ΒιΆΉΘλΏΪ partner and Real Estate co-head Brian Lichter was quoted in Law360 on the 2008 recession and the state of the market in 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Brian noted that in September 2008, nearly every deal he was working on went β€œinto a frenzy.” In contrast, he explained that in 2020, β€œthere was a bit more of a drum beat leading up to the fallout from the pandemic in late February into March of 2020” and that β€œthe market began to turn in the last week of February and then, as the news of spikes got worse, offices made quick preparations to close. At the time, I was working on a large refinancing where some in the lender group got skittish, but we were able to get them across the finish line and close.”

Brian also explained that in 2020, β€œthe capital markets were flying and investors were sitting on a lot of cash, so it wasn’t a question of whether there was money to do deals” and β€œthe questions were more transformational β€” how will remote or hybrid work impact the office market in the future, where are people going to want to live going forward, what will the long-term impact be on business travel?”

β€œ,” Law360 (July 11, 2022) (subscription required)

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