MORTGAGE SECURITIZATION LITIGATION
Bill and the firm defended a national bank in a class action where the plaintiffs sought substantial damages based on allegations of unlawful foreclosure procedures. Bill and the firm also represented a defendant bank in a state court case in which a dozen counties claimed tens of millions in damages for alleged widespread avoidance of payment of county mortgage recording fees through the use of a system known as MERS©. The case ended in a voluntary dismissal by the plaintiff counties.
EMBEZZLEMENT AND FRAUD CASES
Bill has defended banks in dozens of cases arising out of embezzlement, ATM fraud, electronic funds misappropriation, and other forms of fraud by insiders of companies doing business with a bank. Often the embezzler is a trusted long-term employee of the bank’s customer; typically the bad actor has squandered the stolen funds, and the business customer is suing the bank because the owners think they have no one else to sue. In many of these cases the outcome is determined by the provisions of the Uniform Commercial Code. Larkins Vacura Kayser defends these cases vigorously, with a stellar record of success.
CLOSELY HELD BUSINESS BREAKUPS
It is remarkable how often the owners of closely held businesses have neglected to have a written agreement that will guide them through the process of selling off company assets, leadership succession or simply going their separate ways. The stakes can be high, and former close friends and partners often find themselves in highly adversarial positions. Bill has litigated many of these breakups, for example cases involving a commercial income property in Portland’s Pearl District, a family-owned retail/restaurant building in Portland’s Old Town, and timber lands in multiple states, in all of which the properties at issue were worth millions of dollars.
COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE FORECLOSURES AND WORKOUTS
Bill’s first commercial foreclosure case was in 1982 and involved a sawmill in Union County, Oregon. Since then he has initiated foreclosures and workouts for lenders based all around the United States, involving industrial properties, developed and undeveloped residential tracts, golf courses, office buildings, strip malls and other types of commercial real estate in Washington as well as Oregon. Several of these cases included receiverships, and many involved properties with values in the millions of dollars. More often than not, Bill simultaneously sues the borrower on the debt and goes after the assets of the guarantors of the loans.
COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE LEASE DISPUTES
Bill represents both landlords and tenants in commercial real estate lease default and eviction cases, as well as matters involving lease interpretation and compliance with written lease covenants.
OTHER COMMERCIAL DISPUTES
Bill’s extensive “back catalog” of successful representation also includes trusts and estates cases, Fair Credit Reporting Act defense, foreclosure fairness, adverse possession of real estate, and a very expansive array of cases involving contracts of all kinds.