Katherine S. Thursby

Katherine Thursby serves as Bond and Disclosure Counsel to California cities, counties, water districts, special districts, transportation authorities, joint powers authorities, school districts, community college districts and former redevelopment agencies.  She is experienced working with nearly all forms of publicly-offered municipal debt, including lease revenue bonds, enterprise revenue bonds, general obligation bonds, certificates of participation, Mello-Roos Bonds, sales tax bonds, tax allocation bonds, tax and revenue anticipation notes, warrants and bond anticipation notes and pension obligation bonds, all as issued to finance new projects and for refunding purposes.  Katherine has also assisted issuers and financial institutions with privately-placed tax-exempt bond and loan financings, structured as real property and equipment lease-purchase agreements, loan agreements and revolving credit agreements.

Ms. Thursby has represented both national and regional investment banking firms as underwriters' counsel with respect to, on average, nearly 100 public finance transactions each year. 

Katherine started her career as a legal and compliance analyst at Morgan Stanley.  She has additional experience representing emerging growth and technology companies, venture capital and angel investors, and private equity firms in connection with various public and private financings.

Representative Work

• Financial Institutions:  Represented investment banks as underwriter’s counsel and placement agent counsel with respect to the issuance of general obligation bonds, assessment and special tax bonds, enterprise revenue bonds, tax allocation bonds, charter school revenue bonds, and the execution and delivery of certifications of participation.
• Cities and Counties:  Represented various cities and counties as bond counsel, disclosure counsel and/or issuer’s counsel with respect to the issuance of enterprise revenue bonds, general obligation bonds, tax and revenue anticipation notes, lease revenue bonds and privately-placed leases, assessment and special tax bonds, redevelopment agency tax allocation bonds, pension obligation bonds, and as special counsel and disclosure counsel in connection with the execution and delivery of certifications of participation. 
• Water, Irrigation, Sanitary and Utility Agencies and Districts:  Represented water districts, irrigation districts, sanitary districts and other public utility districts as bond counsel and disclosure counsel with respect to their issuance of enterprise revenue bonds, and as special counsel and disclosure counsel in connection with the execution and delivery of certifications of participation.  Specific experience coordinating multiple project funding sources, which may include bond proceeds and state and federal grant and loan monies (including, but not limited to, SRF Loans and WIFIA funds).
• K-14 School Districts:  Represented more than 50 California school districts and community college districts as bond counsel and disclosure counsel with respect to their issuance of general obligation bonds, as special counsel and disclosure counsel in connection with the execution and delivery of certifications of participation, and as issuer’s counsel in connection with privately-placed loan and lease-purchase financings. Assisted with numerous successful general obligation bond and parcel tax elections.
• Special Districts:  Represented various special districts as bond counsel and disclosure counsel with respect to their issuance of general obligation bonds, as special counsel and disclosure counsel in connection with the execution and delivery of certifications of participation, and as issuer’s counsel in connection with private loan and lease-purchase financings.  Engagements include representation of a regional park district in connection with its issuance of promissory notes, and its subsequent issuance of general obligation bonds.
• Transportation Agencies:  Represented various transportation agencies as bond counsel, disclosure counsel and general counsel with respect to the issuance of sales tax revenue bonds, toll revenue bonds, and revolving credit agreements.
• Land-Secured Financings:  Represented cities, counties, special districts and school districts in the formation of community facilities districts pursuant to the State of California Mello-Roos Community Facilities Act of 1982 and assessment districts pursuant to the State of California Street and Highways Code, and subsequently as bond counsel and disclosure counsel with respect to the issuance of special tax bonds and assessment bonds.
• Bond Validation:  Handled over 25 bond validation cases, generally involving the issuance of pension obligation bonds.