
The Banking and Financial Services Practice Group serves the legal needs of a wide variety of Maine-based, regional, national, and international financial institutions, including depository and non-depository banks, other financial services companies and holding companies.
We have exceptional experience and knowledge in this area of law. We take pride in developing successful operational systems for our clients, anticipating their needs, solving their problems, as well as advancing their interests across a broad spectrum of regulatory, transactional and dispute resolution arenas.
- commercial and consumer lending
- mortgage and asset-based credit documentation
- deposit operations
- trust operations
- branch administration
- state and federal regulatory compliance questions
- secured transactions
- opinion letters
- corporate structure
- mergers and acquisitions
- workouts
- foreclosures
- creditors’ rights issues
- vendor contracts
- taxation matters
- employment and employee benefits matters
- real estate issues
- general and specialized litigation matters
AREAS OF CONCENTRATION
FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS
We counsel a variety of international, national, regional and local financial institution clients, including national banks and state chartered institutions, both depository and non-depository, as well as non-depository lenders and mortgage companies, holding companies, service corporations, charitable foundations and other affiliated entities. We regularly provide operational and regulatory assistance, as well as guidance in the areas of corporate structure, taxation, mergers and acquisitions, lending, deposit and trust operations, and vendor contracting and procurement documentation.
REGULATORY ADVICE AND COUNSELING
We advise our financial services clients in connection with all aspects of the regulatory process applicable to them, from initial formation through the development of new products and initiatives, drafting and revising compliance policies and procedures, and assisting with compliance reviews, including responsiveness in the evolving area of cyber security.
COMMERCIAL LENDING
We serve as counsel to both lenders and borrowers in a wide variety of regional, national and international commercial loan transactions, from commercial mortgages to asset-based loans, floor-planning arrangements, and tax credit financing. Services for lenders include loan structure analysis, commitment and loan documentation, property title analysis, lien perfection and loan closings. Services for borrowers include analysis of finance options, commitment and loan document negotiation, opinion letters and asset acquisition services.
ASSET-BASED FINANCE
We frequently advise clients in connection with asset-based financings and documentation and lien perfection issues, including development and administration of borrowing base formulas, collateral evaluation, Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) matters, and receivables lockbox and other deposit account security arrangements.
MORTGAGES
We have extensive experience in documenting, analyzing, and enforcing both commercial and consumer mortgages, real estate title and title insurance evaluations and other real property issues, including lease assignments, workouts, loan modifications and foreclosures.
UNIFORM COMMERCIAL CODE
We advise our clients on all aspects of the UCC, with particular focus on Articles 3, 4, 5, 8 and 9, and Article 9 opinion letters. We carefully monitor legislative developments and state law variations for the benefit of our clients.
AGRICULTURAL AND NATURAL RESOURCES CREDIT
We have extensive experience in agricultural credit transactions, including timber and farm financing, lending to the forest products and crop processing industries and commercial fisheries, and addressing UCC and Food Security Act (FSA) lien perfection issues, as well as Preferred Ship Mortgages and protection of fishing rights collateral. Our attorneys are Farm Credit certified.
SECURED TRANSACTIONS
We offer a complete familiarity with UCC Article 9 and other secured lending transactions, providing extensive guidance to clients regarding lien creation, perfection, and enforcement as well as legal opinion letters, collateral evaluation, documentation, and priority analyses. We also draft and review mortgages and collateral assignments of real property interests and evaluate title and title insurance issues.
LITIGATION AND FORECLOSURE
Our litigation and creditor rights attorneys regularly represent regional and national financial institutions in both litigation and out-of-court recovery and settlement situations. We advise our bank clients on loan workouts and restructurings, lender liability matters, and counsel creditors on protecting collateral and realizing or foreclosing on secured parties’ real and personal property assets.