Eric Leicht

Partner, New York

Biography

Clients have described Eric Leicht as “phenomenal” (Chambers USA 2017) and “one of the most knowledgeable and practical lawyers on the Street…a true problem solver” (Chambers USA 2018). Another client noted that Eric is “very plugged into what’s going on in the market and conversations with him are super efficient. He’s very pragmatic in the way he takes ownership of issues.” (Chambers USA 2019).

Overview

Eric Leicht is a partner in the New York office of White & Case LLP and a member of the Executive Committee. He formerly served as head of the Firm's Americas Banking Section and Global Head of its Debt Finance Practice. Mr. Leicht's practice focuses on the representation of major commercial and investment banks and private credit funds in lending transactions, including leveraged and corporate finance transactions, acquisition finance, asset-based lending facilities, bridge facilities, DIP financings and restructurings. He has also represented corporations as borrowers in a wide range of financing transactions, including workouts and restructurings. As lead counsel, he is involved in all aspects of the deal structure, negotiation and documentation, including the negotiation of intercreditor arrangements among senior and junior creditors.

With more than 25 years of experience, Eric is widely recognized by respected legal guides as a leading practitioner in the field of banking and finance, including Chambers USA 2024 and the US edition of The Legal 500 2023.

Eric's extensive experience has made him a valued legal resource for major domestic and overseas clients. He has worked on a number of landmark and award-winning deals, including the reorganization of the Central European Distribution Corporation (CEDC) (which won M&A Advisor's Chapter 11 Reorganization of the Year Award 2014 for projects over US$1 billion) and a US$7.6 billion term loan facility to Univision Communications, Inc. (which was — at the time — the largest leveraged term loan facility ever syndicated), and the US$1.3 billion holdco term loan to Citgo Holding (part of the largest ever holdco dividend financing).

Bars and Courts
New York
Education
JD
University of Virginia School of Law
BA
Williams College
Languages
English

Experience

Playa Resorts
Representation of Deutsche Bank AG, as left lead arranger, administrative agent and lender, in connection with a US$1.1 billion term loan facility and US$225 million revolver facility provided to Playa Resorts Holding B.V. Playa (NASDAQ: PLYA) is a leading owner, operator and developer of all-inclusive resorts in prime beachfront locations in popular vacation destinations in Mexico and the Caribbean.

Avalara
Representation of Owl Rock and a large group of other private credit funds in the US$2.75 billion recurring revenue financing made available to Vista Equity to fund the US$8.4 billion acquisition and take-private of Avalara, a tax software provider.

JetBlue Airways
Representation of JetBlue Airways Corporation, a leading carrier in more than 100 cities throughout the United States, Latin America, the Caribbean, Canada and the United Kingdom, on a US$3.5 billion senior secured bridge loan commitment to support JetBlue's acquisition of Spirit Airlines, Inc., a leading ultra-low cost airline carrier.

FINThrive
Representation of JPMorgan Chase Bank, as First Lien Administrative Agent, and Deutsche Bank AG, New York Branch, as Second Lien Administrative Agent, in connection with a US$1.265 billion first lien term loan facility, a US$150 million first lien revolving credit facility, and a US$460 million second lien credit facility made available to FINThrive Software Intermediate Holdings, Inc. The proceeds of these credit facilities were used to refinance existing debt and to finance FINThrive’s acquisition of TransUnion Healthcare, Inc. FINThrive, a portfolio company of Clearlake Capital, is a healthcare revenue cycle management software-as-a-service platform provider.

Dave & Buster's
Representation of Deutsche Bank, as left lead arranger, agent and lender, in connection with a US$1.35 billion senior secured financing provided to Dave & Buster's (NASDAQ: PLAY) to finance its acquisition of Main Event Entertainment from Ardent Leisure, an Australian-based public leisure company. Dave & Buster’s is a leading restaurant and entertainment business with 145 locations in the U.S. and two locations in Canada.

TelevisaUnivision
Representation of (i) JPMorgan Chase Bank, as Administrative Agent, and Goldman Sachs, as First-Lien Collateral Agent, and a group of other financial institutions, as joint lead arrangers and joint bookrunners, in connection with a US$1.05 billion senior secured term loan facility provided to Univision Communications Inc. ("Univision") to finance its combination with Televisa, (ii) JPMorgan Chase Bank, as Administrative Agent and Joint Lead Arranger, in connection with a US$500 million incremental term loan facility provided to Univision, (iii) Goldman Sachs, as Administrative Agent, Collateral Agent and Joint Lead Arranger, in connection with a US$522 million revolving credit facility provided to Univision; and (iv) Bank of America, as Left Lead Arranger, on a US$500 million senior secured "A" term loan facility provided to Univision. Univision is a leading Hispanic media company in the US that provides news, sports and entertainment content across broadcast and cable television, audio and digital platforms.

Pilot Travel Centers
Representation of Pilot Travel Centers LLC, a leading operator of travel centers and travel plazas in North America, in connection with a US$3.5 billion term loan B facility and a $750 million incremental revolving facility increase.

TransUnion
Representation of (i) Deutsche Bank, as Left Lead Arranger and Agent, in connection with a US$3.1 billion incremental term loan facility provided to TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) to fund its acquisition of Ariel Ultimate Holding Corporation and (ii) JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Left Lead Arranger and Agent, on a US$640 million second lien term loan facility provided to TransUnion to finance its acquisition of Sontiq, a leader in digital identity protection and security. TransUnion is a US consumer credit reporting agency that collects and aggregates information on over one billion individual customers in over 30 countries.

The Hertz Corporation
Representation of The Hertz Corporation on its US$2.8 billion corporate financing, comprised of a US$1.3 billion term "B" loan facility, a US$245 million term "C" loan facility and a US$1.25 billion revolving credit facility. White & Case represented Hertz and certain affiliates during its Chapter 11 cases and restructuring, which resulted from the catastrophic impact of COVID-19. Hertz and its affiliated brands operate one of the world's largest rental car companies with more than 10,000 owned and franchised locations across the world.

Neiman Marcus
Representation of Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch, as administrative agent, in connection with (i) Neiman Marcus Group LLC's US$900 million asset-based revolving credit facility (ABL), (ii) the documentation and negotiation of a US$100 million first-in-last-out (FILO) provided by TPG and (iii) following the company's filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May 2020, the negotiation and documentation of a cash collateral order.

TCEH
Representation of Deutsche Bank AG New York Branch, as administrative agent and collateral agent, and Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Barclays Bank plc, Citibank, Credit Suisse, Royal Bank of Canada, UBS Securities and Natixis, as joint lead arrangers, in connection with (i) $4.25 billion senior secured super-priority debtor-in possession credit facilities for Texas Competitive Electric Holdings Company LLC used to refinance its existing DIP facilities and (ii) $4.25 billion senior secured exit credit facilities for Tex Energy LLC (as successor to TCEH) incurred to refinance and replace the existing DIP credit facilities upon the emergence of TCEH from bankruptcy. This was, at the time, the largest DIP Roll-to-Exit Facility in history.

Anthem
Representation of Anthem, one of the nation's largest health benefits companies, in connection with a US$26.5 billion bridge loan commitment provided by a group of lenders, including Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Credit Suisse and UBS. The bridge loan commitment was entered into in connection with Anthem's proposed acquisition of Cigna Corporation.

Fortress Investment Group
Representation of Deutsche Bank, Mizuho and Credit Agricole, as Joint Lead Arrangers, for US$1.54 billion of senior secured credit facilities made available to Foundation Holdings, a wholly owned subsidiary of SoftBank, to finance the acquisition of Fortress Investment Group.

Fortis
Representation of Fortis Inc., a leader in the North American electric and gas utility business, in connection with (i) an approximately US$2 billion bridge loan commitment provided by Goldman Sachs Bank USA and (ii) an approximately US$1.7 billion bridge loan commitment provided by The Bank of Nova Scotia. The bridge loan commitments were entered into in connection with Fortis Inc.'s acquisition of ITC Holdings, the largest independent electric transmission company in the US.

Awards and Recognition

Band 1, Banking & Finance – Chambers New York (2020-2024)

"He's very constructive and pleasant to work with."

"Eric is well regarded, due to his knowledge of law and his ability to handle difficult transactions."

"He is one of the best technical lawyers in the market."

Hall of Fame, Finance - Commercial Lending – Legal 500 US (2020-2023)