About

Tough Times for Lenders (TTL) provides news, information and commentary on important issues affecting troubled or problem commercial assets in the financial services industry. Written by leading attorneys who serve mid- to large-sized financial institutions and loan servicers, the TTL blog is designed to help companies stay current on business and legal issues affecting the financial services industry, now and in the future.

Readers of the TTL blog include officers, senior executives, senior managers, boards of directors, loan officers, credit professionals, special asset managers and in-house counsel at national and regional financial institutions and commercial loan servicers.

Winstead PC is among the largest business law firms in Texas. Winstead attorneys and consultants serve as trusted advisors to mid-market and large businesses, providing a core range of legal services that are critical to their operation and success. From its well-known reputation in financial services, real estate and technology to its corporate and high-stakes litigation practices, Winstead delivers practical knowledge and responsive service.

For detailed information about Winstead, visit www.winstead.com

 W. Mike Baggett
Mike Baggett is a highly respected leader in the Texas legal and business communities. He has successfully argued six published opinions of the Texas Supreme Court and has tried over 50 commercial cases at the trial level. Mike is a well-known author and lecturer before judicial conferences, bar associations, law schools, trade and industry groups. Representative examples of over 100 events include: Texas Judicial Conference; American Bar Association; State Bars of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas and Florida; University of Texas, Baylor, SMU, Texas Tech and Houston Law Schools; Texas Association of Bank Counsel; Texas General Counsel Forum; Texas Center for Legal Ethics and Professionalism; Banking Law Institute; and American College of Mortgage Attorneys. His legal publications have also been cited as authority by 12 appellate courts. Click here for Mike's full bio.

 Nelson R. Block
Nelson Block assists clients in creating and implementing strategies for their business transactions. For almost 30 years, Nelson has applied his analysis, drafting and negotiation skills to hundreds of real estate, finance and corporate matters, including turnarounds and workouts. His clients include emerging businesses, Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, charities and governments.  Click here for Nelson's full bio.


 Keith H. Mullen
Keith Mullen serves as the chair of Winstead's Financial Services Industry Group. Keith represents investors, servicers and lenders in a wide variety of real estate product types and across multiple markets in challenging credit environments. Keith is recognized for his ability to understand a client's asset recovery objectives and goals, and then to quickly and accurately deliver the desired result. Keith draws upon his broad professional background, a desire to learn and teach, and his leadership ability in managing the recovery of assets involving multi-property and multi-state collateral. He is known for his ability to create innovative practices and procedures -- including technology applications designed to increase efficiency and to collect information as data.  Click here for Keith's full bio.

 James G. Ruiz
James Ruiz has tried cases in federal and state courts across the nation representing his clients' business interests for more than 18 years. James has broad industry experience in complex commercial litigation and arbitration cases in several substantive areas, including banking and real estate, securities, insurance, intellectual property, franchisor/franchisee disputes, corporate and partnership issues and governmental enforcement actions. James' diversified experience has been key to his ability to come up with novel theories when handling complex litigation matters and to develop creative solutions to resolve difficult business problems. Click here for James' full bio.

 Teresa Schneider
Teresa Schneider has practiced commercial litigation with Winstead PC since 1990, handling a wide variety of matters ranging from antitrust to trademark disputes.  Teresa's broad range of experience allows her to identify the vast number of issues her clients face and resolve them as expeditiously as possible.  Click here for Teresa's full bio.