The following is an excerpt from Practice Perspectives: Vault's Guide to Legal Practice Areas.
Julianne E. Befeler is a partner in the firm’s Real Estate Department, resident in the New York office. She joined the firm in 2015 and was promoted to partner in March 2022.
Katie Warren is a fifth-year associate in the firm’s Real Estate Department, resident in the New York office. She joined the firm as a lateral associate in 2021.
Describe your practice area and what it entails.
Julianne: I represent owners and developers in acquiring, disposing, financing, and developing all commercial real estate asset types (including office, residential, hotel, and mixed-use). My practice is only a subset of the work we do in our industry-leading department, which advises on all facets of commercial real estate law and is consistently ranked as one of the strongest real estate practices in the country. Other work we do in our full-service department includes joint ventures, leasing, lender-side financings, land use, and REIT work. Among other high-profile projects, we are currently working on three transformative Midtown Manhattan development projects—JP Morgan’s new headquarters building at 270 Park Avenue, Citadel’s planned 1.7 million-square-foot office tower at 350 Park Avenue, and the two million-square-foot mixed-use project on the site of the existing Hyatt Hotel adjacent to Grand Central.
Katie: As a fifth-year associate, I work on a broad range of commercial real estate transactions primarily focused on lender-side finance. My practice includes whole loan originations; mortgage and mezzanine loan purchases and sales; negotiation of intercreditor, co-lender, and participation agreements; deed-in-lieu transactions; and other loan workouts.
What types of clients do you represent?
Julianne: Our clients are industry powerhouses that contribute to the development and reshaping of New York City's skyline and those of other major cities around the world. I primarily represent owners and developers, including Blackstone, Brookfield, and Vornado. Amazon, Goldman Sachs, Google, Morgan Stanley, Related, RFR, RXR, SL Green, and Tishman Speyer are just a sampling of some of the clients that we represent.
Katie: While I work with our industry-leading clients across the spectrum, I typically represent banks, debt funds, and other institutional lenders, including JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley, and Oxford Properties.
What types of cases/deals do you work on?
Julianne: Over the past year, among other interesting transactions, I worked on several construction financings relating to a variety of assets types, including the initial phase of a life science development project in the Boston area for Blackstone and BioMed (a Blackstone portfolio company), as well as several multifamily developments with affordable housing components in the New York metropolitan area on behalf of Brookfield. I also had the opportunity to be a part of the team representing Brookfield in its acquisition of Watermark Lodging Trust, Inc., and its portfolio of luxury and upscale hotels, including a related commercial mortgage-backed securities financing.
Katie: Over the last year, I have been very active on large-scale renovation projects in New York City, including a new hotel and condo residences in Midtown Manhattan and the redevelopment of an iconic Times Square location. I have also worked on intercreditor and co-lender agreements in connection with the syndication of numerous construction loans.
How did you choose this practice area?
Julianne: When I was a junior associate at my prior firm, I worked on the sale of a majority stake in a large national real estate company. At the time, I was still trying to decide which practice area to focus on. The fast-moving pace and the tangible nature of the deal convinced me that I had found a home in real estate. Ultimately, I joined Fried Frank as a mid-level associate in 2015 because the department provided the perfect environment to work on iconic real estate transactions with a fantastic group of people who have become my Fried Frank real estate family.
Katie: I have family members who work in real estate and construction, so I developed an interest in the industry before law school. When I started law school at Boston College, I knew I wanted to be a transactional attorney but wasn’t sure which practice area I wanted to focus on until I attended real estate-focused panels as a 1L. I found the topics fascinating and complex, and I was attracted to how tangible real estate is compared to other finance and corporate areas of the law. Eventually, as a summer associate at another international law firm, I sat on the same floor as the real estate attorneys and was exposed to a lot of their deals. After that summer, I decided I wanted to practice in real estate. When I had the opportunity for a lateral move, Fried Frank was at the top of my list because the Real Estate Department has such a strong market presence and reputation for taking on complex, high-profile deals. When I interviewed with the firm, the partners and associates I met were driven and engaging, and that’s when I knew I wanted to be a part of the practice.
What is a typical day like and/or what are some common tasks you perform?
Julianne: My typical day involves checking in with deal teams on various transactions; speaking with clients, opposing counsel, and others involved in my deals; teaching and mentoring associates; and attending to various administrative matters. In addition, a large part of my day is spent reviewing, drafting, and commenting on legal documents. Our deals often have short timelines, so it is important to prioritize, be cognizant of deadlines, and do what needs to be done to shepherd our deals to a successful and timely closing. Lastly, I participate in a number of committees, including our department’s DE&I committee.
Katie: Similar to Julianne, my typical day involves various transaction-related tasks and collaborating with the deal team. I draft loan agreements, co-lender agreements, and intercreditor agreements; review the other side’s comments on these agreements; and draft issues lists for our clients. As a fifth-year, I am able to develop my management skills through leading checklist and open item calls, supervising junior associates on my deal teams, and coordinating diligence reviews, which includes reviewing the borrower’s organizational structure and organizational documents as well as reviewing and summarizing property management agreements, development agreements, leases, and license agreements.
What training, classes, experience, or skills development would you recommend to someone who wishes to enter your practice area?
Katie: I recommend law school students take courses such as Secured Transactions, Tax, and Corporations, which all intersect with real estate and include important basic concepts that are helpful for any junior associate. If your law school offers real estate-specific courses like Real Estate Finance or Land Use, you should also try to take a few of these classes to determine if any particular practice sparks your interest. I also recommend law school students connect with alumni who work in real estate at firms that are of interest because getting to know people in the industry will give you more insight into the types of people you may be working with and the day-to-day work.
Julianne: I agree with Katie’s advice and would recommend taking time to read real estate publications to understand what is happening in the world and how that is affecting our industry. We represent our clients best when we understand what they are trying to accomplish and how current market conditions will affect those endeavors. I’ve also found that on-the-job training is the most effective way to learn. Junior lawyers should not be shy about seeking opportunities to work on different types of matters and taking on challenging assignments. It takes time to develop the skills and knowledge needed for this practice, and the partners and senior associates are available to support those efforts every step of the way.
What do you like best about your practice area?
Julianne: One of the most rewarding aspects of this practice is seeing the tangible effects of our work in the buildings we help our clients buy, sell, and build. This is particularly true in large-scale development deals where, in some cases, our clients are transforming skylines.
What is unique about your practice area at your firm?
Katie: The Fried Frank Real Estate Department works on some of the most complex and bespoke transactions for our clients, who are the biggest players in the industry. We have some of the most intelligent and hardworking lawyers I have ever worked with, in part due to the support from our practice group management team. Our practice group management team and senior lawyers ensure associates receive meaningful feedback and help strengthen partner-associate relationships. The consistent focus on mentorship and training helps to foster associate development and has accelerated my development as a real estate attorney.
What are some typical tasks that a junior lawyer would perform in this practice area?
Katie: Junior associates play an essential role in the transaction process. Among other tasks, junior associates take the lead in drafting ancillary loan documents, updating legal checklists, reviewing the borrower’s organizational structure and documents, and ordering and reviewing searches on the investors in the borrower’s organizational structure. They also perform other property-level due diligence, such as reviewing and summarizing management agreements, ground leases, space leases, and licenses, as well as coordinating the execution of signature pages and finalizing exhibits and loan documents for closing. They play a key role in issue spotting in our loan documents and diligence review.
How important is collaboration in effectively practicing real estate law?
Julianne: Teamwork is crucial to successfully representing our clients. We regularly collaborate with our clients and our colleagues both in the real estate department and in other departments at the firm. Our expertise across practice areas combined with our collaborative culture allows us to provide excellent work product and service to our clients and an enriching experience for our associates. We socialize with all of our clients so we better understand them and how they think about the issues we face together every day.