Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr.

Of Counsel

  • Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr.
  • Phone: +1 215 979 1506

    Import to Address Book

  • Duane Morris LLP
    30 South 17th Street
    Philadelphia, PA 19103-4196
    USA
  • Duane Morris LLP
    1540 Broadway
    New York, NY 10036-4086
    USA
  • Duane Morris LLP
    230 Park Avenue, Suite 1130
    New York, NY 10169-0079
    USA

Rudolph J. Di Massa, Jr. concentrates his practice in the areas of commercial litigation and creditors' rights. Mr. Di Massa currently represents various secured and unsecured lenders in bankruptcy cases pending in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the Southern District of New York, as well as a number of European companies doing business in the United States.

Mr. Di Massa is a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the American Bar Association and its Business Law Section, the Commercial Law League of America, the Pennsylvania Bar Association and the Business Law Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association. He is listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, 2006-2023 editions, as one of the top bankruptcy and restructuring lawyers in the country.

Mr. Di Massa is a 1981 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and a 1978 summa cum laude graduate of Lehigh University, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappa.

Areas of Practice

  • Chapter 11 and Commercial Reorganization
  • Bankruptcy Law
  • Insolvency Law

Representative Matters

  • Represents a group of Italian citizens in a suit against Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela and Petróleos De Venezuela, S.A. to collect sums arising from defaulted payment obligations on sovereign bonds.

  • Advised and defended the former president and chief executive officer of National Label, a consumer-products label manufacturer, against a myriad of claims stemming from the wind-down and sale of the company.

  • Obtained an Order on behalf of the City of Reading, PA from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of PA voiding a Commonwealth Court ruling, thus allowing to stand the City's recycling user fee, which supported costs associated with the City's recycling program.

  • Advised a Vietnam War Veteran, a pro bono client through the Military Assistance Project, in navigating various financial concerns brought about by medical issues.

  • Obtained landmark ruling from the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York on behalf of commercial real estate landlord: court held that a debtor-tenant's "assumption" of lease agreement in bankruptcy case constituted an "affirmance" or "ratification" of the contract under state law that precluded debtor-tenant's continued prosecution of its claim for rescission of an amendment to the lease agreement.

  • Represented a turnaround consultant in an adversary action for seven-figure claims for malpractice and fraudulent transfer brought by debtors A.S.K. Plastics, Inc., Jamison Plastic Corp. and 9800 Ashton Road. Obtained dismissal of case for a nominal payment. In re A.S.K. Plastics, Inc. (Bankr. E.D.Pa.).
  • Represented the Italian trustee of a bankrupt U.S. software company with cases pending in Italy and the U.S.

  • Represented Klausen Finanz, A.G., a Swiss finance company, in connection with the collection of secured indebtedness and negotiation of the purchase and sale of the borrower's assets.

  • Represented North Philadelphia Financial Partnership, a community lending institution formed for the purpose of lending funds to start-up businesses in North Philadelphia, in a foreclosure action against a property owner and suits with various creditors.

  • Represented BT Holdings NY, Inc., an affiliate of Deutsche Bank, in the chapter 11 case of Front Line Capital Group, an office and conference space operator. In re Frontline Capital Group (Bankr. S.D.N.Y.).
  • Represented various Fortune 500 defendants in an action brought in the Pennsylvania state courts by the liquidator in the Reliance Group Holdings, Inc. liquidation proceedings. The liquidator sought to recover as preferences payments made to the defendants under a credit insurance policy with Reliance. Obtained summary judgment decision from the Commonwealth Court. After argument to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, the Commonwealth Court decision was affirmed.

  • Represented BMW Financial Services in connection with acquisition, construction and real estate loans made to dealerships throughout the United States and revolving automotive floor plan and lease line documents.

  • Represented UniCredit Bank, Italy's largest bank, in the collection of secured indebtedness and eventual sale of loan documents in connection with a large manufacturer in New Mexico.

  • Represented various hotel owners in Pennsylvania and Maryland involved in refinancing/restructuring of indebtedness.

  • Represented a residential real estate developer in connection with the restructuring of an $85 million credit facility.

  • Successfully concluded litigation against the Republic of Argentina on behalf of Italian investors who had purchased Argentine bonds. Our efforts resulted in payment to clients of almost 200% of their initial investment.

Admissions

  • Pennsylvania
  • New York
  • U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
  • Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania

Education

  • University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, J.D., 1981

Experience

  • Duane Morris LLP
    - Chairman, Business Reorganization and Financial Restructuring Practice Group, 2001-2018
    - Partner, 1989-present
    - Associate, 1981-1988

Professional Activities

  • American Bar Association - Business Law Section
  • American Bankruptcy Institute
    - Co-Founder and Former Co-Chair, Mid-Atlantic Conference
  • Pennsylvania Bar Association
  • Philadelphia Bar Association
    - Business Law Section
  • Eastern District of PA Bankruptcy Conference
  • Commercial Law League of America
  • Justinian Society

Honors and Awards

  • The Legal Intelligencer Lifetime Achievement Award, 2022
  • Invested as a Cavaliere of the Republic of Italy
  • Listed in The Best Lawyers in America, 2012, 2014-2024

  • Listed in Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, the Client's Guide, 2006-2024 editions

  • Listed in Pennsylvania Super Lawyers

  • Philadelphia Business Journal Best of the Bar: Top Lawyer 2017
  • Listed in Best Lawyers Greater Philadelphia, 2016
  • Selected as a Top Rated Lawyer in Commercial Litigation by the New York Law Journal and Martindale-Hubbell, 2015
  • Listed in Avenue magazine's Legal Elite, 2010
  • Listed in Super Lawyers, Corporate Counsel Edition, 2010
  • Listed in Continental Who's Who Registry of National Business Leaders, 2006 edition
  • AV Preeminent® Peer Review Rated by Martindale-Hubbell®

Civic and Charitable Activities

  • Pro Bono Attorney, Support Center for Child Advocates, Philadelphia, PA
  • Pro Bono Attorney, Military Assistance Project
  • Volunteer Attorney, St. Thomas More Society
  • Volunteer Attorney, Archdiocese of Philadelphia
  • Former Chairman, United Way Campaign Committee,
    Duane Morris LLP

Selected Publications

Selected Speaking Engagements

  • Moderator, Duane Morris LLP Annual Fall Finance and Restructuring Seminar, October 6, 2022
  • Speaker, "Effective Use of Mediation in Bankruptcy," Eastern District of PA Bankruptcy Conference Annual Forum, Philadelphia, April 1, 2022 
  • "Officer and Director Liability," Pennsylvania Bar Institute's Officer and Director Liability Seminar, Milford, Pennsylvania, August 30, 2010
  • International Conference, Cologne, Germany, 2014, Sales of Assets through Bankruptcy
  • "Commercial Lending Requirements and Loan Documentation in Pennsylvania," Lorman Education Services, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, October 23-24, 2001; October 23-24, 2002; October 23, 2003; October 28, 2004
  • Università degli Studi di Urbino, September 27-28, 2002, American Bankruptcy Overview