“Real Estate Workouts in a Securitized World”

New York Law School’s Center for Real Estate Studies Holds Forum with Panel of Experts

New York, NY—The Center for Real Estate Studies at New York Law School will hold a breakfast forum on “Real Estate Workouts in a Securitized World,” which will explore the problems faced by borrowers and lenders with the state of today’s economy, on Wednesday, March 18, 2008 at 8:15 a.m. at the Law School, located at 47 Worth Street.

“Real estate has always been cyclical, but in past downturns borrowers and lenders were able to meet face-to-face to negotiate sensible workouts,” Professor Marshall Tracht, Director of the LL.M. in Real Estate Program at New York Law School, said. “Today, we face a new and troubling situation: hundreds of billions of dollars in defaulted loans that have been securitized and are owned by trusts on behalf of public investors. The health of the financial system, and our economy overall, depends on the ability of the mortgage holders, loan servicers, and borrowers to resolve these defaults efficiently—a task that is far more difficult and complex than we faced in past downturns.”

Professor Tracht will be a keynote speaker, along with Michael J. Berey, General Counsel and Senior Vice President, First American Title Insurance Company of New York; and William Campbell, Partner, Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP.

Michael J. Berey is General Counsel and Senior Vice President, First American Title Insurance Company of New York, where is he is also Director of the Board of Directors. He is a member of the Real Property Law Committee of the Association of the Bar of the City of New York and a fellow of the American College of Mortgage Attorneys. He received his J.D. from Boston College Law School. Berey has written numerous articles on real estate which have been published in the New York Law Journal and the New York Real Property Law Journal.

William Campbell is Partner at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, where he represents clients in commercial real estate transactions, including national and investment banks, securitization lenders, and pension and hedge funds. He received his J.D. from Fordham University School of Law. Campbell is experienced in the sale and purchase of performing and non-performing real estate loans and “REO” properties, and has extensive experience in loan workouts and restructurings.

Professor Marshall Tracht joined New York Law School in 2007 and is the Director of the Law School’s new LL.M. in Real Estate Program. Previously, he was member of the Hofstra University School of Law faculty since 1994, serving as Vice Dean from 2001 to 2006. He is a member of the editorial board of The Banking Law Journal, a contributing editor to the Real Estate Law Report, and has written extensively in the areas of real estate development and construction financing, workouts, and bankruptcy. Before going into academia, Professor Tracht practiced in the real estate and bankruptcy groups at Arnold & Porter LLP in Washington, D.C., and clerked for the Honorable S. Martin Teel Jr., of the Bankruptcy Court for the District of Columbia.

This event is open to the public and free of charge. Registration is required and seating is limited. To register, please visit www.nyls.edu/realestate or call 212.431.2135.

About the Center for Real Estate Studies
The Center for Real Estate Studies (CRES) at New York Law School provides students with a unique educational opportunity to study both the private practice and public regulation of real estate. Leveraging the School’s location in the prime real estate market of New York City, the Center enables students to gain practical experience in the real estate community and make contacts for future employment. Launched in 2007, the Center offers an extensive selection of classroom courses, advanced seminars, and independent study projects, as well as externships in governmental offices and real estate firms. It also sponsors conferences, symposia, and continuing legal education programs on a broad spectrum of issues. The Center for Real Estate Studies aims to help bridge the existing gap between the private practice and academic study of real estate, and is one of the premier research centers in the country for the study of real estate.

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