LAWRENCE M. SCHWAB -- lschwab@bbslaw.com
Lawrence M. Schwab has practiced law for nearly 25 years, primarily in the area of solution-oriented, transactional business matters, commercial law, bankruptcy, and creditors' rights. His focus on commercial matters is directed towards a business/trade creditor practice encompassing commercial sales and financing. Admitted to practice both in the United States and the United Kingdom, Mr. Schwab's practice is international in scope and his client base includes both emerging companies and publicly-traded, multinational concerns.
Mr. Schwab received his J.D. and M.B.A. from the University of Santa Clara in 1978 and an M.Sc. (Econ) degree in International Relations concentrating on International Business from the London School of Economics and Political Science in 1976. He completed his undergraduate education at Stanford University in 1975, where he received an A.B. in Political Science.
Mr. Schwab has been invited to speak at numerous programs regarding international and domestic commercial creditors' rights. His recent presentations include: "Preferences and Preliminary Bankruptcy Concerns", sponsored by the Credit Managers Association of California; "Methods of Payment and Creative Uses for Securing Payment in the International Context", sponsored by the CMA Business Credit Services and International Credit Chapter Group; "International Creditors' Rights" at the 2nd Annual International Credit & Collections Day, sponsored by the California Institute of Credit; "Legal Issues Impacting Collections in Asia" at the Fifth Annual Global Management Program: Focus on Asia and Latin America, sponsored by the FCIB-NACM Corporation; "International Credit Enhancement, Collections and Bankruptcy: An Overview" at the International Credit Conference, sponsored by the Credit Managers Association of California; and "Commercial, Credit and Bankruptcy Aspects of Contract Disputes: Common Sense Methods of Avoiding Litigation and Ensuring Payment" at the Annual Meeting of the American Boiler Manufacturers Association.
Mr. Schwab has served on the Board of Directors of numerous charitable organizations, including Peninsula Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired (1992-98 and 2001-04; President of Board 1995-96); Family Service Mid-Peninsula (1996-2002, Board Chairman 1999-2000); Menlo-Atherton Foundation for Educational Excellence (1998-Present); California Consortium of Education Foundations (1999-Present); Iris & B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University (2000-Present); and Children's Health Council (2002-Present).
Mr. Schwab is a member of the Palo Alto Bar Association; the Santa Clara County Bar Association, where he served as Trustee from 1991 to 1992; the State Bar of California (Business Law, Taxation, and Estate Planning, Trust and Probate sections); the American Bar Association (Committee on International Business Transactions, International Law Section 1977-Present); and the Law Society of England and Wales.
ANNETTE G. BIALSON -- abialson@bbslaw.com
Annette G. Bialson has over 30 years of experience practicing law in Silicon Valley. Initially practicing as a securities and anti-trust litigator, Ms. Bialson concentrated her practice in business law and real property transactions as well as counseling and providing advice to high net worth individuals in areas of their personal concern: business, estate and succession planning, and trust administration. At present, Ms. Bialson provides advice to the Firm's clients with respect to business and real property transactions.
Ms. Bialson received her J.D. from Stanford University in 1970. She completed her undergraduate education at Pennsylvania State University in 1967, where she received a B.S., with distinction.
Ms. Bialson was selected to serve on the Citizen's Advisory Committee to draft the Comprehensive Plan of the City of Palo Alto for the coming decade. She has twice served as Chair of the Planning and Transportation Commission of the City of Palo Alto (1997-Present). She also served as President of Planning and Community Development for the California League of Cities (2000). In addition, she has served on the Board of Directors of several charitable organizations, including Palo Alto Community Fund (1996-Present) and Avenidas, a Senior Services Agency (1999-Present, Board Chair 2003-2004).
Ms. Bialson served as Judge Pro Tem for the Santa Clara County Superior Court from 1977 to 1979. She is a member of the Palo Alto Bar Association; the Santa Clara County Bar Association, where she served as Trustee from 1976 to 1978; the State Bar of California; and the American Bar Association.
DAVID L. COOPER -- dcooper@bbslaw.com
David L. Cooper has practiced law for 25 years in the area of commercial, contract and complex general litigation. Mr. Cooper has extensive experience in litigating actions in both California and United States Federal Courts, as well as arbitrations and mediations. He has served as a court-appointed judicial arbitrator on numerous matters throughout his career.
Mr. Cooper received his J.D. from University of Santa Clara in 1979. He completed his undergraduate education at Boston University, where he received a B.A., cum laude, in 1974.
Mr. Cooper is a member of the Palo Alto Bar Association and the Santa Clara County Bar Association. He is admitted to practice in the State of California (1979); United States District Court, Northern District of California (1980); Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals (1980); and the United States Supreme Court (1985).
PATRICK M. COSTELLO -- pcostello@bbslaw.com
Patrick M. Costello has practiced law for nearly 20 years, primarily in the areas of insolvency, bankruptcy, creditors' rights, workouts, finance, and commercial law. Mr. Costello has represented debtors, creditors, creditors' committees, buyers, licensors, licensees, and investors in bankruptcies, out-of-court workouts and a broad range of highly leveraged and distressed transactions with an emphasis on technology companies and transactions. Mr. Costello has counseled directors, senior management, investors, and creditors concerning potential duties and liabilities to creditors and/or the corporation in the "zone of insolvency" and has counseled and represented such parties in state and federal court litigation concerning their conduct in the "zone of insolvency".
Mr. Costello received his J.D. from Hastings College of the Law in 1984. He received a B.A., cum laude, from the University of Chicago in 1980.
Mr. Costello has lectured on a range of bankruptcy and insolvency issues before numerous bar associations and trade groups and has served on the Insolvency Law Committee of the Business Law Section of the State Bar of California.
Mr. Costello has co-authored "Technology Licensing: Protecting Licenses Against the Risk of the Licensor's Insolvency" in the California Business Law Practitioner, Vol. III, No. 2, Spring 1988; "New Bankruptcy Code Section 365(n): Limited Comfort for the Technology Licensee" in California Business Law Reporter, Vol. X, No. 5, January 1989; "Intellectual Property Licenses After the Enactment of Special Legislation: Limited Security" in Business Law News, Vol. 11, No. 3, Winter 1989; and "Now That the Tide Has Turned: The Impact of Bankruptcy on Customers of Technology Licensors and Service Providers" in Technology Access Report, (January 2002).
Mr. Costello is admitted to practice in the State of California, the District of Columbia, the United States District Court for the Northern, Eastern, and Central Districts of California, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
THOMAS M. GAA -- tgaa@bbslaw.com
Thomas M. Gaa has practiced law for nearly 25 years in the area of business reorganizations and workouts, creditor-debtor rights, acquisition and sale of businesses and assets, and commercial law, with an emphasis on high technology and cross-border insolvency, credit and collection issues.
Mr. Gaa received his B.A. from Michigan State University in 1973, his J.D. from the University of Montana School of Law in 1980 and his L.L.M. in International and Comparative Law from Georgetown University in 1987.
Mr. Gaa is admitted to practice before the State and Federal Courts of Montana and California, the U.S. Court of International Trade, and the U.S. Court of Appeals, Federal Circuit. He is a member of the Advisory Committee on Private International Law (1995 - ) and Advisory Committee Study Group on Cross-Border Insolvency (1997 - ) for the U.S. Department of State, Legal Advisors Office; a member and former officer of the Section on International Law of the American Bar Association, Chair for Section's 1997 and 2003 Annual Meetings, former Chair and current Vice-Chair of the International Secured Transactions and Insolvency Committee, and Section Liasion to the American Law Institute Transnational Insolvency Project (1997 - ); member Executive Board of the Section of International Law, State Bar of California (2003 - ); member of International Insolvency Institute (2001 - ).
Mr. Gaa is a frequent lecturer on business reorganizations, technology issues in bankruptcy, and cross border insolvency and credit issues before local bar associations, the State Bar of California, the State Bar of Nevada, and the American Bar Association, as well as trade groups.
Mr. Gaa authored "Harmonization of International Bankruptcy Law and Practice: Is It Necessary? Is It Possible?" in The International Lawyer, Vol. 27, No. 4, Winter, 1993 and was a contributing author for the Annual Review of Current Developments in the area of international creditors' rights and bankruptcy for 1996, published in The International Lawyer, Vol. 31, No. 2, Summer, 1997, and for 1998, published in The International Lawyer, Vol. 33, No. 2, Summer, 1999.
KENNETH T. LAW -- klaw@bbslaw.com
Kenneth T. Law has practiced law for well over 20 years in the area of commercial, real property, and bankruptcy litigation. Mr. Law has considerable trial experience in both California and United States Federal Courts, in addition to being a seasoned negotiator of business disputes.
Mr. Law received his J.D. from University of Santa Clara in 1981. He also completed his undergraduate education at University of Santa Clara, where he received a B.S., cum laude, in 1975.
Mr. Law has been a frequent lecturer during his career to other attorneys and trade creditor groups. His most recent lecture topics include: Bankruptcy Litigation (1990-1996); Reclamation Litigation (1992); Bankruptcy Issues in Environmental Litigation (1994); and Fraudulent Conveyances (1996-2004). He is also an expert in fraudulent conveyance litigation and has lectured several times to attorneys throughout California on the subject under the auspices of the State Bar of California's Continuing Education Program. In addition, Mr. Law authored "Dischargeability of Environmental Liability in Bankruptcy" for the California Real Property Journal (Summer, 1996) and acted as a consultant to the California Continuing Education of the Bar on their publication "California Mechanics' Liens and Related Construction Remedies" (Third Edition CEB, 1998).
Mr. Law is a member of the Santa Clara County Bar Association, where he served on the Executive Board of the Bench/Bar/Superior Court Liaison Committee, as well as the Executive Committee of the Business Litigation Section (Chairman 1994-1996 and 1998-1999). Mr. Law is a member of the State Bar of California and the Bay Area Bankruptcy Forum.
BRIAN E. DOUCETTE -- bdoucette@bbslaw.com
Brian E. Doucette has practiced both as a commercial litigator representing financial institutions, and as a business lawyer representing creditors in work out, loan documentation, and bankruptcy matters. His current practice is focused on transactional business matters, commercial law, creditors' rights, and creditor-related bankruptcy.
Mr. Doucette's recent international experience includes an assignment with the Hewlett-Packard International Bank in Dublin, Ireland, where he focused on international business and leasing transactions. Comfortable in the international environment, Mr. Doucette has also resided for extended periods in the Czech Republic and the Philippines.
Mr. Doucette received his J.D. from Golden Gate University in 1994 and Bachelors degree in Economics from University of Massachusetts Amherst in 1984. Mr. Doucette is admitted to practice in the State of California, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Mr. Doucette is a member of the Santa Clara Bar Association, and the State Bar of California.
GAYE NELL HECK -- gheck@bbslaw.com
Gaye Nell Heck has practiced law for nearly 15 years in the area of commercial, real property and bankruptcy litigation. Ms. Heck also served as Law Clerk to the Honorable James R. Grube, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge, Northern District of California from 1994 to 1995.
Ms. Heck received her J.D. from Emory University in 1990. She completed her undergraduate education at Emory University, where she received a B.A., cum laude, in 1987. She is admitted to practice before the State and Federal Courts of Georgia and California.
Ms. Heck has lectured during her career to attorneys under the auspices of the State Bar of California's Continuing Education Program. Her most recent lecture topics include: Bankruptcy Litigation and Fraudulent Conveyances. In addition, Ms. Heck co-authored "Dischargeability of Environmental Liability in Bankruptcy" for the California Real Property Journal (Summer, 1996).
Ms. Heck is a member of the Palo Alto Bar Association, the State Bar of California and the State Bar of Georgia.
ERIC KAI-HIM SHIU -- eshiu@bbslaw.com
Eric Shiu has been in practice for over 10 years representing creditors, primarily local public entities. His current practice focuses on creditors' rights and commercial law, engaging in both litigation and transactional issues in the high-technology sector.
Mr. Shiu received his J.D. from McGeorge School of Law in 1991. He completed his undergraduate education at the University of California at Berkeley, where he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1988.
Mr. Shiu is fluent in the Chinese (Cantonese) language.
Mr. Shiu is a member of the Santa Clara County Bar Association and the State Bar of California.
MICHAEL KLINGLER -- mklingler@bbslaw.com
Michael E. Klingler has practiced law for 34 years, primarily in commercial litigation, transactional real estate and estate planning. He was trial counsel in the landmark case of Stevens v. IRS in the United States Tax Court. In the mid-1990's, he was a mediator and arbitrator with J.A.M.S.
Mr. Klingler received his J.D. from Hastings College of the Law in 1973. He completed his undergraduate education at the University of Missouri in 1967, where he received a B.S. in finance and banking.
Mr. Klingler founded the Real Estate Section of the San Mateo County Bar Association. He is a member of the State Bar of California and is admitted to practice in the United States District Court of Northern California, the United States Tax Court, and the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.
