John W. Lang

John W. Lang focuses his practice on real estate, corporate law, mergers, acquisitions, estate planning and other matters related to trusts and estates. John is a certified real property law specialist, certified by the Minnesota State Bar Association; this, along with his extensive training as a certified public accountant and 35 years of experience practicing law, allows him to quickly size up the complex issues often found in real estate, tax and business transactions. He provides trusted counseling that is both sound and cost-effective. John’s clients include mid-sized businesses and their owners, many of whom are entrepreneurs or former entrepreneurs whose businesses have experienced growth. These owners often involve John in their strategic planning related to all personal and business related legal issues.

John is also well-versed in Internal Revenue Code Section 1031 tax-deferred exchanges, a specialized legal mechanism that allows property owners to sell and exchange appreciated real estate holdings while deferring related taxes. Many of those tax-deferred exchanges involve Tenancy in Common (TIC transactions) and Delaware Statutory Trusts (DSTs). He takes a proactive approach in working with clients to ensure proper structuring or restructuring is done prior to the sale or construction of a property, in order to avail them of the deferral.

John has earned the honor of receiving the AV Preeminent® ranking in the Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™—the profession’s highest possible ranking for both legal ability and ethical standards reflecting the confidential opinions of members of the Bar and Judiciary.

John is currently serving his second stint as President of the firm and was appointed Chair of the Minneapolis Division, having previously served numerous times on the Board of Directors.