Areas of Practice
Real estate & commercial law, with specialization in mergers and acquisitions, corporate law and finance

Representative Experience

Business acquisition and sale transactions

Represented Seibu Alaska, Inc. in sale of Alyeska Ski Resort, including ski operations, hotel and golf course

Represented Valley Hospital Association in $100 million + joint venture transaction for construction of a new hospital

Represented Unique Machine, Inc. in sale of oil field service company to Sumitomo Corporation

Represented MediaNews Group as Alaska counsel in acquisition of Anchorage television and radio stations

Represented Flint Hills Resources as Alaska counsel in acquisition of major oil refinery

Represented Koch Pipeline Company in acquisition of an interest in the Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline

Represented MeriStar Hotels & Resorts, Inc. as Alaska counsel in purchase of Sheraton Hotel in Anchorage

Represented Bankers Trust as Alaska counsel in financing purchase of Carr-Gottstein grocery store chain in Alaska

Corporate counseling

Formation of corporations, limited liability companies, professional corporations, and limited partnerships, and in merger and dissolution of corporate entities

Represented Northrim Bank as Alaska counsel for holding company formation and general corporate issues

Commercial law

Represented lenders such as Bank of America, Keybank, Ford Motor Credit Corporation, GE Capital, Toyota Motor Credit Corporation, and Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation in numerous financing transactions

Represented AT&T Alascom, Inc. in receivables securitization transaction

Represented Banc of America Leasing & Capital LLC and CIT Group in workout of multi-million dollar equipment leases

Represented lenders from out of state, including Prudential Mortgage Capital Co., LLC, CoBank, ACB, Ameritas Life Insurance Corp, in review of loan documents for commercial loans secured by assets in Alaska

Represented Standard and Poor's in $116 million revenue bond securitization transaction

Real estate transactions

Represented Weyerhaeuser Financial Investments in sale of $13 million office building, and in sale of other properties

Represented Natives of Kodiak in developing residential subdivision

Represented Renal Care Group as Alaska counsel in property development/lease agreement for new Anchorage facility

Represented Peter Pan Seafoods in purchase and sale of several parcels of real property related to fish processing facilities in bush Alaska

Represented Agrium U.S., Inc. in Alaska real estate issues for acquisition of fertilizer plant

Lease negotiations for large commercial leases, including leases for Alaska Native Heritage Center and Cinamerica Theatres LP

Commercial litigation (including jury and non-jury trials in state and federal court)

Represented Bank of America and other lenders in defense of lender-liability claims, consumer protection, deceptive trade practices and unfair trade practices claims, and claims under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act

Represented the State of Alaska in jury trial resulting from aircraft accident, obtaining a defense verdict

Represented Interpac Forest Corporation in successful defense of claims related to logging contract

Represented owner of ocean research vessel in federal court trial disputing vessel ownership, obtaining a defense verdict for my client

Environmental compliance and litigation

Represented Westinghouse Electric Co. in Superfund litigation in Anchorage

Represented Papelera Internacional S.A. in claims of release of oil from transformers

Represented Bridgestone/Firestone in dispute over contamination at former site

Extensive due diligence of environmental issues in connection with acquisition of airline operating in Anchorage and remote areas of Alaska

Represented lenders such as Bank of America, Keybank, Ford Motor Credit Corporation, and GE Capital in environmental due diligence for real estate loans

Prior Experience
Partner with Anchorage firm, Bradbury Bliss & Riordan

Judicial law clerk for Superior Court Judge Daniel Moore in Anchorage

Representative Clients
Bank of America

Alaska Broadcasting Company, Inc.

Valley Hospital/Mat-Su Valley Medical Center

Koch Industries, Inc.

Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act corporations including Natives of Kodiak, Inc. and Chugach Alaska Corporation

Weyerhaeuser Financial Services, Inc.

Papelera Internacional S.A.

Publications and Presentations
Author of the chapter on Alaska in "Doing Business in North America," part of a series published by the Center for International Legal Studies in Salzburg, Austria

Author of the chapter on Alaska for the ABA Business Section, Commercial Financial Services Subcommittee, part of a survey of the laws of each state on commercial lending, for the ABA website

Frequent lecturer at continuing legal education seminars on commercial and real estate law

Memberships and Activities
American Bar Association

Alaska State Bar Association

Anchorage Bar Association

Activities
Hiring Attorney, Anchorage office of Davis Wright Tremaine, LLP

Pro Bono – participation in Alaska Pro Bono program administered by Alaska Legal Services

Awards and Recognitions
Named as one of the “Best Lawyers in America” in Real Estate Law by Woodward/White, 2006; 2007; 2008

Named as one of "America's Leading Business Lawyers" in real estate law and in corporate/mergers & acquisitions by Chambers USA, 2004-2006

Named as one of "America's Leading Business Lawyers" in real estate law by Chambers USA, 2003-2005

Education
J.D., cum laude, Gonzaga University School of Law, 1981

• Associate editor, Gonzaga Law Review

Certificate in Russian, Defense Language Institute (U.S. Air Force), Monterey, California, 1972

B.A. in French, magna cum laude, Loyola University, New Orleans, 1970

Languages
Proficient in French