J.S. Held Acquires Steeplechase Advisors, Deepening National Restructuring and Turnaround Expertise

NEW YORK, Aug. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Global consulting firm J.S. Held has acquired Steeplechase Advisors, a restructuring and special situations advisory firm serving middle-market companies nationwide. The acquisition extends the financial and technical expertise J.S. Held applies to complex, high-stakes matters for clients and their counsel, adding further industry depth where middle-market restructuring demand continues to grow. 

J.S. Held's acquisition of Steeplechase Advisors marks the fourth strategic addition to the firm's Strategic Advisory Practice, following Phoenix Management (2023), Stapleton Group (2024), and MorrisAnderson (2025). Together, these firms form a national platform of more than 85 restructuring, turnaround, and special situations professionals advising lenders, legal counsel, sponsors, boards, and creditors across in-court and out-of-court mandates. 

The acquisition of Steeplechase Advisors strengthens J.S. Held's expertise across receiverships, fiduciary roles, interim management, refinancing, litigation support, and transaction advisory for middle-market companies. The team joins J.S. Held's Strategic Advisory Practice and, like all J.S. Held experts, draws on capabilities from across the firm — deploying financial, technical, and industry expertise to each engagement as the situation demands. The Steeplechase team, now a part of J.S. Held, contributes senior experience across in-court and out-of-court engagements, including 13-week cash flow modeling, liquidity analysis, stakeholder management, and operational turnaround execution, along with expert testimony and asset recovery experience across receiverships, Assignments for the Benefit of Creditors (ABCs), and complex litigation involving distressed and insolvent businesses.

Steeplechase Advisors, a part of J.S. Held, brings recognized, industry-specific expertise across retail and consumer products, real estate, agribusiness, manufacturing, hospitality, transportation, and luxury goods. The acquisition gives Steeplechase's clients and referral sources, including lenders, attorneys, sponsors, boards, and other stakeholders, access to a deeper bench of trusted advisors and a broader range of expertise to meet their most complex challenges.

Leadership Perspectives

Jim Cullen, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Steeplechase Advisors, commenting on the transaction, shares, "Joining J.S. Held gives our clients access to a substantially larger bench of senior restructuring and financial experts, deeper technical capability across the industries we serve, and expanded capital markets relationships through Phoenix IB^®. The firm's recognized expertise in the insurance sector also strengthens the resources we can bring to complex claims and recovery situations that often accompany distressed engagements."

Michael Jacoby, Senior Managing Director and Strategic Advisory Practice Lead at J.S. Held, adds, "For more than 10 years, Jim Cullen and the Steeplechase team have earned the trust of lenders, attorneys, sponsors, and boards in the most complex financial situations. They join colleagues who share that commitment, and they broaden the industry expertise we bring to an increasingly diverse set of corporate and law firm clients, lenders, and private equity firms."

Lee Spirer, President and Chief Executive Officer of J.S. Held, adds, "This combination reflects the strategy we've pursued consistently: bringing together deep financial and technical expertise to serve clients and their counsel through their most complex, high stakes matters. Steeplechase strengthens that foundation and expands our reach in the legal and lending communities. Our team has built our Strategic Advisory Practice with discipline and conviction. Jim Cullen and his colleagues are exactly the kind of entrepreneurial leaders who make it stronger."

Strengthening a National Platform for Clients and Referral Sources

Through the combination, Steeplechase Advisors clients gain access to more than 1,500 technical, scientific, financial, and strategic experts advising clients across six continents who provide complementary expertise in areas including dispute advisory; business enterprise, real estate, and intellectual property valuation; forensic accounting; capital projects advisory; compliance and regulatory consulting; business intelligence; environmental, health, and safety; and political risk. Clients also gain access to capital markets support through Phoenix IB^®, an independent licensed broker-dealer under federal and state securities law (CRD#: 132710/SEC#: 8-66628).

To learn more about Steeplechase Advisors, a part of J.S. Held, please visit: https://www.jsheld.com/areas-of-expertise/strategic-advisory/solutions-for-distressed-situations.

About J.S. Held

J.S. Held is a global consulting firm that combines technical, scientific, financial, and strategic expertise to advise clients seeking to realize value and mitigate risk. Our professionals serve as trusted advisors to organizations facing high stakes matters demanding urgent attention, staunch integrity, proven experience, clear-cut analysis, and an understanding of both tangible and intangible assets. The firm provides a comprehensive suite of services, products, and data that enable clients to navigate complex, contentious, and often catastrophic situations.

More than 1,500 professionals serve organizations across six continents, including 84% of the Global 200 Law Firms, 75% of the Forbes Top 20 Insurance Companies (90% of the NAIC Top 50 Property & Casualty Insurers), and 71% of Fortune 100 Companies.

J.S. Held, its affiliates and subsidiaries are not certified public accounting firm(s) and do not provide audit, attest, or any other public accounting services. J.S. Held is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Securities offered through PM Securities, LLC, d/b/a Phoenix IB or Ocean Tomo Investments, a part of J.S. Held, member FINRA/SIPC. All rights reserved.

Contact 

Kristi L. Stathis, Global Public Relations, +1 786 833 4864, [email protected]

SOURCE J.S. Held