Real estate transactions
Not legal advice. This section describes law firms from published rankings and SEC filings. It does not recommend a lawyer for your matter, and reading it does not create a lawyer–client relationship with anyone. For a legal question, talk to a lawyer licensed where the property is.
Firms Chambers USA 2026 ranks in its nationwide Real Estate table.
Last updated: 2026-10-20
We do not score law firms. We cannot see the work, and the guides already rank them through client interviews. We show the guides’ bands and tiers as they publish them, and list firms alphabetically.
Where each firm ranks, by guide
| Firm | Chambers USA 2026 Real Estate (nationwide) | Chambers USA 2026 REITs (nationwide) | Legal 500 US Real estate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fried Frank | Band 1 | Band 4 | Large cap, Tier 1 |
| Gibson Dunn | Band 1 | Not ranked | Large cap, Tier 1 |
| Goodwin | Band 3 | Band 1 | Mid-market, Tier 1 |
| Greenberg Traurig | Band 1 | Band 4 | Large cap, Tier 1 |
| Kirkland & Ellis | Band 1 | Band 5 | Large cap, Tier 1 |
| Latham & Watkins | Band 2 | Band 1 | Large cap, Tier 1 |
| Paul Hastings | Band 1 | Band 3 | Large cap, Tier 1 |
| Simpson Thacher | Band 1 | Band 2 | Large cap, Tier 2 |
| Skadden | Band 2 | Band 1 | Large cap, Tier 2 |
Bands and tiers are the guides’ own, read 2026-10-20. Chambers Real Estate, Chambers REITs, Legal 500 large cap, Legal 500 mid-market. Listed alphabetically; we do not combine them into a ranking of our own.
Profiled in this segment
Fried Frank
Private law partnership.
Hired as the independent counsel to Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance’s special committee on the ~$9B sale of its loan book to Athene.
Profile and sources →Gibson Dunn
Private law partnership.
Brookfield’s counsel on two 2026 REIT take-privates: Peakstone (~$1.2B) and LXP Industrial (~$5.2B).
Profile and sources →Goodwin
Private law partnership.
AvalonBay’s counsel on its 2026 merger with Equity Residential, which formed Vivmark Residential.
Profile and sources →Greenberg Traurig
Private law partnership.
Shows up on both sides of mid-size REIT deals: for the target, the buyer and buyer consortiums.
Profile and sources →Kirkland & Ellis
Private law partnership.
Counsel to Blue Owl and Ares on 2025–26 REIT take-privates worth $1.7B to $2.4B each.
Profile and sources →Latham & Watkins
Private law partnership.
Company counsel on Lineage’s IPO and Sun Communities’ $5.65B marina sale; also acts for buyers such as Ares.
Profile and sources →Paul Hastings
Private law partnership.
Counsel to Tri Pointe Homes on its ~$4.5B sale to Sumitomo Forestry; Chambers notes real estate work for tech companies.
Profile and sources →Simpson Thacher
Private law partnership.
Blackstone’s counsel in two REIT take-privates we read: Retail Opportunity Investments and Alexander & Baldwin (~$2.3B).
Profile and sources →Skadden
Private law partnership.
Rithm Capital’s counsel buying Paramount Group ($1.6B) and Alexander & Baldwin’s counsel on its take-private.
Profile and sources →Who each is actually for
Based on what the cited sources say, not on reviews. If we had no source, the cell is left out.
| Firm | Fit signals from the sources |
|---|---|
| Fried Frank | Owners and developers with large New York assets, and boards needing independent counsel on related-party deals. |
| Gibson Dunn | Private equity buyers of listed REITs. Owners and lenders with large California assets. |
| Goodwin | Listed REITs on mergers, offerings and executive pay. Underwriters on REIT IPOs. |
| Greenberg Traurig | Developers needing land use and zoning help alongside the deal. Mid-size REITs and buyers wanting national coverage. |
| Kirkland & Ellis | Private equity and credit funds buying or restructuring real estate. |
| Latham & Watkins | REITs planning an IPO, spin-off or large asset sale. Buyers who want REIT, tax and capital markets work in one firm. |
| Paul Hastings | Technology companies leasing or building large campuses. Homebuilders and developers selling to strategic buyers. |
| Simpson Thacher | Large real estate funds buying portfolios or whole REITs. Sponsors running big CMBS financings. |
| Skadden | Companies considering a REIT spin-off or conversion. Buyers of office and mixed-use REITs. |
Last verified 2026-10-20. Figures were re-read from the linked sources that day.
View changelog
- Section published: hub, three sub-hubs, nine profiles and three comparisons, from Chambers USA 2026, The Legal 500 and SEC filings read this day.
Sources
- Chambers USA 2026, Real Estate: USA Nationwide ranking table · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, REITs: USA Nationwide ranking table · accessed 2026-10-20
- The Legal 500 United States, Real estate: large cap ($500m+) firm rankings · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Fried Frank, Real Estate department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Jan 28, 2026): loan portfolio sale to Athene · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Gibson Dunn, Real Estate department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Peakstone Realty Trust 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Feb 2, 2026): Brookfield acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- LXP Industrial Trust 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Jul 20, 2026): Brookfield and CPP Investments acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- The Legal 500 United States, Real estate: mid-market ($0-500m) firm rankings · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Goodwin Procter, REITs department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Vivmark Residential (formerly Equity Residential) 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Aug 17, 2026): AvalonBay merger completed · accessed 2026-10-20
- Lineage, Inc. IPO prospectus (424B4, Jul 26, 2024), Legal Matters · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Greenberg Traurig, Real Estate department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Global Net Lease 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (May 4, 2026): Modiv Industrial acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- Plymouth Industrial REIT 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Oct 24, 2025): Makarora acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Kirkland & Ellis, Real Estate department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Sila Realty Trust 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Apr 20, 2026): Blue Owl acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- Whitestone REIT 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Apr 9, 2026): Ares acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Latham & Watkins, REITs department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Sun Communities 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Feb 24, 2025): Safe Harbor Marinas sale · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Paul Hastings, Real Estate department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Tri Pointe Homes 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Feb 13, 2026): Sumitomo Forestry combination · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Simpson Thacher, Real Estate department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Retail Opportunity Investments Corp. 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Nov 6, 2024): Blackstone acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- Alexander & Baldwin 8-K, Ex. 99.7 (Dec 9, 2025): take-private · accessed 2026-10-20
- Veris Residential 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Feb 23, 2026): Affinius-led acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20
- Chambers USA 2026, Skadden, REITs department profile · accessed 2026-10-20
- Paramount Group 8-K, Ex. 99.1 (Sep 17, 2025): Rithm Capital acquisition · accessed 2026-10-20