Building the Ideal Covenant Training Course
It has always been a dream of mine to start my own business, and just before the end of 2022 that dream came to fruition with the launch of Fox Legal Training.
The project combines my love of covenants with a recently re-discovered passion for teaching. I was a teaching assistant for my contracts professor in law school and still remember the thrill of seeing the look on a student’s face when a concept landed and understanding clicked.
We spent a lot of time thinking about how to bring that level of understanding to a virtual classroom. Education technology has come along way over the past few years, so we chose an online learning platform that supports engagement with complex course material through case studies and quizzes and facilitates interaction with me and amongst the students themselves.
The course does not just rely on training videos and PowerPoint slides – it incorporates live engagement and connection as critical elements to support learning. We provide plenty of opportunities for students to ask questions live through periodic virtual office hours and during quarterly in-person trainings.
There has never been a more important time for leveraged finance market professionals to learn legalese so they can approach a covenant package armed with the knowledge to identify downside risk. Last year’s market volatility continues, and covenant flexibility is at an all-time high (I wrote about why this previously: Do covenants really matter?)
Most credit analysts have never experienced a restructuring, whilst most of senior professionals cut their teeth on complex liability management transactions and workouts, learning first-hand how important covenants can be. They learned the hard way which investor protections really matter and that any solid analysis must take place in the context of the borrower.
Our vision at FLT is to teach credit analysts and others in the market what they need to know about covenants before borrowers become distressed so they are equipped with the knowledge they need, before they need it.
Every aspect of the course is designed to achieve this mission, from the structure of the course to the format of the online learning platform, right down to the accompanying coursebooks, quizzes and case studies.
By the time FLT students finish the course, they will have the tools and the confidence to negotiate stronger lender protections and to determine which covenants matter – and, importantly – when.
By Sabrina Fox - FLT Founder