Amanda Applegate

Partner at Soar Aviation Law

Speaker

As a founding partner at Soar Aviation Law, LLC, Amanda Applegate brings her outstanding legal expertise as well as impressive negotiating skills and business savvy to the service of the firm’s clients. Ms. Applegate has been in private practice since 2011. She specializes in whole aircraft transactions and has successfully closed hundreds of sales and purchases for all types of business aircraft around the world. Additionally, she has unique and comprehensive understanding of fractional ownership due to her previous experience in that industry.

Prior to going into private practice, she served as Associate General Counsel and Vice President of NetJets Services, Inc., where she spent twelve very productive years with the company that pioneered fractional jet ownership. As the company’s Associate General Counsel, Ms. Applegate directed a diverse range of business, including multimillion-dollar contract negotiations, contract enforcement, fractional ownership and leasing, and daily business matters. She also worked with NetJet’s sister company, Executive Jet Management, and gained insight and experience into the field of whole aircraft ownership, management and operations.

During her first few years of private practice, Ms. Applegate represented 25 Avantair fractional owner groups, comprised of nearly 300 fractional owners, following the grounding of the Avantair fleet and subsequent bankruptcy proceedings. She managed the disposition and assessment of all planes and parts and devised sales opportunities for aircraft and associated equipment, including “as-is” live auctions and recertified brokered sales. More recently Ms. Applegate represented 14 Jet It fractional owner groups, comprised of over 100 fractional owners, when Jet It ceased its operations in May of 2023. She facilitated the sale of all 14 aircraft and handled the necessary tasks including working with lienholders, coordinating inspections, hiring aircraft brokers, records retrieval and distribution of sale proceeds.

Ms. Applegate was admitted to the State Bar of Ohio after graduating from Oklahoma City University School of Law in 1998.

Ms. Applegate is ranked by Chambers & Partners as one of the premier aviation attorneys worldwide. She speaks frequently on business aviation topics for organizations including the National Business Aviation Association. Since 2012 she has been a featured columnist for BusinessAir Magazine, writing monthly on key topics regarding the acquisition, ownership and operation of business aircraft.