DEBRA TAYLOR LEWIS is a Partner in the firm's Birmingham office. Her principal practice area involves the representation of banks in connection with lending and workout activities, leasing issues, transactional regulatory compliance and various corporate trust related matters, including representation of trustees in public finance issues, defaults and disputes. She is a member of the firm's Credit Crisis Group, a special team of lawyers working on challenges created by the current disruptions in the credit and other capital markets. Her clients include banks affiliated with the largest bank holding company headquartered in Birmingham, as well as a number of national, regional and community banks.

Ms. Lewis has extensive experience in the following representation areas:

• representation of various banks in over $500,000,000.00 sale of distressed assets, including, but not limited to loan sales and sell of ORE Properties;
• acquisitions of real estate for bank use and dispositions of bank branches and other bank real estate;
• representation of both lenders and borrowers in all aspects of commercial real estate finance and other security, including acquisition and construction financing, permanent financing, mortgage loans, subordinated financing, credit-enhanced financing and workouts and loan defaults;
• representation of both project owners and tenants in the negotiation and preparation of leases for banks and commercial projects of all types. This includes various forms of commercial leases, ground leases, real estate management arrangements, lease workouts, landlord takeovers and lease disputes and lease restructuring;
• representation of indenture trustees, bondholders, bond insurers, credit enhancers and municipal issuers in municipal finance transactions, workouts and defaults;
• bank regulatory and compliance issues;
• drafting and negotiation of vendor contracts of financial institutions; and
• corporate trust related issues.

Prior to joining Balch & Bingham LLP, Ms. Lewis served as Senior Vice President, Chief Legal Officer and Secretary for KinderCare Learning Centers, Inc. Ms. Lewis also served as Law Clerk to Judge Robert P. Bradley, Alabama Court of Civil Appeals.

Ms. Lewis is a frequent speaker at seminars and conferences for lawyers and financial services industry personnel on preventative law measures, documentation, new statutes, regulations and judicial developments affecting the banking and financial services industry.

Representative Experience

• As counsel to the Indenture Trustee, Ms. Lewis most recently concluded the successful workout of a defaulted $25,000,000 tax-exempt bond issue which resulted in full payment of principal and accrued interest to all bondholders.

• Balch & Bingham has one of the largest financial services practices in the Southeast. Ms. Lewis has served as counsel for developers, lenders, institutional investors, credit enhancers, indenture trustees, borrowers and issuers in both financing transactions and in restructuring, workout and bankruptcies related to commercial loans, tax-exempt and other municipal financing projects for:

  • affordable housing;
  • real estate based assets;
  • housing and economic development projects;
  • healthcare facilities;
  • solid waste disposal facilities;
  • 501(c)(3) facilities;
  • educational facilities;
  • municipal infrastructure; and
  • manufacturing facilities.

  Ms. Lewis has represented indenture trustees, underwriters and credit enhancers in both taxable and tax-exempt bond transactions and has maximized recoveries in workouts of these type transactions through her practical knowledge of the bond markets and the structure and documentation of bond transactions.

  • As counsel to the Indenture Trustee, Ms. Lewis most recently concluded the successful workout of a defaulted $25,000,000 tax-exempt bond issue which resulted in full payment of principal and accrued interest to all bondholders.
  • Represented borrower in closing a $110,000,000 secured line of credit.
  • Represented an Alabama municipality in the acquisition of real property for the construction of a $26,000,000 baseball stadium complex.
  • Represented lender in closing a letter of credit transaction in the amount of $16,000,000 secured by multiple parcels of real property in various states.
  • Represented an Alabama bank holding company making acquisitions of various banks.
  • Workout and restructuring of a $3,000,000 loan to private business;
  • Evaluating documentation issues pertaining to downgraded credit and advising and assisting on various corrective steps;
  • Represented the trustee in over 20 affordable housing bond issues valued at over $100,000,000.00.

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

• Awarded an AV Peer Review Rating by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
• Birmingham Business Journal Top Business Women, 2008
• American Bar Association, Member, Banking Law and Consumer Law Sections
• National Association of Bond Lawyers, Vice Chair, Municipal Law Committee
• Birmingham Bar Association, Leadership Task Force and Mentoring Task Force
• Law360 Corporate Finance Editorial Advisory Board
• American Bankruptcy Institute
• Balch & Bingham Compensation, Premises, Recruiting, Associates and Partnership Committees
• Rotary Club of Birmingham
• Momentum Leadership Program
• Junior League of Birmingham
• The Women's Network

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