WISF Committee member Heather Sonnenberg concentrates her practice in commercial finance, with a particular focus on asset-based and cash-flow financing for various industry sectors, including manufacturing, healthcare, and other service industries. She serves a wide range of clients, including banks, commercial finance companies, mezzanine lenders, and other institutional lenders, along with private equity firms, hedge funds, and publicly and privately held corporations. 


What are the most important legal issues facing lenders right now? Is that “bankruptcy” wave still coming, for instance?

I don’t think anyone can argue with the fact that this is a tough market for lenders.  There is a lot of liquidity in the marketplace and lenders are being forced to give a great deal of flexibility to borrowers in order to win deals and put funds/capital to work for them.  We are seeing deals with looser covenants and bigger baskets, but those are credit related risks, not really legal issues.  I think one of the most important legal issues facing lenders right now relates to intra-lender issues.  We all know about the publicly discussed scenarios where lenders have acted in a way to benefit themselves to the detriment of the rest of the lending group and I have personally seen situations where lenders enter into arrangements expecting their “partners” in the transaction to act reasonably who ultimately end up holding the first lien/first out lender hostage in various situations.   Lenders and their counsel need to carefully review voting rights of their co-lenders under the loan documents and any applicable intercreditor and agreement among lender arrangements, and realize that a second lien/last out lender may hold-out providing consent for something that otherwise seems completely reasonable because they are entirely out of the money and the only way such second lien/last out lender can get any type of return is through a ransom paid by the first lien/first out lender. At the onset of COVID, a bankruptcy wave was anticipated by so many professionals but we all now know that has yet to be seen - whether it be through government programs, solid management of organizations or just plain luck of the business/industry given the evolving nature of individual and family habits.   Given the length of the current positive economic cycle together with the likely effects of macroeconomic conditions, many should be seriously considering the possibility of near-term market adjustment that would cause a wave or series of workouts including bankruptcies but that prediction is and remains elusive.  

You’re a member of SFNet’s Women in Secured Finance Committee. Why is it important for you to be engaged with this committee?

A few of the most important reasons for my involvement in the SFNet’s Women in Secured Finance Committee are – staying apprised of cutting edge issues in the finance industries, the invaluable content based programming, the various mentoring and networking opportunities, but I honestly think the best reason to be involved is having the opportunity to meet and meaningfully interact on a professional level with so many strong, smart and powerful women in various positions in  the finance industry, including those in my profession and from the clients I serve.   I recall being at a women’s event quite some time ago and one of the speaker’s messages throughout was the concept that it is hard for women to believe that which they cannot see – meaning it is hard for a woman to believe she can hold certain positions in a company or participate in some sport or whatever the case may be, if she never sees another women in that role.   Seeing with my own eyes the many women in the finance community in various positions has inspired and motivated me, and quite frankly, has helped me believe more in my own abilities and believe that the goals that I have set for myself are actually achievable and to actually be more aggressive in setting what those goals are.

The challenges facing women in the workforce have been in the spotlight the past year, due to the pandemic. How do you ensure a balance between your work life and personal life?

Well, let’s be honest, the concept of work life balance during the pandemic shutdown was non-existent.  Everyone struggled with something – maybe it was new technology and remote work, being single and stuck in a 600 square foot apartment, virtual schooling and/or a combination of all of the above, but I think those struggles highlighted the importance of work life balance for everyone, not just women.  I think the fact that the conversation is focused on work life balance for everyone, not just women, and why we all need and deserve more balance has and will benefit everyone.   We have learned through the pandemic that remote working is possible for a lot of people and that has created extra hours in the day previously spent on commuting (and for some of us at least, showering, blowing out our hair, putting on make-up and professional attire) and we as a society have found ways to use that extra time to make an appropriate work life balance more achievable.  For me personally, that extra time has allowed me to regularly find time to exercise and eat healthier and get home cooked meals on the table for my family at a more reasonable hour, but finding balance is still difficult.  I think it is key to schedule your personal time/outings and stick to them.  My husband and I have a standing babysitter and scheduled date night and make a great effort not to cancel. That sometimes means we have to log back onto work when we get home but at least we have carved out some time for ourselves.  Although the pandemic has limited the opportunities for networking, I also found that having networking events around family friendly outings is a great way to create some balance while at the same time deepening professional relationships.  Networking is something finance professionals have to find time to do in addition to the their “normal” workload, which is always challenging.  Family networking outings are typically a win-win for you and your client because you get the benefit of the personal networking with your client and family time doing something fun.   The most important thing to me about finding work life balance is that it is something you have to continually and consciously work to maintain.   It doesn’t just happen so find time to plan personal time because there is no dress rehearsal in life.

What can you be found doing in your nonwork hours?

It is questions like this that make you realize you have to work harder on work life balance!  We have 3 children so I can be found running from soccer (or whatever sport season we are currently in) and gymnastic practices/meets/games with my kids on most days.  We also enjoy doing anything outside, especially fishing.  My son loves fishing, my daughters love to eat snacks on the boat, but everyone has fun.  My husband and I used to regularly take swing dance lessons and go to dances, but that has been on hold due to the pandemic.  Social dancing doesn’t really ‘jive’ with social distancing, but we are looking forward to getting back to that.