Featured Case Studies

A recent dispute between a Tonkon Torp client and a Los Angeles-based finance company was the very definition of “complex commercial litigation”. The case involved a structured finance transaction documented through multiple agreements among multiple parties. Untangling the deal gave Tonkon Torp’s litigators an opportunity to demonstrate their value.

The successful sale of Portland-based Rejuvenation to a major, national home furnishings company was facilitated by an interdisciplinary team of Tonkon Torp business lawyers.

Tonkon Torp’s energy lawyers helped Fresno-based real estate client Maricopa Sun LLC secure development of a significant solar project in central California.

Tonkon Torp is featured in an article in the April 2011 issue of the ABA Journal. The firm's work on the Sunwest bankruptcy case is the topic of the story, which discusses our representation of Clyde Hamstreet, the Chief Restructuring Officer for the case. The Sunwest bankruptcy concluded with a $1.2 billion deal, which was the culmination of one of the biggest and most complex bankruptcy cases of its kind ever filed in Oregon.

Edwin (Ned) C. Perry, chair of Tonkon Torp’s Litigation Department, recently was honored by the Gresham Area Chamber of Commerce for his pro bono work with Human Solutions, Inc.

Thanks to the work of Tonkon Torp lawyers and others, industrial businesses affected by the City of Portland’s River Plan/North Reach saw their concerns validated by a January 21 ruling of the state Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA). LUBA sent the River Plan, which would significantly restrict development in the “industrial sanctuary” along a 12-mile stretch of the Willamette River, back to the Portland City Council for additional work.

Tonkon Torp lawyers demonstrate speed like the Oregon Ducks to help SportsOne create the Bud Light Fiesta entertainment village at the BCS National Championship.

An interdisciplinary team of Tonkon Torp lawyers helped our client, Portland-based Critical Path Software, strike an optimal deal for acquisition by eBay.

In August 2010, Blackstone Real Estate Advisors closed a $1.2 billion deal to acquire 134 senior living properties from bankrupt Oregon-based Sunwest Management, formerly the country’s fourth largest (and largest privately-held) senior living operator. Tonkon Torp represented the Chief Restructuring Officer of Sunwest in this deal, which was the culmination of one of the biggest and most complex bankruptcy cases of its kind ever filed in Oregon.

Oregon-based Monsoon, Inc.’s announcement that it was merging with online media marketplace leader Alibris, Inc. was the culmination of a business strategy developed and executed over seven years with the help of Tonkon Torp attorneys.

Tonkon Torp attorneys represented Nike in the recent sale of United Soccer Leagues.

Element Power is a global renewable energy company that develops, acquires, builds and operates utility-scale solar and wind power projects. Backed by some of the biggest names in global renewable energy development, it currently has wind and solar projects throughout Europe and a large development pipeline in Europe and Latin America.

NIKE Inc.’s portfolio of subsidiary brands contributes over $2 billion in annual revenues to the company’s bottom line and the opportunity for substantial future growth. When this sportswear giant decided to sell its Nike Bauer Hockey subsidiary, it turned to Tonkon Torp to help guide the sale to a successful conclusion.

When Albina Head Start, Inc. received a significant grant award to expand the agency's services, its management called on Tonkon Torp to help address many legal and business issues.

Just a year ago, the National Head Start Association was facing a crisis. Although the program is credited with helping over a million at-risk children achieve pre-school readiness, the federal government was attempting to make serious overhauls in the program's structure that program leaders feared would dismantle it.

M Financial Group is one of the nation's premier financial services distribution companies serving ultra-affluent individuals and Fortune 1000 companies. M Financial looks to Tonkon Torp for major restructuring transactions as well as day-to-day advice on a host of issues.

As younger and younger children are diagnosed with diabetes, heart disease, and other weight-related conditions typically seen in adults, the effort to restore physical education to schools has become more urgent.

VALOR Telecom turned to Tonkon Torp to help comply with regulations while offering a competitively priced product to its consumers.

From selling imported shoes from the back of a car at track meets to becoming the world's leading designer, marketer and distributor of athletic footwear and accessories, Nike's 30 year legacy has been one of innovation, optimism and savvy business sense. Tonkon Torp has been involved since the 1980 IPO.

When home furnishings giant IKEA needed to secure land and obtain necessary approvals for a new location in the Portland Metropolitan area, they turned to Tonkon Torp for help. Tonkon's real estate attorneys successfully navigated our client through the complex two-year process.

Tonkon Torp helped our client, Temco Metal, triumph over its main competitor in a patent battle over a new fuel tank valve.

When a 20-year employee of a closely held company filed a minority shareholder oppression lawsuit a year after leaving, our client called on Tonkon Torp for help. Tonkon Torp helped our longtime client deal with the fallout of a messy corporate 'divorce'.

When a non-profit group needed help obtaining special building permits to create low-income housing, it turned to Tonkon Torp for help. With the pro-bono assistance of our attorneys nine low-income families in Ashland, Oregon now have a home of their own.

As one of the world's largest veterinary hospital chains, Banfield Pet Hospital relies on the trusted counsel of Tonkon Torp. When Banfield was looking to build a new world headquarters, it once again turned to Tonkon Torp to handle all the legal matters.

When the President of Lewis & Clark College made an unauthorized $10.5 million loan to an oil company that eventually defaulted on the loan, Tonkon Torp was asked to investigate.

The Portland Art Museum's $34 million renovation of the North Building, a 141,000 square foot landmark built as a Masonic temple in 1925, has added new modern and contemporary art galleries, two large ballrooms, as well as meeting rooms and administrative offices for the Museum. Tonkon Torp assisted the Museum with permitting, approvals, architect and construction contracts.

When our client, the audit committee of a regional financial institution, learned that the company's auditors would not provide an opinion required for the filing of its Form 10-K without an independent investigation of an accounting dispute, it turned to Tonkon Torp for assistance.

The TASER name has become synonymous with non-lethal self-defense devices. Since its inception little more than ten years ago, TASER's products have revolutionized law enforcement and may revolutionize personal safety. When it launched its successful initial public offering in 2001, TASER called on Tonkon Torp to assist.

When Oregon-based The Greenbrier Companies, Inc. decided to buy out its joint venture partner's interest in the Greenbrier-Concarril venture in Mexico, it turned to longtime counsel Tonkon Torp to assist in structuring the transaction.

When friends encouraged our client to invest in an environmentally progressive mixed-use residential and retail development in the city of Fairview, east of Portland, no one anticipated any problems. But when the deal went sour, Amberhill turned to Tonkon Torp for help.

When Costco Wholesale Corporation was looking to expand its Portland Metro area operations, it turned to Tonkon Torp for help in securing enough appropriately zoned land to site a 145,000 square foot membership warehouse. The solution: Costco's first integrated shopping center location in the Portland area.

Oregon is one of the few states that uses a weight-mile tax rather than a diesel fuel tax on heavy trucking to help support and maintain its 86,000 miles of paved road. When trucking interests tried to shift the tax burden to everyday drivers, AAA Oregon/Idaho turned to Tonkon Torp to help in the fight.

Enron's $63 billion bankruptcy in 2001 sent shockwaves through the financial community, triggering the collapse of one of the world's largest accounting firms and setting in motion corporate governance changes that would alter the face of corporate America.

Stimson Lumber Company shifted its strategic focus to the inland Northwest with its initial expansion into Montana in 1993, drawing on longtime counsel Tonkon Torp's expertise to handle the deal. Since then, Stimson has been adding to its inland operations in Eastern Washington, Idaho and Montana.

Through much of family-owned Stimson Lumber's 150-year history, it actively expanded its holdings throughout the Northwest, acquiring prime forestlands in Washington, Oregon and California. When Stimson's strategic focus shifted to Oregon and inland states, it decided to sell its 25,000 acres in the Smith River watershed in Northern California.

The Archdiocese of Portland made national headlines when it became the first Archdiocese to seek bankruptcy protection, triggered by several hundred claims for damages stemming from allegations of abuse at the hands of clergy. Tonkon Torp is playing a central role.