Working out of distress- Attorney joins boutique Annapolis law firm

James A. Vidmar knows there is no better time to be a corporate bankruptcy attorney.

Vidmar, after 19 years at Bethesda law firm Linowes and Blocher LLP, joined longtime friends Sean Logan and Lawrence Yumkas in March at their Annapolis practice. Paul Sweeney, also of Linowes and Blocher, joined Vidmar and formed Logan, Yumkas, Vidmar & Sweeney LLC. Vidmar, 54, a past president of the Bankruptcy Bar Association for Maryland, works with home builders, developers and car dealers on restructuring and litigation.

BBJ: Your specialty is working with companies in financial distress. How has your job changed in the last year?

Vidmar: We’re busier. The typical situation I’m working with is if a developer bought, say, a farm, and cut it into lots with the intention to sell to home builders. But there’s no homes being built so he owes $5 million, $10 million to a bank and the property can’t be sold. The bank has to decide do we take the land back? But then what do they do with it?