Am Law 100 firm Polsinelli continues its recent streak of noteworthy hires by announcing the addition of accomplished attorneys Jed W. Bonner, Emina Kwok, Patrick Maloney, and Scott Smithson to the firm’s nationally renowned Real Estate Practice. Bonner joins the San Francisco office from Allen Matkins, Kwok and Maloney will be based out of Chicago, and Smithson joins the team in St. Louis from Dentons. Before joining Polsinelli, Maloney was a Partner at Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP. Kwok joins Polsinelli from Greenberg Traurig.
“Bringing in just one of these outstanding attorneys – Jed, Emina, Patrick or Scott – to any one of our offices would be noteworthy enough, so it’s easy to see why we’re so pleased to announce all four are joining our national practice,” said Polsinelli Real Estate Practice Chair Amy Kiefer Hansen. “It’s certainly an exciting time for our Real Estate group across the country, so we appreciate seeing attorneys of this caliber choosing to grow their practices by joining our teams in San Francisco, Chicago and St. Louis and making an impact firmwide.”
Polsinelli’s Real Estate team continues to see an increase demand across the nation for their services. Since October 2021, Polsinelli has hired 18 lateral partners in its national Real Estate Practice, which now has more than 150 lawyers in offices across the country. The group’s newest additions include:
Jed W. Bonner joins the San Francisco office as Principal bringing deep market insight, significant experience and a creative yet efficient approach to his commercial real estate practice. His practice spans the full spectrum of transactional real estate, including acquisitions and dispositions, leasing, financing and development. Bonner’s acquisitions and dispositions practice includes complex purchase, sale and sale-leaseback transactions. His leasing practice includes the representation of both landlords and tenants in leases of office, industrial, retail and life science space located throughout the United States. Bonner earned his bachelor’s degree from Skidmore College before obtaining a J.D. from Brooklyn Law School. Prior to joining Polsinelli, Jed was Senior Counsel at Allen Matkins.
Joining the Chicago office as Shareholder, Emina Kwok represents national and local investors, institutions and individuals with a wide range of asset classes, including mixed-use projects, resort hotels, offices, restaurants, retail spaces, auto dealerships, and condominium developments. Her real estate experience extends across the areas of commercial and residential acquisition and dispositions, leasing, and development. She has spent the past 18 years building her practice in Nevada, where she also served as Vice President of Membership for the Asian Bar Association of Las Vegas. Kwok earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California and her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School, and she also studied abroad in Greece and The Netherlands. Kwok was at Greenberg Traurig, LLP, prior to joining Polsinelli.
Patrick Maloney also joins the Chicago office as Shareholder, focusing his practice on commercial real estate law, concentrating on property development, acquisitions and dispositions, leasing, secured financing, and REIT transactions. Maloney represents parties across various classes of commercial real estate, including industrial & logistics, hotels, shopping centers and office buildings. He represents investors, lenders, borrowers, fund sponsors, purchasers, sellers, and joint venture partners throughout the United States. Maloney earned his bachelor’s degree from Northwestern University and obtained his J.D. from Duke University School of Law.
New Shareholder Scott Smithson brings extensive experience to the St. Louis office, having worked with banks, lenders, investors, developers, landowners and tenants to document and close commercial real estate transactions, including purchases and sales, financings, new development, and leases. He also drafts and negotiates agreements relating to the construction and management of commercial real estate projects, and he assists with the resolution of disputes arising during construction. Previously, Scott worked as a senior managing associate in the Real Estate group at Dentons US LLP. He previously also worked as in-house counsel at a publicly-traded financial services holding company, where he provided practical, value-added counsel to the parent company and its subsidiaries, including retail brokerage, asset management and investment banking firms. Scott earned his bachelor’s degree and J.D. from the University of Missouri.
The Polsinelli Real Estate team provides practical solutions clients value, as well as vast experience in areas that include transactions, financing structures and land use entitlements from acquisition and financing through development and leasing. The practice continues to achieve a National Tier One ranking in Real Estate Law by U.S. News & World Report’s 2021 “Best Law Firms” list, and it was included in Legal 500’s prestigious 2021 rankings. The Real Estate Practice also earned several prominent placements in the 2021 state, practice and attorney rankings from Chambers USA, a leading legal industry rankings organization.
About Polsinelli
Polsinelli is an Am Law 100 firm with 950 attorneys in 21 offices nationwide. Recognized by legal research firm BTI Consulting as one of the top firms for excellent client service and client relationships, the firm’s attorneys provide value through practical legal counsel infused with business insight, and focus on health care, financial services, real estate, intellectual property, middle-market corporate, labor and employment and business litigation. Polsinelli PC, Polsinelli LLP in California.
Source: www.polsinelli.com
