Tomas Ortiz is a seasoned trial and appellate lawyer with 25 years of experience, in both state and federal courts, taking disputes from demand to trial and through appeal. He focuses on commercial litigation, including real estate, eminent domain, and financial disputes.  He also has  experience with bankruptcy and restructuring matters, and real estate transactions. He often works in highly regulated industries, including finance, energy, foods, and cannabis.

Mr. Ortiz real estate and title dispute experience includes matters involving quiet title claims, adverse possession, boundary and easement disputes, trespass, entitlement, and escrow disputes, as well as commercial lease disputes, including lease workouts and unlawful detainers. Mr. Ortiz represents acquiring public entities in the acquisition of right-of-way interests and other property, as well as both public agencies and private commercial property owners facing and defending against full and partial takings. Mr. Ortiz also defends clients in inverse condemnation actions.

Mr. Ortiz’s bankruptcy and insolvency practice concentrates on domestic and international corporate reorganization and liquidation in bankruptcy, as well as non-bankruptcy restructurings or liquidations, including out-of-court workouts, state receiverships and assignments for the benefit of creditors (ABCs). Mr. Ortiz has decades of experience litigating contested matters and adversary proceedings in bankruptcy, from fraudulent conveyances and other preferences to foreclosure proceedings, breach of fiduciary duty claims, and turnover actions, as well as handling distressed asset sales in both bankruptcy and receivership proceedings. Mr. Ortiz has also served as litigation counsel on behalf of bankruptcy and receivership estates.

Mr. Ortiz also litigates complex commercial and financial disputes, including loan and financial collection matters, commercial real estate foreclosures, lender liability claims, director and officer liability, insurance coverage, real estate brokerage disputes, and professional liability.

Mr. Ortiz’s transactional practice focuses on commercial real estate, including as to sales and acquisitions, loan and financial agreements, and commercial leases. He has significant experience distressed and troubled assets.

Mr. Ortiz’s clients have included financial institutions, noninstitutional lenders, commercial investors, insurance companies, self-insured corporations and municipalities, business creditors, creditor committees, trustees, debtors-in-possession, manufacturers, suppliers, retailers, commercial and residential real estate investors, commercial landlords and tenants, SPEs, insurance carriers, attorneys, and accountants.

Mr. Ortiz writes and lectures on real estate, bankruptcy, insolvency, and cannabis.

Notable Representations

• Represented a real estate investment group in a successful defense of challenges to title and interests held by the group in a multi-million dollar property by a Chapter 7 Trustee in adversary proceedings.
• Represented a large Latino food manufacturer and distributor in pre-bankruptcy negotiations and workout, allowing it to continue operating, pay its liabilities and restructure itself outside of bankruptcy.
• Represented institutional lender in defense of adversary proceeding for wrongful foreclosure on a large commercial property filed by Chapter 11 debtor-in-possession.
• Represented a real estate investor in bankruptcy litigation to establish and successfully defend its multi-million dollar investment in a real estate development in Southern California.
• Represented a foreign manufacturer with significant holdings and liabilities in the United States in a Chapter 15 proceeding.
• Represented a group of suppliers in bankruptcy proceedings filed by food manufacturer and successfully recovered assets and minimized losses by pursuing those assets by way of adversary proceeding.
• Represented a group of non-institutional lenders in successfully securing and collecting against property held by a bankruptcy estate on a multi-million dollar claim in Chapter 11 proceedings.
• Represented real estate investor in establishing and defending its ownership interest in a property purchased pre-petition against competing claims by Chapter 11 trustee and lien holders.
• Represented an accountant in successful defense of an adversary proceeding filed by a Chapter 11 debtor-in-possession seeking damages against the accountant for misrepresentations made by the debtor’s management to lenders and shareholders. The matter was decided in client’s favor on summary judgment.
• Represented a real estate broker in defense of an adversary proceeding filed by a Chapter 11 debtor arising from the purchase of a multi-million dollar commercial property.