Stephen P. Strohschein

Focusing on commercial lending and delivering practical resolutions for his clients, Steve Strohschein provides advice in numerous lending areas, including real estate, floorplan, asset-based, and small business. He litigates loan issues and handles workouts, foreclosures, collections, and bankruptcy matters. A significant part of Steve's practice centers on complex automotive wholesale finance matters. He enjoys the challenging, engaging nature of that work and the complexity of each deal. As an adviser who cultivates and maintains client confidence, Steve also guides companies and institutions in lending transactions, structures, and loan documentation.

Practicing in both federal and state courts in Louisiana, Texas, and throughout the country, Steve understands the dynamics of and the interplay among various jurisdictions. He frequently litigates commercial lending issues that end in insolvency and draws on his expansive knowledge of the implications of collections, defaults, workouts, and bankruptcy in both backend and frontend situations. This experience informs all aspects of his counsel for clients—including loan origination—where he is always vigilant about properly structuring and documenting loans from their inception.

In both the litigation and transactional sides of his practice, Steve finds it gratifying to take on a matter and piece the puzzle together to make a deal come to fruition or to maximize a client's returns.

Steve is qualified by the American Board of Certification as a specialist in Business Bankruptcy Law. He previously served as a law clerk to the Honorable LeRoy Smallenberger, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Louisiana.

• American Bankruptcy Institute
• American Bar Association
• Baton Rouge Bar Association

• Selected by his peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® for Bankruptcy and Creditor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law, 2006 – 2024; and Litigation – Bankruptcy, 2006 – 2024
  •  Ranking also featured by Biz New Orleans in their annual "Best Lawyers in New Orleans" supplement
  • Recognized by Best Lawyers® as the Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law "Lawyer of the Year" in New Orleans, 2023
  • Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® as the Litigation – Bankruptcy "Lawyer of the Year" in New Orleans, 2022
  • Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® as the Bankruptcy and Creditor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law "Lawyer of the Year" in Baton Rouge, 2016, 2018
  • Recognized by Best Lawyers in America® as the Litigation – Bankruptcy "Lawyer of the Year" in Baton Rouge, 2014
• Recognized on the Super Lawyers list by Louisiana Super Lawyers magazine, 2007 – 2024
• Recognized by Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business
  • Bankruptcy/Restructuring – Louisiana, 2012 – 2020, (Band 3) 2021 – 2023
• Recognized on the list of 2023 Top Lawyers by New Orleans Magazine for Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law
• "Double Century Club Award" for Pro Bono Service, Baton Rouge Bar Foundation, 2013
• "2006 Volunteer Activist," Baton Rouge Speech and Hearing Foundation, 2006
• "Daily Point of Light Award," Points of Light Foundation, October 11, 2005
• "Volunteer of the Month," Capital Area CASA Association, March 2004
• Holds the AV® Peer Review Rating from Martindale-Hubbell, its highest rating for ethics and legal ability

• Assisted commercial vehicle lender with developing a product for the financing or leasing of fleets of vehicles.
• Represented numerous real estate lenders and servicers in foreclosures and workouts of hotels, multi-family developments, and retail centers.
• Extracted hospital development from Chapter 11 through a Section 363 bankruptcy sale process for a real estate lender.
• Representation of floorplan lender in West Texas bankruptcy of large automotive dealership group involving defaults of historic proportions.
• Obtained non-dischargeability judgment against dealership principal in Georgia automobile dealership case for sales out of trust violations.
• Developed floorplan lending documents for national banks and captive lenders for nationwide use and implementation.
• Developed form documentation and policies for use by national and regional banks in connection with the implementation of COVID-19 deferrals and related issues.
• Successfully defended lender liability actions and litigation under Articles 3 and 4 of the UCC for banking clients.

• Co-Presenter, "Lessons from Lubbock — The Reagor Dykes Case," Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, Virtual Event, September 19, 2023
• Co-Presenter, "Commercial – Preparing for Increased Defaults and Best Practices to Mitigate Lender Liability," 2023 Auto Finance Seminar: Driving Ahead: Auto Finance Insights from Industry Leaders, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, Chicago, Illinois, May 4, 2023
• Co-Presenter, "The Next Era of Federal and State Regulation of Commercial Credit," 2023 Auto Finance Seminar: Driving Ahead: Auto Finance Insights from Industry Leaders, Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, Chicago, Illinois, May 4, 2023
• Co-Presenter, "Commercial Financing Disclosures for the Automotive Finance Industry: The Road Forward," Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, Virtual Event, October 13, 2022
• Panelist, “Latest Trends in Auto Finance: Insights on Key Issues Facing Lenders Today,” Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, Virtual Event, November 30, 2021
• "Recent Lender Liability Litigation & Tips for Managing Risk of Lender Liability," 2019 LBA Bank Counsel Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana, December 12, 2019
• Panelist, "Out of Trust – Out of Business: Automobile Lien Priorities in Troubled Dealer Situations," 2019 Consumer Finance Legal Conference, New Orleans, Louisiana, October 15, 2019

• Co-Author, "Top 11 Tips for Lenders Navigating Commercial Loan Modifications in Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak," Client Alert, March 24, 2020

Steve and his wife enjoy playing with their grandchildren. They also relish any chance to stay at their weekend retreat in rural Washington Parish, where they both have roots going back several generations.

• Big River Economic & Agricultural Development Alliance (BREADA)
  • Board of Directors, 2017 – Present
  • Chairman, 2019 – 2020
• Capital Area CASA Association
  • Board of Directors, 2021– Present
  • Former Chairman of the Board and Volunteer, 1993 – 2005