Overview
At each turn, attorney Ryan Cochran is committed to maximizing recoveries and finding the most effective solutions for receivers, indenture trustees, financial services clients, and others, whether inside or outside the courtroom.
Ryan represents receivers and indenture trustees in receiverships over senior living facilities, including skilled nursing facilities, assisted living facilities, and memory care facilities. Since 2014, he has represented the receiver or indenture trustee in 27 receiverships over 45 senior living facilities, including selling 23 senior living facilities using a court-approved stalking horse auction process in the marketing and sale of the facilities.
In addition, Ryan has extensive experience working on insolvency and receivership proceedings involving municipalities, health care facilities, utilities, real estate ventures, and other businesses. He has represented creditors and debtors in commercial law matters, workouts, corporate reorganizations, and bankruptcy litigation. Utilizing his transactional and litigation experience, he helps clients navigate the complexities caused by financially distressed parties and projects, both in structuring corporate and credit transactions and in connection with bankruptcy proceedings.
Banks, financial institutions, and specialty lenders also turn to Ryan for assistance with the restructuring and collection of nonperforming loans and in litigation related to the financial services industry.
Before joining Epstein Becker Green, Ryan was the Practice Group Leader of a regional law firm's Finance & Restructuring (F&R) practice. In that role, he oversaw strategic initiatives, including client service and case management, for the F&R practice.
Earlier in his career, Ryan was a Law Clerk to the Honorable Sharon Lovelace Blackburn of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Alabama and an Extern to the Honorable Tamara O. Mitchell of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Alabama.
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Focus Areas
Experience
- Represented a receiver over an assisted living facility in Tennessee, in litigation and health care regulatory matters.
- Represented a receiver over a skilled nursing, assisted living, and specialty care facility located in Alabama, in litigation and health care regulatory matters. Ryan also represented the receiver in conducting a court-approved stalking horse auction.
- Represented a training facility company against a default judgment entered against the company and its parent company under a lease for a medical office building space. The parent company engaged Ryan to resist impermissible collection efforts by the plaintiff.
- Represented a receiver in pursuing claims against an accounting firm related to the issuance of bonds. Ryan helped the receiver obtain a settlement on behalf of current and previous bondholders.
- Represented a receiver appointed to administer and control a 40-bed assisted living facility. Ryan also represented the receiver in conducting a court-approved stalking horse auction process.
- Assisted a health care receiver in its administration and operation of a 60-bed skilled nursing home and a 42-unit assisted living facility in Virginia, in the court-approved stalking horse auction of the two facilities, and in the sale of the nursing home's certificate of need bed rights by a private sale.
- Represented a receiver appointed to administer and operate a 210-bed assisted living facility in Arizona as its general counsel and in conducting a court-approved stalking horse auction of the assisted living facility.
- Represented a receiver appointed to administer and operate multiple assisted living facilities in the South as its general counsel. Ryan also assisted the receiver in its administration and operation of the facilities pending their sale, as well as in nine court-approved stalking horse auctions.
- Represented a receiver over four skilled nursing facilities located in Texas, in litigation and health care regulatory matters. Ryan also represented the receiver in conducting a court-approved stalking horse auction.
- Represented a regional hospital's directors and officers in two separate class actions filed against them by former employees after the hospital filed for bankruptcy and ceased operations.
- Assisted a 140-bed not-for-profit hospital in the Midwest in winding down its operations and liquidating assets and in its Chapter 7 bankruptcy proceeding.
- Represented the indenture trustee for the approximately $5.3 billion water and sewer bonds connected to the City of Detroit, Michigan’s Chapter 9 bankruptcy proceeding.
- Assisted a bank in obtaining a waiver of Chapter 7 debtor's discharge in bankruptcy.
- Represented an indenture trustee in obtaining a receiver over a skilled nursing facility in Alabama, the sale of the facility through a court-appointed stalking horse auction, and the pursuit of third-party claims against the facility's control person and affiliates.
- Represented an indenture trustee for bonds issued to finance the acquisition and renovation of three skilled nursing home facilities in litigation to enforce the terms of a confirmed bankruptcy plan of reorganization. The litigation resulted in reopening the obligor's bankruptcy case, setting aside the bankruptcy court's order dismissing the obligor's bankruptcy case, and obtaining the appointment of a Chapter 11 trustee to control and administer the nursing home facilities.
- Represented the indenture trustee in connection with litigation and a receivership arising from Jefferson County, Alabama, defaulting on approximately $3.2 billion in pledged revenue bonds.
- Represented the indenture trustee for $3.2 billion in pledged sewer revenue bonds connected to Jefferson County, Alabama’s Chapter 9 bankruptcy proceeding.
- Represented over 100 investors in obtaining a receiver over oil and gas wells and in purchasing the oil and gas wells at a court-approved stalking horse auction.
- Defended investors in an adversary proceeding brought by the Chapter 7 trustee for the bankruptcy estate of the perpetrator of a Ponzi scheme.
- Represented multiple investors who purchased interests in oil and gas partnerships and were victims of securities fraud, in U.S. bankruptcy court, which resulted in a contested motion for the appointment of a Chapter 11 trustee.
- Defended multiple mass tort lawyers against claims brought by numerous Chapter 7 and Chapter 13 standing trustees representing over 200 bankruptcy estates for turnover of alleged estate assets. The plaintiffs alleged that Ryan’s clients violated the automatic stay for exercising control over estate property, accepted settlements on behalf of their clients who were in bankruptcy, and disbursed attorneys’ fees without court approval. Ryan secured a favorable settlement on behalf of his clients.
- Represented the trustee in a declaratory judgment action to declare the rights and interests of the trustees and beneficiaries in the trust's ownership interest of a closely held private company.
Recognition
- The Best Lawyers in America, Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law (2019 to 2025)
- Mid-South Super Lawyers, Creditor Debtor Rights (2017 to 2020)
Credentials
Education
- Samford University Cumberland School of Law (J.D., magna cum laude, 2000)
- Editor in Chief, Cumberland Law Review
- Curia Honoris (Academic Honor Society)
- Auburn University (B.S., 1997)
Bar Admissions
- Alabama
- Tennessee
Court Admissions
- All State and Federal Courts in Alabama
- All State and Federal Courts in Tennessee
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court, Northern District of Texas
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas
Professional & Community Involvement
- American Bankruptcy Institute, Bankruptcy Litigation Section, Member
- American Bar Association, Health Law Section, Member
- Mid-South Commercial Law Institute, Past Board Member
- Land Trust for Tennessee, Projects Committee, Past Member
- Nashville Young Leaders Council, Alumnus
- National Institute of Trial Advocacy Trial Skills Program, Participant
- Tennessee Bar Association, Member
- Turnaround Management Association, Member
Media
Events
Past Events
- April 15-16, 2024
Insights
Insights
- PublicationsPart II—Why You Should Learn the Playbook: Sampling of Market Terms and Timelines in Court-Approved Asset Sales ...2 minute read
- PublicationsPart I—Why You Should Learn the Playbook: Know the Game Plan for Distressed Acquisitions and Divestitures2 minute read
- Firm Announcements
Epstein Becker Green Attorneys Honored for Excellence in the Legal Profession by Best Lawyers 2025
14 minute read - BlogsAuthors Predict an Increase in the Use of State Court Receivership Proceedings4 minute read
- BlogsNew State Laws Requiring Notice of Health Care Transactions Will Uniquely Impact Distressed Transactions8 minute read
- Firm Announcements
Epstein Becker Green Attorneys Recognized by 2024 Best Lawyers for Excellence in the Legal Profession
12 minute read - PublicationsPatient Monitoring Services Need Increased Scrutiny to Prevent False Claims Act Enforcement Action3 minute read
- Media CoverageRyan Cochran Featured in “People on the Move”1 minute read
- Media CoverageJeb Gerth, Ryan Cochran Featured in “Laterals, Moves, In-House”1 minute read
- Firm AnnouncementsEpstein Becker Green Continues Focused Growth in Nashville with Health Care and Employment Hires4 minute read
- Media CoverageRyan Cochran, Jeb Gerth Featured in “Notes: Waller Partners Move to Epstein Becker Green”1 minute read
- Media CoverageRyan Cochran, Jeb Gerth Featured in “Epstein Becker Brings On 2 Members in Nashville”2 minute read
- Media CoverageRyan Cochran, Jeb Gerth Featured in “2 Waller Partners Join Epstein Becker Green”1 minute read
Publications
- Hospitals Financially Impacted by COVID-19, Alabama Bank News August 1, 2020
- Eight Survival Strategies for Nonprofit Boards, AHA Trustee Services June 18, 2020
- The Advantages of a Receivership – When Your Collateral Is in Jeopardy, ABL Advisor May 6, 2017
- Understanding the Current Status of Government Owned Hospitals in Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Texas, stateofyourhospital.com February 1, 2016