Thomas A. Gerber

Practice Experience

Tom Gerber represents clients in creditor rights including pursuit of protection, control or recovery of collateral while litigation is pending, bankruptcy matters and defense of preference claims by trustees and debtors, lenders' liability matters, real estate title issues, Uniform Commercial Code law, and probate litigation. His practice has particular emphasis in equipment leasing, inventory and other personal property financing, defense against construction liens, commercial collections, workouts and other specialized creditor/debtor matters.

Tom also serves as an arbitrator in the areas of commercial and construction law for the American Arbitration Association. Tom serves on the Title Insurance Litigation Committee of the American Bar Association.

Representative Matters

• Represented a major West Coast general contractor hired to rebuild a faulty condominium resort project. A subcontractor abandoned the project and left its subcontractors and suppliers unpaid. In response, a series of construction lien claims were filed, which were bonded off the property to prevent adverse impacts to the individual unit owners. Over $520,000 in lien claims were asserted and contested, and were resolved by payment to claimants of just over $57,000.
• Represented a general contractor hired for a $15 million repair of defective original construction at a large resort condominium project. One major subcontractor failed to pay its subcontractor and suppliers. The result was a total of $520,000 in construction liens filed and defended against. All lien claims were resolved without trial. The total paid out to all lien claimants was $57,000.
• Represented a variety of businesses against which preference claims were asserted by trustees in bankruptcy. After analysis of the facts and available defenses to preference recoveries, resolutions with the trustees either dropping the claims, or accepting a substantially reduced payment, have been achieved.
• Represented the bank lender in the foreclosure of a landmark hotel in the Columbia River Gorge and adjacent parcels, including the appointment of a receiver to take charge on an emergency basis when the hotel management summarily abandoned the facility.
• Represented equipment lessors in the enforcement of their remedies under those leases following default, including provisional remedies for possession during the pendency of litigation, including in one instance the necessity to have the exterior wall of a building opened up under court order to enable removal of a large printing machine.
• Represented major national lenders providing inventory financing for the marine, RV, manufactured home, high-ticket home appliance and agricultural industries in responding to sales out of trust, including obtaining immediate restraining orders and orders for possession of collateral while litigation was pending, in order to prevent further loss of collateral and to enable immediate disposition pursuant to manufacturer repurchase agreements.
• Represented a major West Coast travel trailer and motor home manufacturer in conjunction with its dealer agreements, termination of dealers, negotiation and drafting of repurchase agreements, warranty litigation, creation and documentation of an extended product warranty program underwritten by a major national insurer, and product recalls.
• Representation of a major international bank in the foreclosure of a commercial real estate development where a total of $3.1 million in adverse liens and claims were asserted against the property. Of all claims, only one went to trial where judgment was in favor of the bank and against the lien claimant. The total of all payments to claimants was $85,000 and we obtained dismissal of the developer's Chapter 11 bankruptcy case on the basis of bad faith.
• Represented clients from large national insurance and title insurance companies down to modest locally-owned business, and a highly visible professional sports figure, in managing newly discovered embezzlement problems, dealing with police and prosecution authorities, and pursuing collection efforts, including reaching assets normally exempt from judgment enforcement.
• Representation of a regional independent petroleum company in the acquisition of two terminal facilities in Portland and north of Seattle, and a refinery in Portland, from Chevron, USA, creating the largest independent refiner on the West Coast. The transaction involved a refinance of a number of credit facilities approaching a total of $90 million, and simultaneous closings in four cities in three states.