James Carolan
Jim Carolan heads the US real estate practice for Withers Bergman LLP (www.withersworldwide.com), a firm with offices throughout Europe, Asia, the Caribbean and the US. His practice focuses on property investment, as well as financing, leasing, disposition, and development for clients including private clients, family offices, equity investors, business owners, universities, charities, art galleries, fashion brands and museums. Examples of the work he does for families include acquisition of equity stakes in retail, office and hospitality investments; direct acquisition of properties; sorting out complicated co-ownership problems; advising on the creation of real estate investment companies; construction and design issues; structuring the deployment of money to charitable organizations for construction of facilities; his team also advises on luxury residential, in and outside the US.
Before joining Withers, Jim spent 14 years in Yale University’s Office of General Counsel, advising the university’s endowment and central offices on real estate investment and development and on a wide range of business issues.
He is active with various bar and charitable activities, and is a frequent speaker and writer on topics related to his practice. Among other boards he serves, Jim is President of the Friends of FAI-The Foundation for the Italian Environment, Inc., which supports the restoration and public enjoyment of Italy’s abundant cultural and natural assets. Educated at Cornell (AB), Stanford (ABD) and UCONN (JD), Jim has taught on real estate topics in the graduate and/or law programs at Yale, Cornell and Columbia Universities, and actively participates in bar and other associations including the American College of Real Estate Lawyers, New York City Bar Association, the National Association of College and University Attorneys and the Higher Education Real Estate Lawyers group.