Overview

Troy is a hybrid attorney. He is both a litigator and a transactional attorney. He spends about half of his time handling complex litigation. The other half of his time he spends handling complex transactions, including closing between ten to fifteen mergers and acquisitions each year and serving as outside general counsel to over fifteen companies.

Troy believes that this unique blend of practice experience is a significant benefit to clients. “When I am handling litigation, I think like a business person – how can we find a business solution to this matter so that we can get rid of this litigation? Conversely, when I am handling a transactional matter I am thinking – how can we write this contract so as to avoid getting into litigation?” Most attorneys are either litigators or transactional attorneys. When clients retain Troy’s services they are getting the best of both worlds.

If you meet Troy for the first time and ask him what he does professionally, he will tell you, “I’m a deal maker and problem resolver of complex business matters.”

Practice Areas

Troy’s practice focuses on helping businesses with their development, strategic planning, expansion and dispute resolution needs. The primary focus of his practice is concentrated in the areas of mergers and acquisitions, construction, real estate, government relations/land use, employment, clean energy, securities and intellectual property.

Troy has considerable experience in mergers and acquisitions, both domestic and international, having closed over 160 deals in his career, most in the seven and eight figure ranges. He has successfully handled numerous mergers and acquisitions for his clients, involving all sides of the transactions, whether that be as an advocate for the purchaser, seller, joint venture partnership, or as closing agent. Additionally, he has assisted his clients in identifying, evaluating and negotiating potential acquisition candidates and/or investors, including due diligence performance through closing.

Besides the experience Troy has gained in assisting his clients’ growth, he also has extensive experience in resolving disputes concerning mergers and acquisitions. Troy is known as being a “business divorce” attorney. He has handled over 125 workouts of closely-held companies – which usually results in one party acquiring the other party’s interest, selling the company or its assets, or otherwise finding a way to “part ways.” Troy has actually tried and prevailed in over 60 disputes in court or arbitrations, including a number of them in the multi-million-dollar range.

Besides his legal experience, Troy “practices what he preaches.” Troy has personally invested in dozens of companies over the years and has been a principal in dozens of mergers and acquisitions. So, he understands not only the legal side of the business but also the economic side of the business.

Troy stands ready, willing and able to help you with any of your business needs.

Experience

Representative Experience

• Represented a publicly-traded company in a lawsuit brought by approximately 20 plaintiffs around the Country seeking damages for alleged misrepresentation, fraud, and breach of contract in connection with the company’s business activities with aggregate claims of over $14,000,000. After almost a six-week jury trial, the jury returned a verdict in favor of our client and gave each of the plaintiffs nothing.
• Represented a subcontractor against the general contractor and owner seeking damages for “impact costs” associated with significant cost overruns on a public project, as well as defending the subcontractor against the general contractor and owner’s claims that the subcontractor had provided deficient and/or incomplete work. Arbitrator found for our client and awarded it significant damages, while dismissing the general contractor and owner’s claims of damages for deficient and incomplete work.
• Represented a subsidiary of a large, publicly-traded company in a copyright infringement case involving claimed statutory damages of over $60,000,000. Jury returned a verdict of less than $200,000.
• Represented the “finance partner” of a hotel in a 50-50 partnership fight involving trying to take control of the hotel from the “operations partner” of the hotel, as well as recover monies that the “operations partner” had inappropriately taken. Judge returned a judgment for our client allowing him to take control of the hotel and recover money for the partnership.
• Represented a publicly-traded company in connection with a pre-lease situation wherein the developer of the shopping center asserted that our client (the anchor tenant) did not have the right to terminate its lease, thereby causing the developer over $40,000,000 in damages. Client ended up paying nothing.
• Represented a couple who had a dispute with their homeowner’s association regarding their ability to build their dream home. Jury returned a verdict in favor of the homeowners and court awarded them their attorney’s fees. The Washington State Court of Appeals decision affirming the trial court was published at 118 Wash.App. 746, P.3d 1190.
• Represented the largest condominium homeowners’ association in the state of Washington against homeowners challenging the method for allocating common area expenses (homeowner dues). Jury returned a verdict in favor of the association and court awarded client attorney’s fees.
• Represented the president of a publicly-traded company in a copyright infringement case which was lost at trial but reversed by the 9th Circuit, finding for our client and awarding him damages in the high six figures. The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision was published at 232 F.3d 736, C.A.9 (Wash).
• Handled the roll-up of over 80 entities into five companies, with different ownership structures, in a deal that had an aggregate estimated value of over $100 million.
• Was the architect in helping two operational shareholders, who owned less than 50% of the shares of a multi-million-dollar corporation, wrest control of the company from the majority shareholder, including terminating him as president of the company and forcing him to sell a portion of his shares, thereby allowing the two minority shareholders to become collectively the majority shareholder. When the parties got into litigation represented the two shareholders and prevailed in arbitration, upholding both the ouster of the president but also receiving an arbitration award ordering the majority shareholder to pay the other shareholders seven figures in damages.

Outside the Office

When Troy is not practicing law, Troy spends most of his time with his family. Troy and his wife Kim have been married since 1985, and have five children and three grandchildren. Troy serves as the Unit Representative for a group of 10 Boy Scout Troops and has been a volunteer basketball coach for his local middle school and various Boys & Girls Club basketball teams (that his daughters and son have played on) since 2000, and is currently the Varsity tennis coach for his local high school. Troy loves to play basketball and tennis and is an avid political aficionado. Troy speaks fluent Spanish and represents several Spanish-speaking led companies.

Services

• Real Estate
• Workouts (lender disputes; shareholder disputes; investment disputes)
• Government Relations/Land Use
• Construction
• Clean Energy
• Intellectual Property/Business Trade Practices
• Insurance Subrogation Recovery
• Corporate Formation and Maintenance
• Mergers and Acquisition
• Business Divorce