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Larry O. Folks
Member
Areas of Practice
Commercial Bankruptcy
Foreclosure
Creditors’ Rights
Collection Litigation and Judgment
Enforcement
Consumer Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy Mediation and
Civil Mediation
Collection Litigation
Civil Litigation
Eviction Litigation
Judgment Enforcement
Loan Restructuring and Workouts
Honors and Awards
Certified Specialist in Business Bankruptcy, American Board of Certification
Certified Specialist in Bankruptcy Law, Arizona Board of Legal Specialization
AV-Preeminent™ Rating, Martindale-Hubbell®
Super Lawyers, 2010-present
The Best Lawyers in America®, (2014-present), Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights / Insolvency and Reorganization Law
National Association of Distinguished Counsel, 2016-present
Top Attorneys in Arizona, Phoenix Magazine, May 2017
Professional Affiliations
Court Appointed Panel Mediator, United States Bankruptcy Court of the District
of Arizona
State Bar of Arizona: Bankruptcy Section (Chair, 2009-2010); Past Chair, Alternative
Dispute Resolution Committee;
Member, Arizona Board of Legal Specialization, 2006-2010
American Legal & Financial Network
United Trustees Association
Mortgage Bankers Association
Arizona Bankers Association
Arizona Trustee Association: Legislative Committee
Former
Judge Pro Tem, Superior Court of Arizona
Articles
“Maricopa
County, Arizona, Sheriff’s Bidding Requirements at a Sheriff’s Execution Sale of
a Judgment Debtor’s “Homestead” Residence,” October 2020, Revised May
2022
“Enforcing Money Judgments Against a Judgment Debtor’s ‘Homestead’: A Step-by-Step Guide for 2022,” Arizona Attorney Magazine, State Bar of Arizona, January
2022
“A Step-By-Step Guide to Enforcement of Money Judgments Against a Judgment Debtor‘s “Homestead” Property/Residence,”
Arizona Journal of Real Estate & Business, September 2021, Vol. 36 No. 9
“‘Homestead’ Property: A Step-by-Step Guide to Enforcement of Money Judgments Against a Judgment Debtor's ‘Homestead’ Property/Residence Under Arizona's New Laws to Become Effective on January 1, 2022,” ALFN Angle, American Legal & Financial Network, Vol. 8, Issue 3, 2021
“A Step-By-Step Guide to Enforcement of Money Judgments Against a Judgment Debtor’s “Homestead” Property/Residence Under Arizona’s New Laws to Become Effective on
January 1, 2022,” June 2021
(Published digitally by the United Trustees Association [UTA] and the Arizona Trustee Association)
“The
Arizona Statute of Limitations Applicable to Collection Lawsuits and
Non-Judicial Trustee's Foreclosure Sales of Real Property,” ALFN Angle,
American Legal & Financial Network, Vol. 8, Issue 2, 2021
“FAQs: The Arizona Statute of Limitations Applicable to Collection Lawsuits and Non-Judicial Trustee’s Foreclosure Sales of Real Property,”
UTA Quarterly, United Trustees Association, Spring 2021
“Arizona
Mortgage Deficiency Law - 2017 Update,” The Arizona Banker,
Arizona Bankers Association, Issue 1, 2018
“Arizona
Mortgage Deficiency Law - 2017 Update,” Arizona Attorney Magazine,
State Bar of Arizona, December 2017
“Arizona
Mortgage Deficiency Law - 2017 Update,” Angle Magazine, American
Legal & Financial Network, Spring 2017
“Arizona Mortgage
Deficiency Law - 2013 Update,” Bankruptcy Law Journal, Winter 2013
“Arizona Mortgage Deficiency
Law,” Bankruptcy Law Journal, Spring 2011
Recent Presentations
“Arizona Foreclosure Law Presentation, January 2023 |
View
PowerPoint PDF
“Arizona's Bankruptcy Court Developments: Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Collection Litigation, and Creditor’s Rights Litigation.” Arizona Credit Union Collector’s Counsel (ACUCC), October 5, 2023 |
View
PowerPoint PDF
“Arizona's New Homestead Exemption Statutes: A Cause
for Anxiety or a Sigh of Relief?” (webinar co-presenter), Arizona Consumer
Bankruptcy Counsel, July 2021 |
View
YouTube Video
“Arizona Statute of Limitations Applicable to
Collection Lawsuits and Non-Judicial Trustee’s Foreclosure Sales of Real
Property,” Arizona Credit Union Collector’s Counsel (ACUCC), April 2021 |
View
PowerPoint PDF
“Advanced Update and Review of the Anti-Deficiency
Statutes and Court Decisions,” Real Property Section, State Bar of Arizona,
November 2017
Court Admissions
Superior Court of Arizona
United States
District Court for the District of Arizona
United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Arizona
Education
J.D., Northwestern University, 1988
B.S., summa cum laude, Arizona State University, 1985
Bankruptcy Law Profile
Mr. Folks has over three decades of experience in
commercial bankruptcy,
consumer bankruptcy,
foreclosure,
creditors' rights, collection,
civil litigation and loan restructuring and workout matters. His primary area of
concentration has been in representing banks,
financial institutions and other creditors. Mr. Folks also has significant
experience as a foreclosure trustee and is a trained neutral in
bankruptcy mediation and other civil disputes.
Prior to founding Folks Hess, PLLC, Larry Folks practiced for several
years with the bankruptcy department at Snell & Wilmer, LLP, Arizona's largest
law firm, and was a partner in the bankruptcy, foreclosure and creditors' rights
department of Kutak Rock, LLP, which is a national law firm.
Mr. Folks has extensive experience in all facets of prosecuting bankruptcy
claims in Chapter 7, 11 and 13 proceedings, obtaining the appointment of
judicial receivers, pursuing provisional remedies, obtaining money judgments in
collection proceedings against borrowers and guarantors, serving as a
foreclosure trustee and litigating judicial foreclosure actions. He has
represented bondholder committees and a debtor in significant Chapter 9
bankruptcies, has prosecuted creditor claims in Chapter 12 bankruptcies, and
occasionally represents commercial debtors-in-possession in Chapter 11. More
specifically, during the past 10 years, a significant portion of Mr. Folks’
practice has been devoted to representing several of the nation’s largest
commercial banks concerning high-dollar commercial and routine consumer cases
including, but not limited to:
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prosecuting Chapter 7, 11 and 13 bankruptcy unsecured and secured claims;
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pursuing suits on defaulted promissory notes and guaranties;
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obtaining writs of attachment, replevin and garnishment;
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documenting promissory note sales;
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negotiating and documenting loan workouts;
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completing judicial foreclosures;
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completing quiet title actions;
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serving as a foreclosure trustee;
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defending against lending and foreclosure related claims by borrowers; and
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conducting Uniform Commercial Code personal property sales.
Mr. Folks has significant experience as a substitute trustee under defaulted
deeds of trust conducting non-judicial trustee’s sales of commercial and
residential real property in Arizona. He currently represents several national
banks as a foreclosure trustee on a high-volume basis in every county of
Arizona. He and his staff have successfully completed thousands of non-judicial
trustee’s sales over the past ten years. They also represent clients concerning
all other aspects of the foreclosure process including:
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monitoring and bidding at senior lienholder foreclosure sales;
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applying for excess foreclosure sale proceeds;
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pursuing mortgage deficiency claims; and
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prosecuting evictions.
Mr. Folks has represented clients in a number of very significant bankruptcy
proceedings. Examples of such bankruptcy proceedings include America West
Airlines, American Continental Corporation, Central Arizona Irrigation &
Drainage District, New Magma Irrigation and Drainage District, Superstition
Mountain Community Facilities District, Megafoods, WGI Inc., International
Fibercom, Inc. and Smith Bros. Motors, Inc.
Finally, Mr. Folks serves parties as a neutral and has completed the STAR-A
Systematic Approach to Mediation Resolution through the
Straus Institute for
Dispute Resolution
at Pepperdine University School of Law. For several years, he served
as a Judge Pro Tem of the Superior Court of Arizona
in and for Maricopa County, which allowed him to gain significant mediation
experience by mediating a wide range of civil disputes on an ongoing monthly
basis. He is also a court-appointed panel mediator of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court
of the District of Arizona, with particular expertise in mediating bankruptcy
disputes. |
