WeWork’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy and leases in Brazil

Juliana Bastianello Baldin Martins, Managing Director - Legal Affairs, GTIS Partners
Nicholas Minoru Fernandes Yoshino, Associate - Legal Affairs, GTIS Partners

Cross-border effects of bankruptcy procedures in the U.S. gained a new chapter in 2023, when WeWork Group filed for Chapter 11. WeWork has since claimed that this reorganization would not affect the company’s operations outside the U.S. However, as revealed during the Chapter 11 proceedings, WeWork’s leases in Brazil have indeed been affected, but in a less obvious manner. In this article we explore how the inclusion of the guarantor of WeWork’s Brazilian leases - a U.S. based entity - under the Chapter 11 bankruptcy left leases in Brazil unsecured. We further analyze the legal implications of this approach under Brazilian law and assess what remedies are available to Brazilian landlords under these circumstances.

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Insolvency Property April 2024 Vol.17, No. 67, Spring 2024

Juliana Bastianello Baldin Martins

Juliana Bastianello Baldin Martins joined GTIS Partners on May 2011 and is currently a Managing Director at the firm. Mrs. Baldin Martins is responsible for overseeing legal activities in Brazil. Prior to joining GTIS Partners in 2011, Mrs. Baldin Martins was a lawyer at Machado, Meyer, Sendacz e Opice Advogados, one of the largest law firms in Brazil. Mrs. Baldin Martins graduated from São Paulo University Law School (USP) in 2007, completed her Master’s of Business Administration at Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV) in 2011 and her Master’s in Corporate Law at São Paulo University Law School (USP) in 2022.

Nicholas Minoru Fernandes Yoshino

Nicholas Minoru Fernandes Yoshino joined GTIS Partners on December 2021 and is currently an Associate to the legal department. Prior to joining GTIS Partners in 2021, Mr. Yoshino was a lawyer at Negrão e Ferrari Advogados (NFA) and, before that, at Stocche Forbes Advogados, where he specialized in real estate transactions. Mr. Yoshino graduated from Fundação Getúlio Vargas’s Law School (FGV) in 2018.

Insolvency Property April 2024 Vol.17, No. 67, Spring 2024