TIM BARNES

PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITIES

Over his career, Tim Barnes has been involved in various professional activities.  Tim was the President of the Arizona State College of Law Alumni Association in 1976.  In 1985, he was appointed to the Ninth Circuit Merit Screening Committee for the District of Arizona regarding the appointment of Bankruptcy Judges.  He was a hearing officer for the Arizona Department of Health Services from 1975 to 1997, and a hearing officer for the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality from 1987 to 1995.  Tim was honored by the State Bar of Arizona as one of the Top 50 Pro Bono Attorneys in 2000; and the Maricopa County Volunteer Lawyer Program in that same year.

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REAL ESTATE REPRESENTATION

Tim has handled a wide variety of real estate cases over his career.  He has represented large and small real estate owners, commercial landlords, lenders, and lien holders in both prosecuting and defending civil litigation real estate cases.  Some of Tim’s notable real estate cases include:

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• Swain v. Bixby Village Golf Course, Inc., 247 Ariz. 405, 450 P.3d 270 (App. 2019) (Successfully represented homeowners enforcing CC&Rs requiring real property to remain a golf course after the golf course owner sold the property to a large home developer) (Supreme Court of United States denied Writ of Certiorari Nov. 9, 2020).

• United Ins. Co. of America v. Lutz, 227 Ariz. 411, 258 P.3d 229 (App. 2011) (Successfully represented commercial landlord in appeal in which tenant asserted “merger of estates” as defense to landlord’s claim for breach of lease).

• Byke Construction Co., Inc. v. Miller, 140 Ariz. 57, 680 P.2d 193 (App. 1984) (Successfully defended landowner in trial court by asserting the common law “rule against perpetuities'' applied to an option to purchase land.  Case was remanded to the trial court by the Arizona Court of Appeals (stating the common law rule was “long cherished by law school professors and dreaded by most law students”) to the trial court for a more modern interpretation).

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COLLECTION & BANKRUPTCY CREDITOR REPRESENTATION

Tim has represented both large and small creditors (including institutional creditors) in commercial and consumer collection cases in both state and federal court. He also has represented creditor clients in bankruptcy chapter 7 liquidation and chapter 11 reorganization matters.  Tim has acted as bankruptcy counsel for the Arizona Department of Insurance in receivership matters.  One of Tim’s notable collection cases:

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• In re Elegant Custom Homes (Dusharm v. Elegant Custom Homes, et al.), 57 Collier Bankr. Cas. 2d 1789 (US Dist. Ct. (Ariz.) 2007). Successfully represented the plaintiff in action against corporate shareholders for loan to the corporation determined to be the alter ego of shareholders).