Family Law

• Divorce
  We assisted a professional, celebrity-status couple in a collaborative divorce, providing a respectful, private atmosphere for them to settle issues outside of court.
• Child Support
  We successfully navigated a client through a complicated, conflicting interstate custody and child support case in which one state had jurisdiction over custody and the other had jurisdiction over support.
• Child Custody and Visitation
  We assisted a professional, celebrity-status couple in a collaborative divorce, providing a respectful, private atmosphere for them to settle issues outside of court. With the aid of neutral experts, they reached their own agreements on child custody, support, and asset valuation and division.
• Adoption
• Paternity
  We offer significant experience in the wide range of issues encompassed by family law: divorce, child custody, child support, grandparent visitation and guardianships. We are experienced in all types of general family law processes, including mediation, dispute resolution, collaborative divorce, arbitration and litigation. We counsel clients with respect to initiating and successfully completing private adoption proceedings. We handle every aspect of divorce proceedings, including pre-divorce planning, choosing the appropriate divorce process, the negotiation and preparation of prenuptial, postnuptial, and marital settlement and property agreements. We handle divorces involving complex, high-value assets, tracing of separate interests, valuing of businesses, and division of retirement assets.  Our lawyers are experienced in litigating custody cases involving custody evaluators, establishing paternity, custody and time-sharing plans, litigating interstate custody and child support cases, relocation cases, international custody cases. We serve as court-appointed guardians ad litem to represent children in contested custody cases.
• Guardianship
  We represent domestic violence victims and we defend against domestic violence allegations. We assist clients needing to establish guardianship (including kinship guardianship) over relatives who are in need of protection.
• Spousal Support
  At trial, we persuaded the court to award lifetime spousal support based on our client’s long-term marriage, chronic medical conditions and the spouse’s earning power.

Criminal Law

• Criminal Defense
  The lawyers in Sutin, Thayer & Browne’s appellate practice undertake a variety of appeals in a wide range of civil matters, including in commercial litigation. The firm has represented plaintiffs and defendants before the New Mexico Supreme Court, New Mexico Court of Appeals, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. Our appellate practice handles general tort appeals, all forms of commercial appeals, Indian gaming appeals and a variety of criminal appeals.
• DUI/DWI
• Wrongful Death
  We defended a United States Postal Service regional trucking mail delivery contractor in a wrongful death claim arising from a highway accident.
• Fraud
  Our commercial litigators provide a broad range of business litigation services to business clients ranging from individuals and family-owned businesses to large corporations and financial institutions. We represent both plaintiffs and defendants in matters involving contract disputes, securities fraud, lender liability, employment, foreclosure, bankruptcy, intellectual property and bid protest litigation related to construction and government contracts. Our lawyers appear in tribal, state and federal courts, before numerous administrative agencies and in arbitration, mediation and other similar proceedings. We have extensive experience in managing and coordinating complex litigation involving multiple defendants in both state and federal courts, many involving state or federal officials. Our litigation skills include the willingness and ability to negotiate settlements when it is in the client’s best interest.

Business and Corporate Law

• Corporate Law
  Our lawyers have extensive experience in providing all manner of commercial transactional services to our business, institutional, entrepreneurial and governmental clients, including advisement on corporate governance; analysis of member, director, officer and employee responsibilities, liabilities, and indemnification; analysis of federal and state trade name, trademark, service mark and corporate name protection; sale and purchase transactions; analysis of banking and lending relationships and documentation; review and preparation of business forms, including invoices, security documents and contracts; preparation of business opinion and advice letters; preparation of all types of business agreements and documents; and all other related business planning services.
• Mergers and Acquisitions
  The Firm’s project development team comprises lawyers with extensive experience in a broad range of practices, including project finance, mergers and acquisitions, municipal finance, acquisition finance, tax, real estate, governmental affairs and regulatory oversight.  The Firm’s project development practice is distinguished by its balanced representation of public and private owners and operators, project sponsors, developers, investment and commercial banks, institutional lenders and government entities.  We have been involved in sophisticated and unique projects that require a broad range of legal skills and disciplines ranging from traditional municipal and project financing to the structuring of public-private partnership entities and the sale or lease of existing infrastructure assets, including...
• Business Formation
• Business Disputes
  Our intellectual property litigation practice includes copyright, trade name and trademark matters, deceptive trade practices, unfair competition and trade secret misappropriation, and breach of contract disputes involving intellectual property rights.
• Business Transactions
  Sutin, Thayer & Browne has provided exceptional legal services in New Mexico since 1946. The Firm is engaged in a broad general civil and commercial practice, offering world-class services from New Mexico. Approximately 30 lawyers in Albuquerque and Santa Fe provide representation in business transactions and litigation matters. Innovative, aggressive representation sets us apart from other law firms.
• Construction Contracts
  Our experience covers the entire spectrum of contract-related matters, including matters involving real estate contracts, procurement contracts, construction contracts, joint venture contracts, insurance contracts, loan contracts, leases of real and personal property, employment and non-competition contracts, sales contracts and purchase contracts.
• Trade Secrets
• Intellectual Property
• Unfair Competition
  We represented one of the world’s leading cosmetics firms in trademark and unfair competition litigation, and our intellectual property cases have resulted in reported cases as far back as the landmark Jordache Enterprises, Inc. v. Hogg Wyld, Ltd, 625 F. Supp. 48 (D.N.M. 1985), aff’d, 828 F.2d 1482 (10th Cir. 1987) and The Value House v. Phillips Mercantile Co., 523 F.2d 424 (10th Cir. 1975).
• Antitrust

Employment Law

• Wrongful Termination
  We defend a wide variety of claims against providers, including wrongful death, malpractice, medical products and corporate negligence, EMTALA, HIPAA, unfair practices, and wrongful discharge claims brought by employees.
• Employment Contract
  In the area of employment law, for example, we serve as advocates for employers across the state regarding compliance with specific New Mexico cannabis laws. Our employment and civil rights lawyers present training seminars and prepare employment contracts and policies regarding cannabis usage. These tools provide our clients concrete direction to appropriately navigate the sometimes-murky waters of cannabis law across all types of employees, even Federal contractors.
• Employment Litigation
  Our experience representing governments also provides our lawyers the judgment and insight to represent businesses and individuals in working with such public entities. We have represented business and individuals in procurement matters, government contracting and public employment disputes. We have helped major developers navigate the complex systems for obtaining economic development incentives, including establishing projects under the Local Economic Development Act, obtaining industrial revenue bonds and forming special districts. We have also successfully lobbied for legislation to benefit our clients.
• Non-compete Agreement
  The Firm has a premier intellectual property practice, representing institutional and individual clients in a wide variety of copyright, trademark, technology, licensing, defamation, invasion of privacy and unfair competition matters. We assist clients in developing programs to protect trade secrets through the use of confidentiality, non-disclosure and non-compete agreements. We counsel clients on preventing trade secret liability for themselves, particularly when hiring employees from competitors. We can help implement or oversee a comprehensive program for managing intellectual property, including identifying, documenting, centralizing, protecting and promoting all forms of intellectual property.
• Severance Agreement
• Sexual Harassment
  Sutin, Thayer & Browne offers a full range of legal services on employment and labor issues in litigation and non-litigation contexts to our both public and private clients. We draft employee handbooks, policies and procedures, navigate employee benefits, consult on reductions in force and other terminations, provide training sessions on sexual harassment and discrimination, and defend lawsuits based on employment claims. We advise clients regarding day-to-day operating issues as well as provide longer-range strategic planning services. We offer a comprehensive approach to meet the needs of our business and government clients. The firm is known for its preventive legal work: its willingness and ability to avoid employment litigation on the front end for clients through mediation and dispute resolution.

Property Law

• Real Estate Litigation
  The firm has worked on many easement projects, analyzed complex access and utility easement matters, and drafted easements for several major projects. Some of our other relevant experience includes negotiating the establishment, amendment, assignment and purchase of tribal, state and federal rights-of-way, drafting legislation allowing clients to sell easements and rights-of-way, preparing and reviewing site development plans, reviewing survey and title insurance commitments, performing due diligence on real estate matters generally, including zoning certifications and ordinances, and preparing site development plans.
• Premises Liability
  Sutin, Thayer & Browne is experienced and respected in all areas of insurance defense, including premises liability, nursing home liability, personal injury, governmental entity defense, bad faith,...
• Construction Litigation
  Sutin, Thayer & Browne lawyers assist clients in all aspects of construction and real estate development litigation, transactions and financing for projects across New Mexico, representing public and private developers, sellers, buyers, borrowers and lenders. The firm’s construction law experience includes construction litigation, government contracts and procurement for private and public works projects, litigating complex construction defect cases, preparing, analyzing and enforcing...
• Real Estate Transactions
  We routinely serve as local counsel for M&A and real estate transactions and pride ourselves in being responsive, knowledgeable of local matters, and sensitive to the need not to duplicate efforts.
• Eminent Domain
  Represented the New Mexico Renewable Energy Transmission Authority (RETA) as general counsel since 2011. The firm has worked closely with RETA on several projects requiring the application and interpretation of New Mexico eminent domain statutes, the RETA statute, and New Mexico statutes and regulations addressing Public Regulation Commission jurisdiction over particular aspects of utilities in general and RETA projects in particular. We have worked closely with RETA and its partners to assist in designing projects in a manner that minimizes New Mexico Public Regulation jurisdiction.
• Easement
• Land Use and Zoning
  Real estate and land use matters including the purchase of real estate for cannabis-related endeavors, compliance with applicable zoning requirements for various local municipalities, and handling zoning variance requests when needed

Health Law

• Personal Injury
  We defended a New Mexico Indian tribe in a personal injury action involving a question of first impression concerning whether an insurer was a proper named party in an action governed by the New Mexico Indian Gaming Compact.
• Medical Malpractice
  Sutin, Thayer & Browne is experienced and respected in all areas of insurance defense, including premises liability, nursing home liability, personal injury, governmental entity defense, bad faith, employment, trucking and transportation, railroad accident defense, civil rights, construction defects, toxic torts, professional malpractice, medical malpractice, architectural malpractice and engineering malpractice. Our lawyers have worked closely with companies such as State Farm, Liberty Mutual, Blue Cross Blue Shield, USI, Hiscox USA (a servicer for syndications of Lloyds London), ACE North American Claims-Professional Risk, Utica Insurance Company, ESIS, Inc., Leavitt Group Enterprises, CNA, National Indemnity Company, Chubb, Philadelphia Insurance Companies, and Grain Dealers Mutual Insurance Company. Our insurance defense group assists clients throughout the insurance industry, including individuals, small and large businesses, and governmental entities. We serve primary insurers, excess insurers and reinsurers, and clients ranging from large carriers and surplus line insurance carriers to insurance carriers who prefer to operate on a non-admitted basis. We provide a comprehensive range of services intended to avoid and resolve disputes, including preventive counseling, policy analysis and interpretation, pre-litigation investigation, and prosecution and defense of claims at the trial and appellate levels. We assist our clients in this highly regulated industry with complex issues of taxation and licensing.

Trusts and Estates

• Estate Planning
  Sutin, Thayer & Browne’s estate planning, trust and probate practice involves all aspects of tax, estate and gift planning, trust and estate administration and related litigation. Our estate...
• Wills
  Probate litigation is the process of challenging all or parts of the Last Will and Testament, whether it be a provision, a codicil, or the appointment of the personal representative. The disputed facts define the exact cause of action (e.g., lack of mental capacity, undue influence, duress, intentional interference with an expectancy, and/or improper signing of the will) to be prosecuted or defended. An attorney representing the recipient of a notice saying that an objection to the probate proceedings must begin within a certain period of time or be barred is usually the one who initiates probate litigation.
• Trusts
• Probate

Finance Law

• Bankruptcy
  We represented a major agricultural lender in the Chapter 7 bankruptcy of a large nut processing plant, with collateral involving raw product, completed product, equipment, accounts receivable, insurance proceeds, and real estate. The plant, including equipment and raw product, was sold in a complex, multiday auction held under 11 U.S.C. 363, with multiple bidders and a successful closing that resulted in payment of our client’s debt in full, approximately five months from the petition date.
• Foreclosure
  We have a long history of banking and financial institution experience. Our lawyers assist New Mexico lenders, as well as out-of-state lenders, in ensuring compliance with federal and state laws and regulations. We represent lenders, borrowers, and venture capital and private equity investors in a variety of financing transactions, including regulatory matters, asset-based lending, unsecured commercial credit, real estate loans, debt restructuring, mezzanine financing, capital investment, letters of credit, and synthetic and leveraged leases. We represent borrowers and lenders in most major types of syndicated and single-bank credit facilities, project and acquisition financing, asset-based loans, reorganizations and workouts and credit enhancement devices. Among our transactional lawyers and litigators, we have extensive experience in most aspects of commercial lending, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, Indian law and related commercial litigation. From regulatory advice and loan documentation to foreclosure and defense of lender liability claims, we offer a comprehensive approach to the needs of the financial services industry.
• Tax Law
  Our public finance and tax incentives practice includes municipal bonds, industrial revenue bonds, general commercial and tax matters, administrative and regulatory law including lobbying and utilities regulation, securities, real estate, labor law, and litigation of all kinds. The Firm represents state agencies and authorities, municipalities, counties, educational institutions, non-profit organizations, corporations, utilities, hospitals and insurers. We serve as bond counsel to the New Mexico Finance Authority for its State Transportation bond program, loan counsel to NMFA for its Public-Project Revolving Fund program, and bond counsel to the Renewable Energy Transmission Authority.