Practice Areas & Industries: Andrews Kurth LLP

Practice/Industry Group Overview

Andrews Kurth's real estate practice spans from coast to coast, with more than 30 lawyers practicing in four major metropolitan offices including Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas and Washington, D.C. Our substantial experience in acquisitions, dispositions, development, leasing, permitting, land use, financing, joint ventures, restructuring, foreclosures and bankruptcy lets us seamlessly handle the spectrum of real estate projects - from traditional office, hotel, retail, industrial, public arena, gaming and land development deals to services for oil, gas and energy facilities, mining operations, timberlands and other natural resources.

With an extensive client roster that includes several Fortune 500 companies, our Real Estate group serves nationally and internationally based developers, institutional lenders, mortgage loan servicers, major life insurance companies, pension funds and pension fund advisors.

Services Available

As client needs dictate, the Real Estate group collaborates with in-house specialists in corporate, asset securitization and tax law to offer comprehensive counsel regarding REITs, securitized mortgages, publicly traded limited partnerships and other public types of real estate financing. We also assist borrowers and lenders in structuring, negotiating and appropriately documenting synthetic leases and off-balance sheet financings that satisfy financial accounting requirements and tax laws while maximizing the client's business interests.

The large-office complex accounts for a major portion of our leasing and workout practice; we represent Houston's Chase Tower and Allen Center, for example, and regularly represent Chase Bank of Texas as both landlord and tenant in various leasing transactions. In addition to representing landlords of more than one million square feet of leased retail and office space, Andrews Kurth has significant experience in the sale, financing and workouts of numerous hotels and gaming properties.

REITs

Andrews Kurth ranked 7th nationally in the 1999 American Lawyer "Corporate Scorecard" for its representation of underwriters in real estate investment trusts (REITS) and 5th for amount of money raised.

A member of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT), Andrews Kurth represents numerous equity, mortgage and hybrid REITs as well as underwriters in a variety of transactions including:

• Initial public offerings
• Secondary offerings
• Debt offerings
• Mergers
• Real estate acquisitions

Clients needing representation require counsel knowledgeable in and comfortable with the complexities of REIT transactions. With our broad representation and vast experience, Andrews Kurth offers clients relevant, lucrative advice on restructurings, reorganization, related taxation and dealing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Public Arenas & Civic Centers

Andrews Kurth's real estate group represents both municipalities and developers in the development of public arena and civic center-type projects across the country, including the City of Houston and Houston Housing Finance Corporation in connection with various major developments in Houston.

Real Estate Litigation

Andrews Kurth's litigation lawyers collaborate with our Real Estate group to handle all aspects of real estate and real estate financing litigation, including breach of lending commitments, property owner and occupier liability claims, landlord/tenant claims, foreclosure disputes and other related claims.

Our extensive client list has included landlords, banks, insurance companies, pension funds, and other large lending interests as well as property owners, developers, brokers, and tenants.