Top Rated Real Estate Attorney in New Orleans, LA

Honors/Awards:

• Super Lawyers – Real Estate (2008-2018), Super Lawyers – Real Estate (2008-2020), Super Lawyers
• Best Lawyers 2019 “Lawyer of the Year” for Commercial Transactions / UCC Law in New Orleans, Best Lawyers 2019 “Lawyer of the Year” for Commercial Transactions / UCC Law in New Orleans, Best Lawyers
• The Best Lawyers in America – Banking and Finance Law, Commercial Finance Law, Commercial Transactions/UCC Law, Corporate Law, Real Estate Law (1995-present), The Best Lawyers in America – Real Estate Law, Commercial Transactions/UCC Law (1995-present), Best Lawyers
• Chambers USA - Real Estate - Band 1, Chambers USA - Real Estate - Band 1, Chambers USA
• Martindale-Hubbell - AV Preeminent
• New Orleans CityBusiness – Leadership in Law (2010, 2016, 2018); Leadership in Law Hall of Fame, Leadership in Law Hall of Fame, New Orleans CityBusiness
• New Orleans CityBusiness – Money Maker (2014, 2017), New Orleans CityBusiness – Money Maker, New Orleans CityBusiness
• Top Lawyers in Real Estate, New Orleans Magazine

Bar/Professional Activity:

• Member, New Orleans, Louisiana and American Bar Associations
• Chair, Commissioner, New Orleans City Planning Commission, The City of New Orleans
• Member, International Conference of Shopping Centers
• Member, ABA Section of Litigation and Section of Real Property, Trust, and Estate Law
• Member, New Orleans Bar Association Real Estate Law Committee
• Former Member, City of New Orleans Board of Zoning Adjustments
• Former Member, Tax Fairness Commission, Mayoral Advisory Committee to Mayor Mitch Landrieu

Pro bono/Community Service:

• Member, Executive Council, WWNO
• Former Board Member, Metropolitan Crime Commission
• Member, LSU Health Sciences Center Department of Psychiatry Advisory Board 
• Trustee, New Orleans Museum of Art; Chair, Acquisitions Committee; Member, Executive Committee
• Board Member, Congregation Temple Sinai
• Board Member, Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans; Member, Executive Committee

Scholarly Lectures/Writings:

• Servitudes are making their way lately into quite a few cases being decided by the appeals courts of Louisiana. I recently wrote an article, “Apparent Servitudes: When Purchasing Property, Take Note Of What You See,” about a case, Naramore v. Aikman, that was decided by the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the First Circuit. It demonstrated some established but little known principles of Louisiana law that every person dealing with real estate in Louisiana should be aware of. Now, a case decided by the Louisiana Third Circuit Court of Appeals, Brunson v. Crown Brake, LLC, sets forth some important principles governing servitudes. , Written Servitudes Must Be Clear, Steeg Law website, Commercial Real Estate, Residential Real Estate, 2019
• A recent case, Clement v. Menard, illustrates the pitfalls to be avoided so that a person enjoying a right-of-way (servitude) over adjoining property does not inadvertently lose those rights. It is an important lesson for developers, property owners and property managers., How to Lose a Right-Of-Way (Servitude) or Avoid Doing So, Steeg Law website, Real Estate, 2019
• Hurricane season begins on June 1. With reminders like Hurricanes Michael and Katrina fresh in our minds, many of us will begin to review steps for hurricane preparedness in our homes and offices. Have you also considered that you need to do the same for your real estate agreements? Now is the time for people involved in real estate to check and make sure that their documents are completely up-to-date with various measures that anticipate the possible effect of storms like these. Here is a quick list of some of the more important provisions for purchase and sale agreements and for leases., Are Your Real Estate Documents Prepared for Hurricane Season?, Steeg Law website, Real Estate, 2019
• A recent case, Naramore v. Aikman, decided by the Louisiana Court of Appeal for the First Circuit demonstrates some established but little known principles of Louisiana law that every person dealing with real estate in Louisiana should be aware of. The issue is servitudes, roughly the equivalent of “easements” in common law., Apparent Servitudes: When Purchasing Property, Take Note Of What You See , Real Estate, 2018
• In a recent case decided by the Louisiana Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which has jurisdiction over Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, a landlord put into its lease all of the proper provisions to relieve the landlord from liability for injuries inside the leased premises, but those provisions still could not prevent the tenant from having her day in court to try to impose liability on the landlord., Belts and Suspenders for Landlords, but the Tenant Can Still Cause the Pants to Fall , Real Estate, 2018
• A relatively small case, recently decided by the Louisiana state Court of Appeal for the Fifth Circuit illustrates two important principles: First, a court will often find a way to get around legal technicalities when they are being used by a party to achieve what the court perceives to be an unfair result; and  Second, written contracts may always be modified orally or by the conduct of the parties, so be careful what you say and do after the ink is dry., Small Case, Important Principles For Written Agreements, 2018
• When your attorney is poring over every word of a purchase agreement that you are about to enter into, and you are getting frustrated with the way the attorney is fretting over small details, think about the case that partner Robert Steeg is about to describe. Your attorney is protecting your interests by worrying about the meaning of every phrase., In a Purchase Agreement, Words Matter—A Lot, Real Estate, 2017
• Many property owners are generally familiar with the idea of deferring the taxable gain on the sale of real estate by applying the proceeds of the sale to the purchase of another parcel of like-kind property under Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code—a so-called “Section 1031 exchange.”, Some Tips on Section 1031 Exchanges, Real Estate, 2017

Transactions:

• Business formation and negotiation of upscale shopping center lease for new retail business in downtown New Orleans.
• Negotiation, preparation and execution for the landlord of major amendment and extension of office lease in downtown New Orleans.
• Negotiation of loan documents for refinancing of multi-million dollar multi-family apartment complex in New Orleans.
• Successful conditional use application for expanding commercial business in downtown New Orleans.
• Purchase and development of site for company-owned office building in Jefferson Parish.

Newsletters:

• Steeg Law Spring 2015 newsletter feature article, Case Alert: Good News for Real Estate Agents, Caution for Buyers

Educational Background:

• University of Pennsylvania, B.A., graduated Phi Beta Kappa and summa cum laude, 1973
• Boston College Law School, J.D., Order of Coif, 1978
• The Annenberg School of Communications, University of Pennsylvania, M.S., 1975