Overview
As a member, and recent past Chair, of the firm’s Mergers & Acquisitions Practice Group, Sherrill counsels clients on buying and selling businesses, and structuring complex joint ventures. As a member of Tonkon’s Corporate Finance & Transactions Practice Group, she advises clients on bank financings, private placements, and public offerings. Sherrill also represents public companies and advises them on securities compliance, corporate governance matters, and follow-on offerings. Sherrill also serves on Tonkon Torp’s Managing Board.
Sherrill’s clients value her ability to provide quality legal counsel with practical business advice, create creative solutions, and make "legalese" easy to understand. She especially enjoys working with women-owned or operated businesses.
Sherrill previously practiced at Heller Ehrman White & McAuliffe LLP’s San Francisco office and at Graham & James LLP, also in California.
Featured Representative Matters
Vestas
Pacific Foods
Rejuvenation, Inc.
Climax Portable Machining & Welding Systems
The Joinery
Delphina's Bakery
Market Industries
Randolph Construction Services, Inc.
The Greenbrier Companies, Inc. (NYSE: GBX)
- Its offering of $230 million of 3.5% Convertible Senior Notes due 2018
- Its offering of 3,000,000 shares of common stock
- Its entry into a five-year $245 million revolving line of credit with Bank of America which replaced its existing $100 million credit facility
- Its negotiation of an agreement with General Electric Railcar Services Corporation ("GER"), a subsidiary of GE Capital, GE's financial services business, to modify GER's new railcar manufacturing contract with Greenbrier
- Its negotiation of a $75 million strategic investment from WL Ross & Co. LLC
- Its acquisition of Meridian Rail Holdings Corp. for $230 million in cash
Featured Work
Tonkon Torp Guides Pacific Foods through Oregon’s Largest Acquisition of 2017
Tonkon Torp led Oregon's largest M&A transaction in 2017, the $700 million acquisition of Tualatin-based Pacific Foods of Oregon LLC by Campbell Investment Company. Pacific Foods is an iconic, nationally distributed organic food brand founded in 1987.
Tonkon Torp Brings Attorney Power to Renewable Energy Transaction
Tonkon Torp client Enel Green Power North America (EGPNA) is the North American subsidiary of one of the largest corporations in the world, the Italian electricity company Enel S.p.A. Here's how we helped EGPNA in a renewable energy acquisition.
Tonkon Torp Represents Vestas in Acquisition of UpWind Solutions
Tonkon Torp represented its client Vestas, the world's largest manufacturer of wind turbines, in the acquisition of UpWind Solutions, Inc., an independent service provider for wind power plants in nine US states. The $60 million acquisition furthers Vestas's strategic objectives for its North America service business.
Diverse Team Aids Greenbrier in Joint Venture
Tonkon Torp acted as Oregon corporate counsel for its long-term client The Greenbrier Companies, Inc. in finalizing a 50/50 joint venture with Watco Companies, L.L.C. The venture combines the two companies’ railcar repair, refurbishment and maintenance businesses into a new organization, GBW Railcar Services, LLC.
Tonkon Torp Helps Albina Head Start Stabilize Finances for Enhanced Programming
Albina Head Start, Inc. (AHS), which serves more than 1,000 low-income children and their families in North, Northeast and Southeast Portland, faces the future in a stronger financial position thanks to a significant pro bono effort by Tonkon Torp. Find details and more featured cases here.
Tonkon Torp Helps CLIMAX Strengthen Worldwide Market Position
Tonkon Torp represented Newberg, Oregon-based CLIMAX Portable Machining and Welding Systems, in its acquisition in 2013 of Houston-based Calder Testers. Founded in 1966, CLIMAX is the world’s largest supplier of portable machine tools for the power generation, shipbuilding, heavy construction and mining, petrochemical and engineering industries.
Tonkon Torp Facilitates Greenbrier Subsidiary Divestiture
Earlier this year, Tonkon Torp represented Meridian Rail Acquisitions Corp., a subsidiary of the firm’s long-standing client The Greenbrier Companies, in the sale of substantially all of the equipment utilized in Greenbrier's reconditioned wheelset roller bearing operations in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. The purchaser was The Timken Companies, a global manufacturer of mechanical components and high-performance steel, including bearings.
Community Involvement & Activities
Fellows of the American Bar Foundation
Member
Women Presidents' Organization, Inc.
Member
Oregon State Bar
Securities Regulation Section Executive Committee
Past Chair
Women’s Investment Network
2008, Program Chair
2007-2009, Member
Oregon Entrepreneurs Network
2005-2007, Secretary and Board Member
Professional Memberships
Multnomah Bar Association
Oregon Women Lawyers
Society of Corporate Secretaries & Governance Professionals
Awards & Recognition
The Best Lawyers in America
2011-2021, Corporate Governance Law
2014-2021, Securities/Capital Markets Law
2021, Corporate Law
2014, 2020, Lawyer of the Year – Corporate Governance Law, Portland
2013, 2017, Lawyer of the Year – Corporate Compliance Law, Portland
Super Lawyers
2008-2009, Oregon Rising Star – Business/Corporate
Client Choice Awards, USA & Canada
Portland Business Journal
Recent News
Sherrill Corbett and Jeff Bradford Admitted to the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation
Best Lawyers in America® Includes 49 Tonkon Torp Attorneys on 2021 List
26 Tonkon Torp Attorneys Honored on 2020 Super Lawyers Lists
Tonkon Torp Webinar Encourages Businesses to Prepare to Thrive in COVID-19 Recovery
Chambers USA Names 20 Tonkon Torp Attorneys in 2020 Ranking
Sherrill Corbett and Jessica Morgan Explore Cannabis Business Transition Strategies for PBJ Podcast
Tonkon Torp Hosts Webinar to Answer Top L&E Questions During COVID-19
Tonkon Torp Attorneys Host Webinar to Provide COVID-19 Tools to Businesses
Sherrill Corbett and Jessica Morgan Lead M&A Panel for Oregon Cannabis Association
Tonkon Torp Sponsors and Presents at Retreat for Female-led Cannabis Companies
Recent Alerts
5 Ways To Gain High Ground While Selling a Cannabis Company
SEC Proposes CEO Pay Ratio Disclosure Rules
Publications & Presentations
Moderator, "Preparing to Thrive in the Recovery: Cash Flow, PPP Loans, and Alternative Capital," April 2020
Moderator, "FAQs for Employers in the COVID-19 Reality," April 2020
Podcast, "How to Transition Your Cannabis Business," Portland Business Journal, April 2020
Panelist, “Tools to Survive the COVID-19 Economy: CARES Act SBA Loans, Employment Laws, and Corporate Issues,“ April 2020
Panelist, "M&A in the Cannabis Industry," Oregon Cannabis Association, January 2020
"5 Ways to Gain High Ground While Selling a Cannabis Company," Portland Business Journal, September 2019
Panelist, "The Role of In-House Counsel in M&A Transactions," Oregon Association of Corporate Counsel, May 2019
Moderator, "Thrive – A Seminar for Women Business Leaders," November 2018
Moderator, Business Transitions Seminar, KeyBank Club, May 2018
Panelist, "She Persisted – Stories from Business Women Who Have Persevered and Triumphed," November 2017
Panelist, "Turning Points – Stories of Transition – A Seminar for Women Business Leaders," KeyBank Club, October 2016
"Been There! Done That! A Seminar for Women Business Leaders," KeyBank Club, October 2015
"Is Big Data Giving you a Big Headache?," Oregon State Bar Corporate Counsel Section, Oregon State Bar Center, October 2014
"Data Security and Breach Response 101: A Primer for Corporate Counsel," Association of Corporate Counsel, Nike Campus, June 2014
"Getting Your Ducks in a Row," KeyBank, February 2014
"The Business Sale Process," KeyBank, January 2014
"Before Selling a Business, Consider a Buyer’s Perspective," Daily Journal of Commerce, October 2013
"Purchase and Sale of a Business or Its Assets," Multnomah Bar Association Business Law Seminar Series, May 2013
"Operating, Financing and Selling a Business in the Digital Age," Oregon Law Institute, Lewis & Clark Law School, February 2007
"State Securities Law Issues Regarding Mutual Insurance Companies and Mutual Holding Companies (co-authored with James M. Kennedy) – FORC Quarterly Journal of Insurance Law and Regulation – Vol. XV, Edition II