Real Estate

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Your legal compass in the real estate landscape.

Overview

From coast to coast, we provide strategic guidance for complex transactions. Developers, investors, and financial institutions rely on us to get the full range of deals done quickly and cost-effectively for all of their projects nationwide. We have particular experience in public-private partnerships, siting essential public facilities, and development from the ground up. We combine a full-service team with a commitment to relationships to ensure our lawyers create opportunities for our clients. We counsel lenders in commercial real estate financing transactions in connection with affordable housing projects that include low-income housing tax credits. We advise developers and lenders in the structuring and negotiation of complex tax-exempt and taxable financing transactions for the acquisition, refinance, and disposition of multifamily residential rental complexes.

Relationships = Results
Our extensive experience as a leading firm in real estate allows us to understand the business and political leaders in our communities. We are respected by opposing counsel, whose cooperation and trust help complete projects. Our respectful approach to complex challenges smooths the path for you and preserves your reputation in the community.

We retain clients for decades and our close engagement helps us understand business context and complete deals efficiently. We have a commitment to relationships which is why our clients come through referrals, including from those on the other side of past transactions. We also serve as real estate intermediaries by introducing clients to one another, who then collaborate on large-scale projects, as well as to third parties for real estate transactions and post-closing requirements and monitoring. We work collaboratively with our clients to identify the key financing and real estate issues relevant to the applicable transaction and apply innovative solutions to meet our clients' business needs

One-stop shop = Easy
We support our real estate, land use, and construction teams with highly regarded practitioners focused on affordable lending, finance, development, and environmental issues. We work together as a team to ensure our advice is coordinated, saving you the effort, expense, and administrative hassle of assembling and managing multiple legal providers.

Charting the Future
Our clients rely on us to navigate the real estate sector, but also look to us for advice on how to help lead the change. We want to help you chart your future and lead the change. (View DWT's climate and sustainability commitment.)

Our Services

Real Estate Transactions
Land Use & Development

Niche Services

Public-Private Partnerships

A collaborative team of attorneys with strong community and government ties is crucial to getting public-private projects off the ground. We have introduced driven developer clients to public landowners to kick-start stalled hotel projects, negotiated a variety of ground leases between public and private entities, and helped to move along massive infrastructure projects. Whether we are negotiating financing and ownership structures or ground leases, our understanding of each party’s core objectives drives our ability to find common ground. SeaTac Airport’s North Satellite Terminal, “The Clement” Intercontinental Hotel Monterey, AC Hotel by Marriott at the Port of Vancouver, King County’s regional library services facility, and several transit-oriented developments in Puget Sound and San Jose stand as just some of the testaments to our team’s aptitude in this area.

Essential Public Facilities

Our knowledge of Washington’s unique essential public facilities landscape and experience working in cities and jurisdictions throughout the State make us ideally-suited to handle land use permitting and, if necessary, dispute resolution for facilities facing local opposition. We have represented clients in the siting of psychiatric, correctional, and public transit facilities across the state.
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Multi-site Acquisitions

Few firms have both the experience and deep, cross-practice teams necessary to complete nationwide multi-site acquisitions quickly and efficiently. Franchisees and other rapidly expanding entities benefit from our knowledge-sharing culture because we can provide practical advice rooted in prior successful transactions. Our real estate attorneys collaborate with a diverse and experienced team of corporate, tax, and environmental attorneys to efficiently complete deals involving dozens of acquisitions from coast to coast. In recent years, our team has represented numerous restaurant and retail franchisees in the acquisition of franchised restaurants, including recent portfolio acquisitions of 125 Pizza Huts and 365 Arby’s restaurants. Not intimidated by deal size or complexity, we pride ourselves on guiding our clients every step of the way from letter of intent to closing.

Industry Focus

Airports

Airports have more regulatory considerations than perhaps any other property type. From rural airports to developing regional airfields and major international airports, our real estate and land use team advises clients on a variety of projects. Recently, we developed and implemented a public-private partnership for the redevelopment of the North Satellite Terminal at SeaTac airport and are supporting entities including Alaska Airlines in the development of the new passenger terminal at Paine Field in Everett, Washington.

Healthcare

In the rapidly changing industry, healthcare entities need the flexibility to transform their real estate to meet their needs. Our real estate lawyers work closely with our nationally prominent healthcare practice to serve clients on complex projects requiring a multi-disciplinary and collaborative approach. This includes strategic growth initiatives for our clients, such as a joint venture between Providence and Walgreens to operate express care centers in Washington and Oregon stores.

Hotels & Resorts

Hotel owners, operators, developers, and investors turn to DWT for guidance for our industry knowledge, relationships, and business-oriented advice. Our multi-disciplinary group of attorneys considers legal issues from all angles to light a clear path forward. Development projects, portfolio and individual acquisitions, debt and equity financing, management contracts, and environmental reviews for hotel and resort projects of all sizes, are all in areas of our expertise. We represent publicly traded hotel companies with strategy and implementation. Our deep understanding and knowledge of intellectual property, labor and employment, franchising, corporate, and tax issues helps clients avoid conflict and, if issues arise, we resolve them. Due to our wealth of experience and memberships in key industry organizations, our representation is informed by knowledge of the current and future hospitality landscape.

Public Transit

With increasing density coming to urban population centers, public transit agencies are actively expanding their systems to meet demand. Our lawyers have the deep experience in applicable state and local laws and Federal Transit Administration rules and regulations as well as the local relationships necessary to limit unnecessary and costly delays. Our robust experience includes real estate acquisition, entitlement, and construction for development of new public transit facilities; disposition and development agreements, real estate sales and ground leases for Transit Oriented Developments; public-private partnerships for joint use and development of transit centers; acquisition of railroad use easements and railroad right of way; and land use proceedings when siting opposition arises. We represent both public transit agencies and private property owners, developers, and contractors.

Restaurants

Restaurant rendering
From individual leases to multi-site market acquisitions, our team supports restaurants nationwide. We are currently representing Punch Bowl Social in their national lease rollout and work with restaurants like MILA Miami on their initial lease.

Seafood Processing

With close ties to the industry, we represent a variety of seafood clients in real estate, land use, and corporate matters, including Cooke’s acquisition of Icicle Seafoods - one of the largest transactions in the industry.

Timber

The U.S. timber industry has a storied history and promising future, even as it addresses sustainability, climate change, and other challenges. We proudly represent owners of Northwest timberlands in acquisitions, dispositions, other transactions, and development.

Telecommunications

With decades of experience working with and in the communications industry, our attorneys have developed strong relationships and reputations on a national level. We assist wireless, cable, fiber optic, neutral host and landline companies, with everything from entitlement and acquisition of support structures to leasing of office space. Additionally, our land use attorneys boast experience with zoning issues, rights-of-way access permits, and public hearings before a variety of agencies and governmental bodies.
*Denotes an attorney's experience prior to joining Davis Wright Tremaine
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Practice Contacts

Graham, Clayton
Clayton P. Graham
Partner
Co-chair, Real Property Practice Group
Seattle
206.757.8052
Peterson, Lisa
Lisa Peterson
Partner
Co-chair, Real Property Practice Group
Seattle
206.757.8121

Our Team

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Contact Us

Ready to tackle your next challenge, or simply have questions? Let's talk. Our team is ready to help you navigate complexity with clarity, confidence, and results.

Real Estates: Contact us

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