Maria Rabassa Email & Phone Number

I have been a Vice President & Managing Senior Counsel for BMO Harris Bank, N.A. (FKA Bank of the West) for the past 14 years leading all of the Bank's in-house commercial lending and workout attorneys. I brought to this role nearly 20 years of experience in the representation of commercial banks, life insurance companies, fund investors and advisors, and pension funds, with respect to secured lending and structured finance activities, including complex restructures and workouts. I also manage the operation of the Legal Department’s Los Angeles office. In addition, as the sole in-house counsel advising the commercial syndications and structured finance team, I directly provide hands-on legal support on all syndicated transactions agented by the Bank. In this capacity, I advise on some of the largest, most sophisticated, and complex transactions in which the Bank is involved.I have frequently served as a seminar speaker on commercial finance and workouts. I have also spoken on several panels sponsored by the California Minority Counsel Program (CMCP) dealing with the experience of, and advancement strategies for, attorneys of color in both private practice and in-house positions. Prior to joining the Bank, I practiced for almost 20 years at Mayer Brown and Proskauer Rose, two of the largest and most respected law firms in the United States. My legal practice included all aspects of commercial finance, including permanent, term, revolving, ground lease, and mezzanine financing transactions. I also practiced extensively in the areas of real estate acquisitions and sales, loan acquisitions and sales, commercial leasing, debt restructures, and complex workouts.I obtained my A.B. in Government from Harvard University (with honors) and my J.D. from UC Berkeley School of Law (California Law Review, Moot Court Board, Appellate Advocacy Program Director). I am admitted to the California State Bar.