Real Estate

We support clients with their most complex real estate matters. In a constantly changing market, we advise across all sectors of the industry on investments and disposals, multi-jurisdictional portfolios, development and regeneration projects, planning and construction, structuring, asset management, financing and dispute resolution.

We deliver strategic advice to institutional investors, private equity sponsors, corporates, entrepreneurs and family offices on high-profile transactions across both traditional and alternative sectors, in the UK and around the world. 

Our approach is distinctive. We combine top-tier real estate legal experience with market-leading M&A, Tax, Funds and Finance practices. This enables us to offer:

• Development deal expertise: we are recognised for our work on complex mixed-use schemes, as well as standalone residential and commercial projects. The scale and quality of the projects we advise on sets us apart.
• Integrated transactional support: our Private Capital Real Estate specialists frequently lead M&A and joint venture transactions, enabling us to advise across the full investment lifecycle with a tailored, long-term approach.
• Market-driven leasing advice: we work on both landlord and tenant side, across office, logistics, hospitality and retail lettings, including navigating ESG considerations shaping investment and occupational decision-making.

We offer in-depth sector knowledge across the market, with a particular focus on operational real estate, including living, logistics, life sciences and hospitality. We also support investors in accessing emerging opportunities through sophisticated structures such as programmatic joint ventures, forward funding arrangements and portfolio reconfigurations. 

Work highlights include advising:

• SMBL Developments Limited, a company wholly owned by Mitsui Fudosan UK. Ltd, on a groundbreaking £1.1bn new development of the British Library’s St Pancras site with Stanhope;
• Legal & General on its acquisition and forward funding of a BTR site in Manchester in its joint venture with Nest and PGGM;
• Supermarket Income REIT Plc, on its strategic joint venture with funds managed by Blue Owl Capital, a leading US alternative asset manager, seeded with eight supermarkets from its existing portfolio, with an aggregate value in excess of £400m;
• Realstar on the development and sale of a £750m portfolio of eight BTR and student accommodation properties, and subsequent sale to QuadReal Property Group. We also advised on joint venture arrangements with QuadReal;
• Hillwood on its significant disposal of a US and pan-European industrial and logistics portfolio to CBRE Investment Management for c.$4.5bn;
• Kennedy Wilson on the acquisition of the Heathrow Estate, a 300,000 sq ft industrial property in West London; 
• University of Oxford on a project to create a new £750m centre for mental health and brain sciences in Oxford; and
• Hayfin on its acquisition of notable office building 70 St Mary Axe from Nuveen Real Estate.