John Wiest

Practice Summary

Mergers and acquisitions Drafting and reviewing contracts of all kinds Obtaining or providing financing Buying, selling, or leasing commercial real estate Entity formation and reorganization Current firm: - Drafted dozens of client service agreements, referral agreements, and vendor agreements for multimillion dollar company providing payroll-related services - Assisted entrepreneur in acquisition of $8 million cleaning business in New Jersey from letter of intent phase through closing - Helped client buy out other members of real estate investment LLC for over $2 million - Negotiated multimillion dollar commercial lease with national retail chain - Represented hard money lender in multiple real estate financing deals - Assisted numerous business owners purchase or sell companies worth less than $1 million Former firms: - Drafted documents to amend $30 million secured credit facility for one of the nation’s largest banks, including amended and restated credit agreement, security agreements, guaranties, and landlord waivers - Led international team of attorneys, accountants, and other professionals in assisting the court-appointed receiver of an internet Ponzi scheme with over $50 million in assets and over 20,000 victims worldwide; developed litigation strategy to recover millions of dollars in false profits from early investors in foreign countries and obtained multiple default judgments in federal court - Assisted commercial landlord clients in preserving and pursuing claims in Covid-related bankruptcies filed by national retail companies in Delaware, Texas, Florida, and Virginia - Served as co-counsel for Chapter 11 trustee appointed to oversee the bankruptcy of hospitality companies with real property in Utah, California, Oregon, Colorado, and other states; researched and formulated argument to sell over-encumbered property and negotiated with secured creditors to permit the sale for the benefit of unsecured creditors - Assisted with complex litigation in Utah federal courts arising from the bankruptcy of real estate investment companies; drafted complaints, answers, dispositive motions, arbitration pleadings, and appellate briefs in multiple lawsuits dealing with federal and state securities issues, breach of fiduciary duty, and bankruptcy court jurisdiction; participated in the review and production of over 2 million pages of documents and obtained court approval to liquidate thousands of acres of real property in Utah and Arizona - Represented secured creditor bank throughout 3-year restaurant bankruptcy; drafted and amended multiple cash collateral agreements, objections to motions, Chapter 11 plan provisions, and settlement agreements, ultimately achieving an 80% recovery for the bank