Bio
John Riihiluoma is Senior Counsel in the Dispute Resolution Department in Bermuda.
John’s practice includes reinsurance disputes, directors’ and officers’ liability actions, shareholder and corporate disputes. He has also been active in insolvency and restructuring litigation. In recent years his practice has included a number of significant contentious trust matters.
He was appointed as an Assistant Justice of the Supreme Court of Bermuda in 2012 to sit from time to time as may be required in civil and commercial matters. John has also sat as an acting Puisne Judge on an ad hoc basis over the past few years.
Bio
John Riihiluoma is Senior Counsel in the Dispute Resolution Department in Bermuda.
John’s practice includes reinsurance disputes, directors’ and officers’ liability actions, shareholder and corporate disputes. He has also been active in insolvency and restructuring litigation. In recent years his practice has included a number of significant contentious trust matters.
He was appointed as an Assistant Justice of the Supreme Court of Bermuda in 2012 to sit from time to time as may be required in civil and commercial matters. John has also sat as an acting Puisne Judge on an ad hoc basis over the past few years.
Work Highlights
- ST ENERGY TRANSITION I LTD., Appleby acted as Bermuda counsel to ST Energy Transition I Ltd. (the “Company”) on its USD250 million ESG-related SPAC IPO on the New York Stock Exchange targeting energy transition and clean energy technology;
- ETELEQUOTE LTD., Acted as Bermuda counsel to e-TeleQuote in connection with the sale of its operating subsidiaries to Primerica, a well established provider of financial services to middle-income families throughout the United States and Canada. This deal gives an enterprise value of $600 million;
- FLOATEL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED, Advised Floatel International Limited and it subsidiaries (the Group) on its successful, fully comprehensive balance sheet restructuring. The Floatel Group is renowned for providing offshore accommodation and support vessels;
- THE ESTATE OF HUNG WEN-HSIUNG: Proceedings are bought by one of the heirs of one of Taiwan’s most significant business empires. Our client is the Estate of Mr Hung. Mr Hung was an advisor to the founders and was involved in the establishment of their Bermuda Trusts. It is claimed that the Trusts are invalid under Bermuda law because the purposes are said to be for mixed charitable and non-charitable purposes and/or because of allegations of want of authority and/or undue influence;
- SEADRILL, Advised the coordinating committee representing a bank group holding USD 7.4 billion in secured debt, on Seadrill Limited’s successful completion of its USD 10 billion restructuring plan pursuant to its chapter 11 plan of reorganisation. This high profile restructuring was one of the most complex restructurings in history and the largest ever in the offshore drilling sector;
- B LAB, Provided Bermuda law advice to B Lab on the potential availability of B Lab certification to Bermuda organisations. B Lab is a non-profit organization which has created a certification which it awards to for profit organisations that are committed to the creation of value for society and not just for the traditional stakeholders of an organisation such as its shareholders.
Work Highlights
- ST ENERGY TRANSITION I LTD., Appleby acted as Bermuda counsel to ST Energy Transition I Ltd. (the “Company”) on its USD250 million ESG-related SPAC IPO on the New York Stock Exchange targeting energy transition and clean energy technology;
- ETELEQUOTE LTD., Acted as Bermuda counsel to e-TeleQuote in connection with the sale of its operating subsidiaries to Primerica, a well established provider of financial services to middle-income families throughout the United States and Canada. This deal gives an enterprise value of $600 million;
- FLOATEL INTERNATIONAL LIMITED, Advised Floatel International Limited and it subsidiaries (the Group) on its successful, fully comprehensive balance sheet restructuring. The Floatel Group is renowned for providing offshore accommodation and support vessels;
- THE ESTATE OF HUNG WEN-HSIUNG: Proceedings are bought by one of the heirs of one of Taiwan’s most significant business empires. Our client is the Estate of Mr Hung. Mr Hung was an advisor to the founders and was involved in the establishment of their Bermuda Trusts. It is claimed that the Trusts are invalid under Bermuda law because the purposes are said to be for mixed charitable and non-charitable purposes and/or because of allegations of want of authority and/or undue influence;
- SEADRILL, Advised the coordinating committee representing a bank group holding USD 7.4 billion in secured debt, on Seadrill Limited’s successful completion of its USD 10 billion restructuring plan pursuant to its chapter 11 plan of reorganisation. This high profile restructuring was one of the most complex restructurings in history and the largest ever in the offshore drilling sector;
- B LAB, Provided Bermuda law advice to B Lab on the potential availability of B Lab certification to Bermuda organisations. B Lab is a non-profit organization which has created a certification which it awards to for profit organisations that are committed to the creation of value for society and not just for the traditional stakeholders of an organisation such as its shareholders.
Recognition
John is ranked as a ‘Senior Statesperson‘ in Dispute Resolution by Chambers Global . He continues to be
viewed by peers as an “excellent technical lawyer” and a “fantastic legal brain.” John is respected for his “very
measured, technical advice” and clients explain, “he is the brains trust. You always want somebody like John who has 40 years of experience.” He is also consistently recommended by Legal 500 Caribbean in the Dispute Resolution category where he has been described as “a seasoned campaigner whose judgement is greatly respected.” Another source commented, “John is a very wise and experienced counsel, and always a comfort to have on your side.” John is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Arbitrators and has acted as counsel in arbitrations and as an arbitrator.
Recognition
John is ranked as a ‘Senior Statesperson‘ in Dispute Resolution by Chambers Global . He continues to be
viewed by peers as an “excellent technical lawyer” and a “fantastic legal brain.” John is respected for his “very
measured, technical advice” and clients explain, “he is the brains trust. You always want somebody like John who has 40 years of experience.” He is also consistently recommended by Legal 500 Caribbean in the Dispute Resolution category where he has been described as “a seasoned campaigner whose judgement is greatly respected.” Another source commented, “John is a very wise and experienced counsel, and always a comfort to have on your side.” John is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Arbitrators and has acted as counsel in arbitrations and as an arbitrator.
Coverage & Insights
- Bermuda: Insolvency in a Consistently Reliable Restructuring Jurisdiction – Americas Restructuring Review 2024 – Global Restructuring Review – December 2023
- The Insolvency Review – Edition 11 – The Law Reviews – October 2023
- Americas Restructuring Review 2023 – Global Restructuring Review, December 2022
- The Insolvency Review – Edition 10 – The Law Reviews, October 2022
- Americas Restructuring Review 2022 – Global Restructuring Review, December 2021
- The Insolvency Review – Ninth Edition – The Law Reviews, October 2021
- Americas Restructuring Review 2021 – Global Restructuring Review – December 2020
- The Insolvency Review, Eighth Edition – The Law Reviews – December 2020
- Restructuring & Insolvency 2020 – Lexology Getting the Deal Through – January 2020
- The Insolvency Review, Seventh Edition – The Law Reviews – December 2019
- All Above Board on the Orient Express: Bermuda Share Structure Confirmed- Resolution, Offshore – April 2011
Coverage & Insights
- Bermuda: Insolvency in a Consistently Reliable Restructuring Jurisdiction – Americas Restructuring Review 2024 – Global Restructuring Review – December 2023
- The Insolvency Review – Edition 11 – The Law Reviews – October 2023
- Americas Restructuring Review 2023 – Global Restructuring Review, December 2022
- The Insolvency Review – Edition 10 – The Law Reviews, October 2022
- Americas Restructuring Review 2022 – Global Restructuring Review, December 2021
- The Insolvency Review – Ninth Edition – The Law Reviews, October 2021
- Americas Restructuring Review 2021 – Global Restructuring Review – December 2020
- The Insolvency Review, Eighth Edition – The Law Reviews – December 2020
- Restructuring & Insolvency 2020 – Lexology Getting the Deal Through – January 2020
- The Insolvency Review, Seventh Edition – The Law Reviews – December 2019
- All Above Board on the Orient Express: Bermuda Share Structure Confirmed- Resolution, Offshore – April 2011
Qualifications & Education
- Inns of Court School of Law (London)
Qualifications & Education
- Inns of Court School of Law (London)
“A SEASONED PROFESSIONAL AND HAS AN ACUTE EYE FOR DETAIL, BUT MAINTAINS THE AWARENESS OF COMMERCIAL REALITY – HIS PERFORMANCE HAS BEEN EXEMPLARY.”