbank lenders, specialty finance companies, and other secured and unsecured creditors to enforce their rights, protect their assets, and maximize their recoveries. He regularly represents these clients in commercial foreclosure disputes, loan workouts, complex bankruptcy cases, property and equity receiverships, and other loan or transactional disputes.

• Education & Credentials

Michael earned his J.D. from the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School in 2011, where he served as Comments Editor of the Journal of Business Law and won the Edwin R. Keedy Cup Moot Court Competition. He holds a B.A., summa cum laude, in History from the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a Benjamin Franklin Scholar. He is admitted to the Illinois Bar.

• Recognition & Leadership

Michael has been named a Super Lawyers Illinois Rising Star in Bankruptcy: Business (2015–2025) and listed in Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch for Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights, Insolvency and Reorganization Law (2021, 2023).

• Professional Involvement

Michael is a member of the Turnaround Management Association and the American Bankruptcy Institute. He has spoken on bankruptcy treatment of deductibles and self-insured retentions for Strafford and coauthored “Unexpected Rescue: Observations on the Silicon Valley Bank Closure and Ongoing Market Disruptions”.

• Experience

Michael has extensive experience in complex Chapter 11 cases and other bankruptcy contexts, representing secured and unsecured creditors, trustees, insurance companies, landlords, and media agencies. He has represented several of the nation’s largest CMBS special servicers in contested foreclosure litigation, guarantor litigation, and bankruptcy matters involving assets across the U.S.

SESSION 1 – Loan Defaults: Triggers, Identification, and Lender Remedies | 1:00pm – 2:00pm

Examine how commercial real estate loan defaults are triggered and identified from both lender and borrower perspectives, followed by a litigation-focused review of lender remedies, including acceleration, foreclosure, and receivership in default-related disputes.

BREAK | 2:00pm – 2:10pm

SESSION 2 – Borrower Defenses and Strategic Resolution of Default Disputes | 2:10pm – 3:10pm

Analyze common borrower defenses and litigation strategies in commercial real estate loan default disputes, along with key strategic considerations for resolving these matters and practical takeaways for attorneys representing both lenders and borrowers.