REAL ESTATE PARTNER MARIA WANG JOINS MOFO IN SHANGHAI

Ms. Wang Brings a Unique Skill Set with Significant Experience Advising on Complex Real Estate Transactions 

Morrison & Foerster announced that Maria Wang, a highly accomplished real estate lawyer, joined the firm as a corporate partner in Shanghai on June 3. Her practice focuses on real estate transactions, including complex mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, financings, disposals and project developments and management. Ms. Wang has represented international and domestic real estate private equity houses, fund managers, financiers and developers in a variety of real estate related transactions, covering different stages from development and construction to the management, operation and disposal of real estate projects.

“We are very excited to welcome Maria to MoFo. Her PRC background, extensive experience working on complex, high-end real estate transactions, and her sophisticated knowledge of PRC real estate transactions, as well as offshore legal regimes, make Maria an asset to our team and our clients,” said Eric Piesner, firmwide managing partner for Asia and head of the firm’s Asia real estate practice. “MoFo is already a destination firm for real estate transactions in Japan, and is becoming a market leader for complex real estate matters in China as sophisticated sponsors and companies focus on and invest in the country.”

“MoFo has an impressive platform in Asia, including an incredibly strong real estate practice,” said Ms. Wang. “I am eager to contribute to the group’s continued success.”

Ms. Wang joined the firm from Allen & Overy in Shanghai where she handled a mix of equity and debt real estate transactions for major banks, funds, developers and other leading institutional real estate players.

Ms. Wang earned her LLB from The University of New South Wales, Australia. Prior to Allen & Overy, Ms. Wang practiced as a solicitor at Chambers & Company in Melbourne. She is noted as a “person to watch” by Chambers in 2013 and 2014.

Morrison & Foerster’s China practices are highly ranked by Legal 500 Asia Pacific, Chambers Asia and Chambers Global. The firm’s Greater China practice offers a leading real estate team with members based in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong. The firm represents lenders, borrowers, funds and other investors in a wide range of finance, joint venture, acquisition and development transactions. Morrison & Foerster has recently worked on a number of major cross-border real estate transactions, including representing Singapore-based Global Logistics Properties in its recent $1.4 billion portfolio acquisition of 34 assets in Brazil from BR Properties S.A.; in its landmark US$ 2.5 billion agreement in February with a group of strategic partners to develop GLP’s logistics network in China; and in advising an affiliate of GLP in the November 2013 formation of the world’s largest China-focused logistics fund. The firm also advised China Orient Asset Management (International) Holding Limited on its $273 million investment in Shanghai Zendai Property Limited in April, and represented Fosun Group in its successful bid to acquire a Japanese real estate asset management firm IDERA Capital Management, Ltd from Unison Capital in March.