Mr. Hawes was born in Westminster, California in 1960 and raised in the Southern California Area.Mr. Hawes graduated with honors from California State University at Northridge in 1982 receiving the Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science.He attended Santa Barbara and Ventura Colleges of Law receiving the degree of Juris Doctor in 1987.
Mr. Hawes has focused his practice in the area of commercial, real estate, business and construction litigation and transactions.Mr. Hawes represents national and community based lenders in matters involving loan origination, operations, non-performing loans,lender liability issues, receiverships, writs of attachment, writs of possession and other provisional remedies, judicial and nonjudicial foreclosures, Article 9 sales, judicial reformation of loan documents and equitable subrogations, subsidence and construction defects, stop notices, commercial and residential landlord/tenant issues, eminent domain andinverse condemnation. Mr. Hawes represents developers, investors, design professionals,general and sub-contractors, owner-occupiers, landlords and other users of real estate in matters involving sales, purchases, options, leases, construction and development, easements, adverse and prescriptive use, boundary and other title disputes, subsidence, lateral support, entitlements, water rights, eminent domain and inverse condemnation of commercial, office, industrial, retail, agricultural, residential and multifamily properties.
In addition, Mr. Hawes represents creditors in Chapter 7, 11 and 13 bankruptcies.
Mr. Hawes' experience also runs to forbearance, modification, assumption, purchase, intercreditor and other loan workout agreements and to formation of partnerships, joint ventures, corporations and limited liability companies.
Mr. Hawes represents the Federal National Mortgage Association, GMAC Commercial Mortgage Corporation, GMAC Mortgage Corporation, JP Morgan Chase Bank, Irwin Union Bank, Pacific Western National Bank, First Credit Bank, Chino Commercial Bank, Inland Community Bank, First Private Bank & Trust, American Security Bank, Security Pacific Bank, Professional Business Bank, California Business Bank, Western Commercial Bank, MetroPacific Bank, South County Bank, Americas United Bank, First California Bank, Palm Desert National Bank, California Oaks State Bank, California United Bank, Vineyard Bank, First Financial Bank, Community West Bank and Simplicity Bank.
Mr. Hawes is a member and featured speaker of the American, California, Los Angeles and San Fernando Valley Bar Associations, with membership in the Real Estate and Commercial Sections and the Provisional Remedy Subsection.In addition, Mr. Hawes is a member of the Financial Lawyers Conference and Western Independent Bankers, he is a featured speaker and member of the Risk Management Association, he is a featured speaker of the Federal Reserve Bank and he sits on the Government Affairs Committee of the Building Industry Association, the Civil Litigation Panel for the California Continuing Education of the Bar and the Planning Committee of the California Bankers Association.
Mr. Hawes has been published in the Verdicts and Settlements section of the Daily Journal for successfully defending financial institutions against lender liability and identity theft claims, he has published Legal Update for Bankers, and he has represented financial institutions in published opinions involving Nigerian Check Scams.