Equipment Lease and Finance Group

JMBM has deep expertise in equipment lease and financing transactions, representing domestic and international banks, financial institutions, equipment lessors, lessees, private equity firms, equipment managers, investors, arrangers, and other intermediaries in a range of transactions.

On behalf of our clients, JMBM's Equipment Lease and Finance lawyers handle transactions that include true leases and capital leases, syndications of equipment leases, remarketing transactions, equipment management transactions, sales and purchases of equipment lease portfolios, leveraged leases, vendor financing, and financing facilities to equipment leasing companies. We have also negotiated and structured joint ventures involving debt and equity providers for equipment financing transactions, and negotiated and documented the early termination of leveraged leases.

Our lawyers have experience with many asset types, including manufacturing and industrial equipment, agricultural equipment, and transportation equipment across a range of industries including technology, transportation, and health care.

We have particular expertise in international transactions; we frequently represent clients in cross-border transactions, are familiar with commercial and tax issues relating to the location of collateral in multiple jurisdictions, and have advised clients with respect to Sharia-compliant structures.

Our structuring and documenting of equipment leasing and finance transactions at the front end is complemented by our national reputation in workouts, recoveries, restructurings, and bankruptcy for lenders, lessors, and other financial institutions. In our experience, out-of-court agreements often best serve lessors and creditors to avoid costly and time-consuming litigation, and we have frequently negotiated Restructuring Agreements, Forbearance Agreements, and other amendments to the operative leasing and credit agreements. We have also handled complex workouts, assignments for the benefit of creditors, and receiverships. JMBM lawyers have worked with Chief Credit Officers and Special Asset Departments from most major banks and regional banks. Where consensual restructurings are not the optimal approach, we have represented many clients in equipment recoveries for various asset types, foreclosing on collateral, including Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) Article 9 sales and in complex Chapter 11 cases, where we are well known to the bankruptcy courts.

JMBM is distinguished by carefully focusing on issues of importance to our clients in equipment leasing and finance transactions, and bringing a deep level of business experience and understanding to transactions. Our equipment finance team includes an attorney who served as in-house counsel at a national bank, and one was a general counsel resident in Saudi Arabia to a company managing hospitals for the Saudi military. As such, we are able to appreciate transactional matters of importance to in-house counsel and business executives, provide practical and innovative solutions, and understand the business mechanics driving transactions.