Nicholas Dunstone

Primary Focus & Experience

Mr Dunstone’s practice focuses on financial restructuring and distressed debt investment for a broad range of international clients, including substantial experience advising funds on creditor steering committees in both contentious and non-contentious situations. Nicholas’s career includes 15 years as a restructuring lawyer,and recently, 11 years as an investment professional at a leading credit fund, including working in London, New York, Hong Kong, Sydney and Singapore. Prior to joining Milbank, Nicholas was a partner and head of restructuring at asset management firm Asia Research & Capital Management (ARCM), where he played a leading role in private and public credit situations including primary lending, special situations and distressed debt/restructuring situations across Asia and globally, with a particular focus on energy and infrastructure investments. Prior to joining ARCM, Nicholas was a partner in the restructuring and special situations practice of a ‘magic circle’ firm’s Sydney and Hong Kong offices, and prior to that he was a partner at an Australian law firm, where he established its global distressed funds practice. 

His experience includes: 

• Counsel to the AHG of bondholders in the restructuring negotiations relating to the $600m of Convertible Bonds of VNET (NASDAQ listed Cayman company operating 3rd largest data center group in China).
• Lead steering committee member of bondholder / lender groups in the restructurings of Floatel, Oro Negro, Noble Group, Covalent, Bassdrill, Niko Resources, and Songa Offshore.
• Premier Oil (largest creditor in a contentious Scheme of Arrangement in the UK).
• Significant investor in pan Asian stressed situations including Vedanta, TEPCO, TMT, Arrium, Seadrill, NADL, DAPL, Toshiba, and Korean Lines  
• Lead investor in loan to own restructuring with Goldman Sachs of Denon & Marantz (Japan), including serving as board member post restructuring.
• Board member of a number of shipping companies owning significant fleets of chemical tankers and bulk carriers (Tiger Bulk and Tiger Chem)
• Lead counsel to special situations funds investing in Australian connected restructurings from 2002 to 2012, including I-Med, Freightlink, Henry Walker Eltin, Southland Coal, Sons of Gwalia, Cubbie Station, Australia Japan Cable, Brandrill, Colorado, Centro, Alinta, Babcock & Brown, Nine Media, Lane Cove Tunnel, Cross City Tunnel, Lynas, Loy Yang and Nexus Energy.
• Counsel to the AHG of noteholders of Barings bank (and resulting audit negligence audit negligence actions) Clubhaus and Nortel Networks.

Recognition & Accomplishments

Mr. Dunstone obtained a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Adelaide, Australia. He was admitted as a Barrister and Solicitor of the Supreme Court of South Australia, a Solicitor of the High Court of Australia and as a Solicitor in England & Wales. Nick has been a speaker at INSOL and other conferences relating to distressed investing and has served as a board member of the TMA in Australia.