Attorney Bio: Breck E. Milde
Breck Milde has extensive litigation experience in the state and federal courts in the areas of secured and unsecured transactions; creditor's rights; lender liability; real estate law (including purchase and sale transactions, landlord-tenant disputes, real estate broker liability, boundary and easement disputes, partition actions, construction law and homeowners association matters); bank operations law; and negotiable instruments. He is experienced in all phases of pleadings, discovery, law and motion, prejudgment remedies (including writs of attachment, writs of possession, receiverships, temporary restraining orders, protective orders, and preliminary injunctions), summary judgments, arbitrations, mediations, workouts, trials, writ proceedings, enforcement of judgments, and appeals.
Breck practices bankruptcy law under Chapters 7, 11 and 13 of the Bankruptcy Code, primarily representing creditors in adversary proceedings, relief from stay motions, claims disputes, objections to plans of reorganization, motions for the conversion or dismissal of bankruptcy cases, cash collateral proceedings, enforcement of executory contracts, appointment of trustees, preference and fraudulent transfer litigation, as well as post-confirmation matters.
Breck has experience both as in-house and outside legal counsel for financial institutions, providing advice and litigating matters involving negotiable instruments, checks, wire transfers, letters of credit, bank operations, lender liability, as well as collections. Mr. Milde also has extensive experience in negotiating and documenting loan modifications and restructuring, as well as judicial and non-judicial foreclosures.
Prior to joining Terra Law, Breck practiced at Jackson Tufts Cole & Black, LLP and Hopkins & Carley, ALC. Prior to that, he served as in-house legal counsel to Comerica Bank, and Pacific Western Bank.
Additional information about Breck Milde:
Breck is a founding partner of Terra Law LLP.
Breck was a past chair of San Jose Bank Attorneys Association.
Breck is currently a member of the Congressman Don Edwards Inn of the Court, a group consisting of bankruptcy judges and attorneys.
Breck is on the Judicial Arbitration Panel, and acts as a Judge Pro Tem for the Santa Clara County Superior Court.
Breck has been selected as a Northern California Super Lawyer every year starting in 2006 through 2024. The independent research firm Law & Politics describes the Super Lawyers as a “comprehensive and diverse listing of outstanding attorneys in Northern California representing a wide range of practice areas, firm sizes and geographic locations. Five percent of the lawyers in Northern California are named Super Lawyers.”
Areas of Practice
Litigation
Financial Institutions and Creditors Rights
Secured and Unsecured Transactions
Real Estate Law
Banking Law
Bankruptcy
Bar Admissions
California, 1986
U.S. District Court Northern District of California, 1986
U.S. District Court Central District of California, 1990
U.S. Court of Appeals 9th Circuit, 1990
U.S. District Court Eastern District of California, 1990
U.S. District Court Southern District of California, 2008
Education
Santa Clara University School of Law, Santa Clara, California
J.D. - 1985
University of California, Santa Cruz, California
B.A. - 1981
Honors: With Honors
Publications
California Debt Collection and Enforcement of Judgments, Matthew Bender Practice Guide, 2006—present, Editorial Consultant
Ordinary Course of Business Defense May Protect Creditors From Preference Liability, Daily Journal, Top Bankruptcy Lawyers Supplement, August 2022
Small Businesses and Creditors are set to Benefit from Revisions to US Bankruptcy Code, Daily Journal, October 10, 2019
Approaching an Action Against a Real Estate Broker, CEB Action Guide, Winter 1993
China Opens for Business, California Lawyer, Vol. 5, No.8, August 1985
Reported Cases
Oliver v. Bledsoe, 5 Cal.App. 4th 998 (1998)
Chance World Trading v. Heritage Bank of Commerce, 438 F. Supp. 2d 1081 (N.D.Cal 2005)
Recognition
Selected to Northern California Super Lawyers every year from 2006 through 2024.
The independent research firm Law & Politics describes the Super Lawyers as a “comprehensive and diverse listing of outstanding attorneys in Northern California representing a wide range of practice areas, firm sizes and geographic locations. Five percent of the lawyers in Northern California are named Super Lawyers.”
Professional Associations and Memberships
California State Bar Association, Litigation and Business Law Sections, Member, 1986 - Present
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Member, 1986 - Present
Santa Clara County Bar Association, Bankruptcy and Commercial Law Section Executive Committee, 1990 - 1991
San Jose Bank Attorneys Association, Member, 1988-present, Chair, 1997-1998
American Bar Association, Member; Litigation, Commercial Law Sections, 1984 - Present
Congressmen Don Edwards Inn of Court, Member, 2006 - Present
Community Legal Services Corporation, Board of Directors, 1997 – 1998
Presentations
Speaker: “What Creditors Can Do to Protect Their Ability to Collect,” Video Publication, July 25, 2021
Speaker: “Preferences in Bankruptcy,” Video Publication, June 25, 2020
Panelist: “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. What Lenders Should Know About the SBRA and the Impact of the CARES Act on Bankruptcy,” Webinar, May 15, 2020
Panelist: “What Commercial Landlords & Tenants Need to Know About Bankruptcy & Financial Distress Arising from Coronavirus,” Webinar, April 8, 2020
Panelist: “New Developments in Lending and Bankruptcy Law,” Risk Management Association, Silicon Valley Chapter, February 2011
Speaker: “Capturing Streams of Income Using Assignment Orders,” California Association of Judgment Professionals, October 2010
Panelist: “Collection Law from Start to Finish,” National Business Institute, March 2007
Panelist: “Successful Judgment Collections in California,” National Business Institute, March 2005
Panelist: “Foreclosure and Repossession,” Sterling Education Services, August 2003
Speaker: “Usury, the Phantom Menace,” Santa Clara County Bar Association, June 2002
Panelist: “Basic Bankruptcy Law and Practice,” Sterling Education Services, September 2001
Speaker: “Revised UCC Article 9,” Santa Clara County Bar Association, April 2000
Speaker: “Recent Developments Concerning Non-Dischargeability of Debt,” San Jose Bank Attorneys Association, and Santa Clara County Bar Association, November 1996
Speaker: “The Bankruptcy Reform Act of 1994,” International Association of Credit Professionals, December 1994
Speaker: “Recent Developments in Commercial Law,” Santa Clara County Bar Association, March 1994
In addition to the above, Breck Milde has made numerous in-house presentations to financial institutions, as well as other clients and professional groups.