Chicago, December 18, 2007 – LAWFUEL – US Legal News – Sidley Austin LLP announced today that Stanley M. Stevens will join the firm’s Chicago office as a partner in the real estate group. Stevens most recently served as Executive Vice-President, Chief Legal Counsel at Equity Office Properties Trust, where he worked with Sidley on the sale of Equity Office to the Blackstone Group for $39 billion in February 2007, the largest LBO done to that time.
Stevens, with more than 30 years of experience handling real estate matters, is recognized as a leading lawyer and executive in the REIT industry. At Equity Office, he led a department of 50 lawyers and paralegals. He oversaw $25 billion worth of real estate acquisitions from 1997 to 2006, and he chaired the company’s compliance committee.
Stevens is extremely active in NAREIT, the premier REIT industry association, including most recently serving as one of the program directors for its 2007 Law and Accounting Conference.
“We are very pleased to welcome Stan Stevens to the Sidley partnership. The firm and several of our partners have a long and rewarding history of collaboration with Stan on transactions, many of them transformative for the REIT industry,” said Virginia Aronson, head of Sidley’s global real estate practice and a member of the firm’s Executive and Management Committees.
“Sidley has a unique combination of skill and culture. In choosing to return to private practice, I knew that Sidley was my destination,” said Stevens. “In addition to their obvious experience in REITs, the firm has the requisite global platform to serve the capital raising, real estate and other legal services needs of the REIT industry. I am excited about joining people who I already consider valued colleagues.”
Sidley consistently ranks No. 1 nationally in public and private REIT securities offerings as underwriters counsel. From 2002 to 2006 the firm served as underwriters counsel for 181 REIT public offerings totalling more than $31 billion in proceeds.
“There is no lawyer with more hands-on experience and industry knowledge than Stan Stevens,” said Imad Qasim, a Chicago partner in the firm’s M&A practice and who led the firm’s team on the EOP LBO. “He will enable us to rapidly expand our already successful REIT practice. We are thrilled.”
Stevens has a JD from the University of Chicago Law School and a BA from the University of Missouri.
