Melissa Schwab Wright

Melissa Schwab Wright is a partner in the firm’s Private Equity group and a member of its Debt Finance practice. She joined Goodwin in 2015.

Ms. Wright advises lenders and borrowers in a broad range of complex finance and restructuring transactions, and has extensive experience managing all aspects of large, syndicated, multi-tranche financings ranging from $5 million to over $2 billion. She is adept in handling cross-border matters and in working with a wide variety of industries, including waste management, healthcare, manufacturing, retail, and technology. Ms. Wright also advises lenders and borrowers across a broad array of debt transactions, including private equity-sponsored leveraged buyouts and recapitalizations, syndicated, secured and investment grade strategic acquisition financings and working capital facilities, fully-followed asset-backed facilities and seller financing.

Ms. Wright’s recent work has included representing and/or counseling:

• A leading nationwide, diversified bank, as agent, in connection with a $350 million multicurrency secured revolving credit facility for a national manufacturer of windows and doors.*
• One of the largest retail banks in the U.S., as agent, in connection with a $450 million secured revolving credit facility (as part of $1.1 billion senior facility) for YRC Worldwide Inc., a public company providing range of transportation services across North America and internationally.*
• A leading nationwide bank and diversified financial institution, as lender, in connection with secured credit facility consisting of a $100 million term loan and a $50 million revolving facility (as part of $250 million senior facility) to Hypertherm, Inc., New Hampshire-based designer and manufacturer of metal cutting products, to effectuate company's transition to 100% ESOP-owned organization.*
• A global agent in a $2.35 billion multi-currency senior secured working capital facility and tranche B term loan for public, vertically-integrated solid waste disposal and environmental services company based in Ontario and operating through 70 subsidiaries throughout U.S. and Canada.*
• A private equity firm in connection with multiple leveraged buyouts of companies in healthcare, manufacturing, high-tech and food service industries.*
• An administrative agent in high-grade, fully-underwritten $600 million tranche A term loan facility for leading public environmental services and waste management company with operations in 29 states acting through 139 subsidiaries, in connection with financing of $1.3 billion acquisition of waste treatment and disposal company.*
• An administrative agent in multiple private equity-sponsored leveraged buyouts and recapitalizations of lower-middle-market companies, with term loan and revolving credit facilities ranging from $5 million to $35 million. Negotiated intercreditor agreements with subordinated unsecured and second-lien creditors.*
• An administrative agent in $40 million syndicated working capital and term loan A facility for manufacturer of parts cleaning solvent and provider of drum waste management, oil collection, oil re-refining and other products and services pertaining to the environmental services market.*
• An administrative agent in CA$200 million syndicated, multicurrency working capital facility for one of fastest-growing environmental services and waste management companies in Canada.*
• A letter of credit issuer in connection with numerous industrial revenue bond financings and other municipal bond issuances.*

(*denotes experience prior to joining Goodwin)

Prior to joining Goodwin, Ms. Wright was of counsel at Choate Hall & Stewart in Boston.

Ms. Wright has been selected for inclusion in The Legal 500 US 2022. She has been named a Massachusetts Super Lawyers “Rising Star.”

Ms. Wright’s speaking engagements include:

• “Raising Debt Capital,” BizGrow (2017)

Co-Author, “Proposed Chapter 11 Reforms May Be Bad For Borrowers,” Bankruptcy Law360  (March 2015).

While in law school, Ms. Wright was a contributing editor of the Journal of Law Reform.