Norton Rose Fulbright announces three new leadership roles within US real estate team

Global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright has appointed Katie Van Dyk (Austin) as its US Head of Commercial Real Estate as well as John F. Young and Christine Fernandez Owen (Chicago) as the firm’s US Co-Heads of Projects Real Estate.

Katie, John and Christine will support the firm’s US Head of Real Estate, John Jennings (San Antonio), in driving forward the firm’s strategic and developmental initiatives for the real estate practice. These appointments are designed to align with the contemporary needs of clients in this increasingly specialized sector of law.

John Jennings, who has led the US real estate practice since 2019, said:

“The real estate team has more than doubled in size over the past few years and is expected to continue growing in tandem with the firm’s overall growth strategy. These new leadership roles will help us in how we serve our clients and identify new opportunities.”

Katie Van Dyk advises real estate developers and investors, lenders and borrowers, landlords and tenants as well as emerging companies in transactional and development matters covering all asset classes. Her work includes acquisitions and dispositions of assets for development and investment, real estate finance and joint ventures, leasing and hospitality and entertainment industry real estate matters. She earned her bachelor’s degree in finance from The McCombs School of Business at The University of Texas at Austin and her law degree from Tulane University Law School.

John F. Young advises renewable energy developers and operators on an array of real estate matters, including property acquisition and disposition, leasing, land use, construction, joint venture and financing. He previously served as in-house counsel to a global renewable energy developer, handling all legal aspects of its North American real estate development. John graduated from the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law after receiving his bachelor’s degree from University of Missouri – St. Louis.

Christine Fernandez Owen represents developers, owners, operators and service providers in matters involving the development and construction of wind, solar and energy storage projects. An adjunct professor at the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law lecturing on clean energy law, she earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and her law degree from the George Washington Law School.

The firm’s highly regarded real estate team, which is consistently recognized as a nationwide leader in The Legal 500 United States, includes approximately 50 real estate lawyers in the US. The team advises across the full range of real estate matters, including urban regeneration projects, direct and indirect investment transactions, real estate financing, equity investment structuring, portfolio deals, corporate occupier matters, dispute resolution and development projects.