NEW YORK—September 2, 2026—O’Melveny announced today that renowned corporate restructuring lawyer David Botter has joined the firm’s New York office as a partner in the Bankruptcy & Restructuring Practice. His arrival expands O’Melveny’s roster of leading practitioners and enhances the firm’s creditor-side and special situations capabilities.
Chambers USA and The Legal 500 US both rank Botter among the nation’s premier bankruptcy and restructuring lawyers. Over the course of nearly four decades, he has represented distressed companies, major creditors, and creditor committees in complex multijurisdictional bankruptcy proceedings, out-of-court restructurings, and acquisitions and dispositions of distressed assets. Bondholders, institutional investors, hedge funds, debtors-in-possession, and post-petition lenders all turn to Botter for advice on credit-related matters. His experience spans a wide range of industries that align with O’Melveny’s strengths and strategic priorities, including health care, transportation, and energy.
Botter comes to O’Melveny from the New York office of Cleary Gottlieb, where he was a partner in that firm’s restructuring practice. Prior to Cleary, he worked for 22 years as a restructuring partner at Akin Gump. Earlier in his career, Botter served in-house as associate general counsel for a major global software corporation. He is the fourth lateral partner to join O’Melveny’s Bankruptcy & Restructuring Practice in recent years—following the 2023 arrival of London partner Greg Campbell and the 2024 arrivals of New York partner Ana Alfonso and Los Angeles partner Julian Gurule.
“It is a pleasure to welcome David to our growing, award-winning Bankruptcy & Restructuring team,” said O’Melveny chair Bradley J. Butwin. “David is a respected leader renowned for his deep experience, his cerebral, practical approach to problem-solving, and his steadfast commitment to his clients. And David’s creditor-side restructuring skills align perfectly with our firm’s relationships with major institutional investors, private funds, banks, and asset managers. We’re delighted to welcome him aboard.”
“I’m excited to join O’Melveny’s team of world class Bankruptcy & Restructuring lawyers,” Botter said. “The firm’s expansive platform was a huge draw for me, as was its synergistic approach to client service and its collegial, collaborative culture. I’m looking forward to working alongside my talented new colleagues and to providing my clients with all of the industry-leading benefits that O’Melveny has to offer.”
Botter’s addition continues O’Melveny’s strategic growth, marking the 56th lateral partner and 36th corporate partner to join the firm since 2023.
Botter earned his J.D. cum laude from Boston University School of Law and his B.A. from Syracuse University.
