DISTRESSED DAILY: How Restructuring Pros Revived a Lehman Deal

Knowing the ins and outs of arcane bankruptcy law doesn’t often save the day—but 14 years ago, it did.

In the wee hours of Sept. 20, 2008, Lehman Brothers’ US capital markets units were sold to Barclays Plc out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy. Just days earlier, such an outcome appeared impossible after British regulators put the kibosh on Barclays purchasing Lehman.

But a conversation between Mark Shapiro, head of Lehman’s restructuring division, and Kevin Genirs, general counsel for the investment bank, managed to revive part of the deal in the form of a bankruptcy 363 sale. Genirs asked ...