JOHN PICKERING is a Partner in the Birmingham office of Balch & Bingham LLP. He is the leader of the firm's Real Estate, Lending and Commercial Practice Group. He concentrates his practice on real estate and commercial lending, factoring, and secured transactions and real estate development. His clients include large and small banks, commercial finance companies, and other businesses, and he assists them with various types of transactions, procedures, regulatory compliance, and new product development.

Mr. Pickering has experience in the following areas:

Commercial Lending: Lender and borrower representation on asset-based credit facilities; form document development and drafting for asset based lending and factoring; UCC Revised Article 9 implementation

Real Estate Lending and Development: Lender, borrower and letter of credit bank representation on real estate loans and municipal bond and tax-free and taxable note ("lower floater") transactions for development of multi-family housing (including Low-Income Housing Tax Credit projects), residential subdivisions, churches, warehouses and office buildings; developer representation in land acquisition and subdivision and hotel development.

Leasing: Review and negotiation of commercial real estate leases

Usury: Multi-state analysis and planning for commercial usury compliance

Payment Systems: New product launch, agreement drafting and dispute resolution (including Check 21, paper checks, credit cards, debit cards, payroll cards, automated clearinghouse transfers, and electronic bill presentment)

Electronic contracting: Creation of enforceable electronic contracts under Uniform Electronic Transactions Act and federal "E-Sign" legislation

Consumer Lending: Form and operations review for consumer lending compliance
Bank Branching: Bank representation in branching applications and issues.

Representative Experience

• • Developer representation on new $13,000,000 hotel on the Alabama coast
  • $25,000,000 Ex-Im-guaranteed credit facility by bank client to European government to finance purchase of US-manufactured aircraft
  • Sale of international loan portfolio by bank
  • Acquisition of $80,000,000 portfolio commercial financing company by private equity fund client (credit and compliance issues)
  • Acquisition of $20,000,000 portfolio medical receivables finance company (credit and compliance issues)
  • Lender representation in working capital lines of credit for healthcare providers backed by Medicare receivables
  • Renegotiation by commercial finance company client of $110,000,000 working capital line of credit with group of five lenders
  • Launch of new payroll card product for bank client
  • Procedure development for bank client for implementation of UCC Revised Article 9
  • Letter of credit underwriting and issuance by bank client in taxable note financing for development of $19,000,000 medical office building
  • Multiple financings of Low-Income Housing Tax Credit multi-family housing contruction by bank client

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

• • Alabama State Bar
  • The Federalist Society, Past-President, Birmingham Lawyers Chapter
  • American Bar Association, Banking Law Vice Chair, Joint Task Force on Deposit Account Control Agreements (2003-2007)
  • Alabama Law Institute, Committee on Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (2000)
  • Listed in Super Lawyers (2009)

NEWS

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Speaking Engagements