Seyfarth Shaw Welcomes Real Estate Attorneys Mitchell S. Kaplan and Willard S. Moore as Partners in New York

New York, NY (March 12, 2007) - - Seyfarth Shaw LLP, one of America’s leading full service law firms, announced that Mitchell S. Kaplan and Willard S. Moore have joined the firm as partners in the real estate practice group in the New York office.  Formerly, Kaplan was a partner with Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe LLP, and Moore was of counsel with DLA Piper US LLP.

Kaplan’s practice is focused on finance, including securitized mortgage transactions, leasing, and conveyancing.  He has significant experience in complex financing transactions, including leasehold mortgages, mezzanine loans, bridge loans, and construction loans and has also represented lenders and borrowers in loan facilities involving equity kicker components, "take-out" transactions, and construction loans with conversion features to permanent loans.  His experience in lending transactions also includes structuring and closing syndicated loans, with multiple levels of debt, as well as counseling lenders and borrowers in loan workouts and restructures.  In addition, Kaplan has counseled both buyers and sellers of office buildings, commercial condominiums, apartment complexes, shopping centers, hotels, and other commercial properties. He also has considerable expertise in representing both landlords and tenants in office, retail, and other commercial leasing transactions.

Moore represents lenders, developers, owners, and investors in a variety of real estate financing transactions.  His primary experience is in commercial mortgage-backed securities, tax-exempt housing bonds, and affordable housing.  He has represented a number of securitized lenders in the development of securitized lending programs and products and in the origination and securitization of a wide variety of loans, including the financing of multi-family, office, hospitality, retail, industrial and credit tenant properties.  He has also worked extensively with B note originators and purchasers, mezzanine lenders and B-piece investors.  In addition, Moore has represented many borrowers in both securitized and traditional financings.  In the tax-exempt bond area, Moore has represented a number of major New York developers and lenders.

“Mitchell and Willard are seasoned professionals with significant experience in real estate financing capabilities,” stated J. Kelly Bufton, chair of Seyfarth Shaw’s Real Estate Group.  “Willard’s background is a valuable resource to our established first-class real estate / finance group and Mitchell brings additional depth to our team with his successful structuring of multi-leveled transactions.  We are pleased to welcome them to the practice and the firm.”

Seyfarth Shaw’s real estate practice spans the full spectrum of commercial real estate transactions.  The group’s national client base includes firms that have real estate as their key business, such as REITs, pension fund advisors, developers, lenders and builders, and companies for whom real estate is an ancillary but crucial aspect of their business, including hoteliers, retailers, service companies, and manufacturers.

With more than 100 real estate attorneys across the United States, Seyfarth Shaw’s real estate attorneys counsel individuals, corporations and other business entities to maximize the value and return on their real estate investments and assets. The firm’s national coverage, extensive business and legal networks, and broad array of legal services, results in comprehensive legal advice and assistance that help clients identify emerging opportunities and challenges, and develop forward-looking strategies that meet their short- and long-term goals.

“We are delighted to welcome Mitchell and Willard to Seyfarth Shaw,” said John P. Napoli, co-managing partner of the firm’s New York office.  “We are continuing to realize our deliberate expansion goals through the addition of Mitchell and Willard, whose well-recognized experience will further strengthen our ability to provide top tier service to our clients.”   Added Lorie E. Almon, the other co-managing partner of the firm’s New York office: “We are fortunate that our presence in New York has grown by more 100% over the past 18 months, and the addition of Mitchell and Willard helps us to continue this momentum as we prepare to move into our new space in The New York Times Building on Eighth Avenue this coming July.”

Kaplan is a member of the State Bars of New York and New Jersey; he  received a B.S. from the University of Pennsylvania and earned his J.D. from the New York University School of Law.  Moore is admitted to the New York State Bar, he received a B.A. from Yale University and earned his J.D. from Boalt Hall (Berkeley).

“I’m excited to be a part of a thriving and well-recognized national real estate practice,” stated Kaplan.  “I came here because there is a great deal of support for my work within the practice and the New York office.  I’m delighted to join the team.”

“Seyfarth Shaw’s actively growing real estate practice is an excellent foundation for my business as well as the continued expansion of our national capabilities,” commented Moore.  “I look forward to the future and developing a stronger practice with my new colleagues.”

Seyfarth Shaw has over 700 attorneys located in nine offices throughout the United States including Chicago, New York, Boston, Washington D.C., Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento as well as Brussels, Belgium.  Seyfarth Shaw provides a broad range of legal services in the areas of  business transactions, labor and employment, employee benefits and litigation.  The firm’s practice reflects virtually every industry and segment of the country’s business community. Clients include over 200 of the Fortune 500 companies, financial institutions, newspapers and other media, hotels, health care organizations, airlines and railroads. The firm also represents a number of federal, state, and local governmental and educational entities.  For more information, please visit www.seyfarth.com.

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