A former deputy general counsel of the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation (now DEP), Silvia Alderman is the chair of Akerman's Water Task Force, a team of multidisciplinary legal professionals and consultants advising on the regulatory and environmental challenges facing our clients.…

As a former in-house attorney for several of the nation’s largest retailers, John Beaulieu has worked on and directed legal teams in the drafting and negotiating of leases, amendments, SNDAs, purchase and sale contracts, and construction agreements for retail, office, and industrial locations across…

Janis Cheezem leases, buys, sells, and finances office buildings and mixed use, retail, residential, and industrial real estate for her clients, also providing counsel for property management issues and in workouts and restructurings of commercial real estate assets. She is recognized by Who's Who…

Patrick Chistiansen is a partner in the Corporate Practice Group. His practice focuses on working with public and private companies, financial institutions, and private equity funds in the middle market on mergers and acquisitions, financings, and other transactional matters. He has experience…

With comprehensive knowledge across all asset classes, Dana Clayton represents clients in real estate litigation in federal and state court. Her clients include Fortune 100 financial institutions, REITs, developers, retailers, and public and private real estate companies in disputes in financing,…

Lawrence Eiben focuses his practice on a range of transactional matters for commercial real estate clients. He represents REITs, real estate funds, real estate joint ventures, and developers in connection with acquisitions, sales, developments and financing of office buildings, shopping centers,…

As a former general counsel for a leading real estate developer, owner, and operator and decades of market experience, Bill Ellis provides his clients with a comprehensive real estate perspective. He represents private equity funds, global financial institutions, investment banks, REITs, other…

Carol Faber has extensive experience representing clients for over 30 years in a wide range of real estate transactions, including financing, leasing, and acquisition and sale transactions. Her financing experience includes representing borrowers and lenders in mortgage loans, ranging from several…

Having served as a former Assistant Attorney General for the State of Illinois and Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Chicago, Jack George is a valued leader who possesses a deep knowledge of real estate law. Jack focuses his practice on real estate, land use, and zoning matters. He is…

Meg George has experience with real estate and municipal law matters, including the acquisition, and sale and development of real estate, land use and zoning, licensing, permitting, subdivision, and other real estate matters. In addition to her thriving practice, Meg is a member of Akerman’s…

Brenda Goerks' broad real estate practice focuses on local and national transactions for foreign and domestic clients in the acquisition, sale, financing, development, management, operation, and leasing of real estate including automotive dealerships, agricultural, luxury homes, privately developed…

For more than 55 years, Kenneth Gordon has concentrated his practice in all facets of real estate development, leasing, sales and acquisitions, 1031 exchanges, condominium development, construction contracting, license agreements, and financing, including workouts for lenders and securitized lending…

Sahar Hakakian represents investors, owners, lenders, and developers in diverse real estate matters, including joint ventures, development, acquisitions and dispositions, financing, operation, and leasing of various assets. The real estate asset types covered by Sahar’s practice range from office…

Chris Hayes represents developers, homebuilders, and investors in the acquisition, development, and sale of real property in Florida and California. He has overseen numerous complex acquisitions and dispositions. As part of his transactional practice, Chris also represents clients in retail and…

A commercial real estate and transactional attorney with experience spanning a variety of areas, Robert Leapley represents investors, borrowers, developers, financial institutions, and landowners in loan workouts and restructurings, joint venture agreements, historic tax credit transactions, EB-5…

Spencer Malley focuses his practice on advising national healthcare organizations to grow and manage their real estate portfolios. Spencer understands how healthcare laws impact real estate transactions and assists clients in developing processes to proactively mitigate risk and produce outcomes…

Christopher McCranie focuses his practice on all aspects of commercial real estate transactions. Christopher represents community, regional, and national institutional lenders in permanent and development loan transactions secured by real and personal property, as well as distressed asset loan…

Mark McElree focuses his practice on real estate transactions, finance, and oil and gas matters. His clients include real estate developers, owners and investors, national and multi-national corporations and money center banks, insurance companies, and other financial institutions. Mark also…

Theresa McLaughlin provides legal services to owners, landlords, tenants, and property managers engaged in retail development and leasing transactions throughout the United States. Theresa represents real estate developers of complex large scale mixed-use developments and strip center malls,…

Rachel McRoskey represents clients in a wide range of local and national real estate transactions, including the representation of lenders and borrowers in complex financing transactions, including workouts and restructurings; institutional and non-institutional investors, sponsors, owners, and…

Robyn Neely focuses her practice on environmental site contamination issues related to real estate and corporate sales and acquisitions, and leases, including pre-acquisition, pre-leasing and pre-foreclosure due diligence analysis. Her practice also includes managing the investigation and…

Kinan Obeidin focuses his practice on real estate finance, real estate capital markets, structured finance, and financial services. He represents banks, life insurance companies, REITs, debt funds, and other traditional and non-traditional lenders in the origination of commercial mortgage loans and…

Having successfully represented prominent developers and home builders, Robert Poppell maintains a vibrant real estate development and transactional practice. He represents developers of large scale, mixed-use planned developments, as well as residential home builders, in connection with…

Eric Rapkin serves as Chair of Akerman’s Real Estate Practice Group, one of the nation’s top-ranked real estate legal teams representing developers, investors, and other real estate end users in complex transactions, development and redevelopment projects, public-private initiatives, loan…

Todd Reed serves as managing partner of the Austin office. He represents private and public companies in a broad range of corporate and commercial transactions including mergers and acquisitions, private offerings of debt and equity securities, the negotiation of credit facilities, the structuring…

Jerry Reichelscheimer chairs Akerman’s Retail Leasing and Development Practice and primarily represents clients in commercial, warehouse, retail, office, and ground leasing and well as in the completion of sales and acquisitions of real property and the acquisition of public and private sector…

Joshua Rinesmith focuses on real estate development, with a concentration in land use and zoning law and related transactional matters. He advises property owners, developers, architects and engineers on New York City zoning compliance and the development potential of property throughout the city.…

Susan Robin works with clients in all facets of commercial real estate transactions, with a strong concentration in advising developers, owners, and operators of condominiums, hotels, resorts, and mixed-use real estate developments throughout the United States and the Caribbean. She is board…

Chris Roper is a land use lawyer focused on real estate development, entitlements, and concurrency. He has experience throughout central Florida representing clients in due diligence, re-zonings, comprehensive plan amendments, vested rights, Developments of Regional Impact (DRIs), binding letters,…

Paul Russo focuses his practice on commercial real estate matters. He has experience in multi-jurisdictional transactions involving the acquisition, sale, financing, leasing, and development of retail, office, and industrial properties. Paul represents REITS, real estate funds, real estate joint…

Steven Sinacori has broad experience in both land use and transactional real estate matters. He has represented numerous clients before the Board of Standards and Appeals, the City Planning Commission, the Landmarks Preservation Commission, the Department of Buildings, the Department of Housing…

Leslie Tomczak serves as managing partner of Akerman’s Fort Lauderdale office. She is a construction attorney, Board Certified by The Florida Bar in Construction Law, whose practice focuses primarily on the representation of lenders, developers, owners, landlords, contractors,…

Andrew Wamsley concentrates his practice on all aspects of retail and industrial leasing and development transactions. He works with developers, retailers, and owners of office buildings, shopping centers, hotels, and industrial properties. 

John Busey Wood advises public and private companies on real estate acquisitions, facilities management, construction and development, commercial, hospitality, retail, and ground leasing, commercial property management, and brokerage. For more than 45 years, John has represented owners in the design…