Practice Areas & Industries: Crowe & Dunlevy, A Professional Corporation

Practice/Industry Group Overview

In 1960, the Federal Aviation Administration relocated the Aircraft Registry to Oklahoma City. As a result, the title and lien records for all of the over 300,000 U.S. registered civilian aircraft were moved here. Anyone desiring to determine the ownership of an aircraft or the existence of liens against it is required to come to Oklahoma City to examine records maintained by the FAA Aircraft Registry or to retain a local representative to conduct such an examination. Crowe & Dunlevy began offering its clients title examination services even before the FAA's aircraft records were unpacked. Some of the Firm's lawyers actually assisted in the unpacking and shelving of these records.

Services Available

Some of the services provided by Crowe & Dunlevy's aviation/aircraft lawyers are:

Title Examination

Basic to the aviation law services offered by Crowe & Dunlevy is the examination of aircraft records maintained by the FAA Aircraft Registry and the rendering of title opinions as to their status. These are similar to title opinions rendered by real estate lawyers who examine abstracts of land titles. Aircraft title opinions are routinely required by clients who acquire, lease or finance the acquisition of aircraft.

Documentation of Aircraft Transfers

Crowe & Dunlevy aviation lawyers regularly counsel clients on the structure of aircraft financing transactions. These services include reviewing documents to determine their acceptability for FAA recording purposes and preparing basic and complex security agreements, leases, and collateral instruments involving aircraft. In addition, many transactions require an advance opinion from the FAA Aeronautical Center Counsel. Crowe & Dunlevy obtains those advance opinions for its clients. The Firm's aviation lawyers submit drafts of documents for review by the FAA Aeronautical Center Counsel and respond to any questions Counsel may have regarding such documents.

Importing and Exporting Aircraft

Aircraft are frequently obtained by U.S. parties from foreign manufacturers and owners. Effecting U.S. registration often involves solving problems that are not encountered in domestic transactions. Crowe & Dunlevy aviation lawyers have handled hundreds of such transactions.

Assisting clients in canceling the U.S. registration of aircraft being exported is a special area of the Firm's aviation practice, as well as advising clients about the various requirements of these transactions.

U.S. Registration of Foreign-Owned Aircraft

The United States Transportation Code generally limits the registration of aircraft to those owned by U.S. citizens. Accordingly, it is frequently necessary to structure the ownership of aircraft to permit U.S. registration when foreign interests are involved. As foreign investments in the U.S. have increased in recent years, the Firm's aviation attorneys have been increasingly involved in helping clients to overcome the problems in these transactions.

Escrow Services

Crowe & Dunlevy serves as an escrow agent for both documents and funds being exchanged in aircraft purchases and sales. No charge in excess of the Firm's normal fees is made for document escrows. A separate charge, in addition to legal fees, is made in transactions in which funds are placed in escrow with the Firm. The fee charged depends upon the amount of the funds deposited.

Information Services

Crowe & Dunlevy also helps clients obtain information from records maintained by the FAA Aircraft Registry. This includes determining the history of an aircraft and obtaining copies of documents contained in FAA records. The Firm also obtains duplicate Certificates of Aircraft Registration for aircraft owners when their original Certificates are lost.