Modern Office Buildings

Real estate

Our global real estate team provide expert legal advice that is commercially-focused and built on a thorough understanding of the real estate industry.

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Our global real estate team advise on the full range of real estate-related transactions across the entire property ‘life-cycle’, from the initial acquisition, planning and development, leasing, financing and portfolio management through to the final disposal.

Our broad experience covers commercial and residential development, retail, offices, leisure and hospitality, healthcare, regeneration, infrastructure, transport and logistics and insurers and their insureds. We work in partnership with our clients and provide a coordinated approach to national and international/cross-border real estate deals. See examples of our global expertise here.

We harness specialist expertise across the wider firm to meet the particular needs of our individual clients, with experts in construction, dispute resolution, finance and corporate/M&A. We share insights on topical issues that are impacting the real estate sector to keep our clients abreast of the very latest legal developments and market practice.

Our real estate services

Commercial property

We advise clients across all aspects of the purchase, use and management of property used for business purposes, working closely with owners, occupiers, investors and developers from a broad range of industries and across all types of commercial property, including office, retail, leisure and hospitality, healthcare, industrial and mixed-use assets.

Our expertise includes:

  • Acquisitions and disposals of commercial property
  • Development 
  • Commercial property leases
  • Finance and funding
  • Investment
  • Landlord and tenant
  • Portfolio and asset management
  • Real estate litigation

We have the expertise to develop innovative structures and commercial solutions to complex contractual matters and have the strength and depth within our global team to act on projects ranging in scale and complexity, including those with an international or cross-border dimension.

Asset management

We advise clients on the entire life-cycle of an asset, from funding, acquisition, development, regeneration and reworking, through to proactive management, sale or letting.  

Our team deal with portfolios that are varied in terms of transactional and asset management requirements, we have the depth and experience required to manage single assets to large portfolio transactions.

We understand that effective asset management is fundamental to the performance of a portfolio, and we help our clients to identify, manage, prioritise and control issues to help maximise their portfolio value, reduce costs and increase returns.

Regeneration and development

We are experienced in the delivery of significant long-term projects that create spaces and places for businesses and communities to thrive.

We advise on many commercial, residential and mixed-use schemes in both the public and private sectors, acting for developers, landowners, funders, occupiers and local authorities. Our expertise includes acting from conception to completion of large-scale, complex and high-value regeneration and development projects.

Our services include:

  • Strategic and deal structuring advice
  • Development arrangements including joint venture and partnership agreements, corporate structures and exclusivity non-disclosure and collaboration agreements
  • Site assembly and disposals
  • Exclusivity Agreements and Confidentiality Agreements
  • Construction contracts and procurement
  • Finance and funding

We understand the issues that come with complex, multi-stakeholder projects, and are experienced in bringing all parties together to balance those pressures. We work with our clients to truly understand their needs and goals, and guide them to find the best solutions within the constraints of regeneration/development schemes.

Our work highlights from around the world

  • Advising the Borough Council of Bolton on site acquisition and disposal aspects of their £1.3bn re-generation of Bolton City Centre and handling their asset management requirements for retail and office premises they have acquired.

  • Acting for the developer of a major mixed use regeneration site in Truro, providing 1,500 new homes, education facilities and retail space, and including a Planning, Infrastructure and Collaboration Agreement with the local authority to deliver new infrastructure, schools, and a community centre.

  • Advising and securing a 50-year lease for the development of a regional expansion project in the Philippines for Hong Kong business jet operator Metrojet, including MRO.

  • Advising in relation to a £60 million acquisition of a portfolio of Built to Rent properties in London and Leeds.

  • Advising a major Local Authority Pension Fund in connection with the acquisition and ongoing asset management of office block in City of London value circa £70m.

  • Advising a Norwegian insurer on their 10-year office lease in Manchester.

  • Advising the JV responsible for delivering the ongoing £1bn Airport City Manchester development featuring hotels, warehouses and infrastructure, including drafting and negotiation of construction documents with select property and corporate support.

  • Acting for developers on due diligence, procurement advice and contract work for hotel, residential and workspace projects worth upwards of £125m in Central and Greater London.

  • Acquisition of shopping centre, supermarkets, retail and industrial sites in various UK locations for Danish investors, and dealing with all legal aspects of our clients’ asset management requirements.

  • Advising a global insurer and reinsurer on renewal of their occupational arrangements at Lloyd’s of London.
  • Advising on dwelling acquisitions in Spain for foreign buyers and investors, including contracts, public notary procedures, land registry, tax considerations, foreign ID, etc.

  • Advising on rental contracts for tenant and landlords for residency or industrial assets in Spain.

  • Advising owners regarding approvals of agreements of the homeowners' association in Spain.

  • Notary proceedings for registration of owners’ rights in the Land Registry in Spain.
  • Acting on the sale of Tanglin Shopping Centre, a 12-storey commercial complex comprising of 364 units, with two basement levels and an annex eight-storey carpark, which was sold for SGD 868 million.

  • Advising leading Hong Kong property developer on the sale of an industrial development project.

  • Advising on the sale of Maxwell House, which was sold en bloc for SGD 276.8 million.

  • Advising on the residential collective sale of Gloria Mansions which sold for SGD 70.3 million, this is the first full residential collective sale since the additional real estate cooling measures came into force in Singapore on 16 December 2021.

  • Advising and acting for the majority owners of more than 20 developments in collective sale efforts, resulting in the successful en bloc sales of Serangoon Ville, How Sun Park, Eunos Mansion, Vista Park, Kovan Lodge and Balmoral Gardens.

  • Advising and acting for purchasers in the successful en bloc purchase of Selegie Centre.

  • Advising and acting in the privatisation of Braddell View, the largest HUDC development in Singapore, comprising 920 units and Neptune Court, comprising 772 units.

  • Advising and acting for companies in commercial and F&B transactions, including Cookhouse at Dempsey and Burger & Lobster at Jewel Changi and Raffles Hotel.

  • Advising and acting together with instructed counsel for a prominent local property developer in an application for judicial review of a decision by a Government statutory board in calculating the differential payment applicable to a re-development project based on a non-disclosed policy.

  • Acting for property investment and holding companies in property acquisitions, corporate restricting, and for shareholders of companies owning properties in share sale and purchase transactions.

  • Advising and acted for a prominent property investment group as landlords for commercial and retail units at Concorde Hotel & Shopping Mall, HPL House and Ming Arcade in Singapore.

  • Advising the management corporation and ad-hoc committee leading the effort to privatise one of Singapore’s oldest and largest HUDC residential estate.
  • Acting in the purchase, sale and leasing of real estate throughout New Jersey.  

  • Providing clients with legal assistance on non-litigated real estate issues.

  • Advising a prominent international non-profit organization to register in the State of New York. 

  • Providing Delaware law opinion letters for commercial real estate transactions involving Delaware entities.

  • Representing a client in negotiation for a commercial lease for new US headquarters.
People

Key contacts

Anna Weiss Half Body Large_1620X1080

Anna Weiss

Regional Managing Partner for LATAM and Caribbean, Foreign Legal Consultant, (Not Admitted to Practice Law in Florida) - Miami

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Jamie Kellick

Partner - Nasser Al Shamli, Advocates & Legal Consultants in association with Kennedys - Muscat