Nathan Leavitt

Nathan Leavitt is an asset finance attorney based in San Francisco. He focuses on representing commercial aircraft lessors and his clients include several of the top-10 largest lessors in the commercial aviation industry.

Portfolio transfers and financing for groups of more than 10 aircraft are a significant portion of Mr. Leavitt's practice. He has dedicated a considerable portion of his career to developing systems, procedures, technology and training that allow Holland & Knight's 30-plus aviation finance professionals that regularly work with him to rapidly and accurately negotiate and scale complex aviation finance documentation.

Mr. Leavitt regularly negotiates new aircraft operating lease agreements with airlines on behalf of lessors for everything from 737-400 cargo conversions to fleets of A350s and 787-900s. This includes negotiating Global Aircraft Trading System (GATS) compliant leases and placing aircraft into GATS structures.

Pre-delivery payment (PDP) financing is a regular component of Mr. Leavitt's practice, whether structured with an associated sale/leaseback or as stand-alone PDP financing. He has advised several participants in asset-backed securitization (ABS) for passenger aircraft, engines and cargo aircraft.

Servicing agreements – whether associated with ABS vehicles or for assets owned by a joint venture (JV), side-car or third-party investor – are contractual relationships on which Mr. Leavitt regularly advises both lessors and investors.

Default, repossession and remedies advice for lessors faced with defaulting lessees is also a regular part of Mr. Leavitt's practice. He has designed custom repossession and remedies strategies on numerous occasions to help lessors analyze not only their contractual rights, but also the practical and business considerations concomitant with exercising remedies. Often following a default, Mr. Leavitt has negotiated restructuring agreements for lessors to forebear exercising remedies in exchange for certain assurances and other consideration from the lessee. Mr. Leavitt has coordinated involuntary repossession plans by means of temporary restraining orders (TROs), injunctions, issuance of grounding orders and exercise of deregistration powers of attorney in multiple states throughout the U.S. and multiple countries in Asia, Europe and Latin America. And when an airline files bankruptcy, whether Chapter 11, 13 or 15 in the United States or in another jurisdiction, he has regularly been brought in to advise on the contractual rights, U.S. Bankruptcy Code 1110 issues and Cape Town Convention rights and remedies.

Mr. Leavitt began his career with Holland & Knight's aviation finance team in San Francisco. He spent 2014 and 2015 based in the firm's New York office. In 2017, he relocated to England to open the firm's London office and once established he returned to San Francisco.

Mr. Leavitt was a secondee with GE Capital Aviation Services (GECAS) working for their Latin America and Caribbean division.