The Legal 500

Houthoff Buruma is ‘an excellent, number-one practice’ for Dutch real estate finance and transactions. It advised a consortium of owners on the sale of the Wilhelminahof commercial complex, which was the biggest single real estate transaction in the Netherlands during 2010. Jan Cees Kuiken advised Unibail-Rodamco on the €1bn aggregate sale of retail and commercial properties. Aart Barkey Wolf is recommended for financing.

Loyens & Loeff ‘understands the market and organises its team efficiently’, and is noted for its ‘one-stop-shop’ service that includes tax law expertise. Practice head Wilfred Groen is ‘a strong communicator with practical knowledge and a sense for delicate situations; he is also an excellent team leader’. He advised ABN AMRO on disposing of real estate assets following its merger with Fortis. Bram Linnartz acts for international investors, and recently advised Hannover Leasing on acquiring turnkey projects in the Netherlands. ‘A good sparring partner’, Paul Kerckhoffs advised Dutch National Railways on selling non-core assets.

Allen & Overy LLP is recommended for cross-border real estate financing and development, as well as commercial and residential property transactions. The practice advised on the merger of real estate funds Vastned Offices and NSI, and acted for City Inn on the acquisition, financing and development of the €130m Mint Hotel in Amsterdam. Henry van Geen leads the team and has experience in the infrastructure and commercial sectors.

Boekel De Nerée’s team provides ‘a very professional attitude combined with a personal touch’, and is a leading firm for real estate finance. Highlights included advising UBS on the sale of the Rijkskantoor Beatrixpark building to Real I.S.; and Invesco on acquiring the Entre Deux retail complex. Pieter van Delden, Angelique Thiele and Anne-Marie Klijn are recommended. Paul Wanders heads the practice, which hired leasing expert Wendela Raas from Lexence and Jereon van den Hamer from Loyens & Loeff.

CMS Derks Star Busmann acts for financial institutions, developers, housing corporations and municipalities. Recent instructions include €100m commercial property acquisitions by NordCapital, and ASR Nederland’s sale of the former Fortis headquarters building. Other clients include Royal BAM Group, OVG and Ballast Nedam. Frank Leyendeckers leads the team and focuses on projects and sustainable redevelopments. Hein van der Meer ‘speaks the client’s language and not just the legal language’.

Clifford Chance, which is recommended for cross-border mandates, recently advised Carlyle on redeveloping commercial office property into student accommodation and RREEF Investment on a €112m property acquisition. It also acted on the merger of Nieuwe Steen Investments and VastNed Offices. Jaap Koster leads on transactions and project developments. Jan-Joost van Rijsbergen recently became counsel and handles financing.

De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek provides ‘a hands-on attitude and high-quality work combined with practical advice’. The team is led by Annemieke Wessels, who advises corporate clients such as Shell and Philips, and recently advised investors on restructuring and divestments. Other key clients include TenneT, Vesteda and Rabo Real Estate. Koos de Blécourt is ‘a specialist in leasing matters and a strong leader in negotiations’.

Lexence has been advising the government on real estate projects in the Netherlands, such as agribusiness venture Greenport Venlo and the Zuidas business district. It also acted for Dutch investment company Wereldhave on acquiring five shopping malls from Unibail-Rodamco. Taco de Lange, Menno van Groningen, Tomas Steenmetser and Ferry van Schoonhoven are recommended. The team hired Bob Bekker and Imke van Loon from Baker & McKenzie Amsterdam N.V., while Aike Kamphuis was promoted to partner.

‘Responsive beyond expectations’, NautaDutilh provides ‘seamless service’ on complex matters. It acted for WP Carey on its €155m acquisition of distribution centres from supermarket chain C1000 and advised the municipality of Amsterdam on the €4bn Zuidas project. Bernard ter Haar leads the team, which includes David van Dijk, who has ‘excellent legal and business skills’, the ‘excellent’ Arief van Rhee, and Thijs Lommen, who ‘knows what is important to clients and what can be given away in negotiations’. David van Ee was promoted to the partnership.

Stibbe advised Blackstone Group on Dutch aspects of its Mint Hotels chain buyout, and ING Bank on the $940m sale of assets to CB Richard Ellis. Joop Janssen leads the team, which hired Jonathan Gal as counsel from Allen & Overy LLP.

AKD has been advising on redevelopments, including the construction of a new railway terminal in Breda and various urban regeneration projects. It is advising ING Real Estate on the Zuidas development. Practice head Marc Wintgens gives ‘first-class advice’.

DLA Piper’s real estate group is headed by Rutger Oranje, who acted for Generali on acquiring Haarlem Raaks retail shopping centre. Other notable matters included advising Deutsche Bank on refinancing and acting for Fortress on redeveloping a new high-rise building at Anna van Buerenplein into a retail, student accommodation and higher education complex. Monique Laenen is recommended.

Norton Rose LLP provides service with ‘an international perspective’, and practice head Daphne Broerse gives ‘strong support in negotiations’. Clients include InterContinental Hotels Group, Luzac Onderwijs and Estro Groep.

Pels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn NV is well known for representing the state and local government, and also advises real estate investment companies, private developers and social housing corporations. Practice head Alain de Jonge has experience advising on public and private sector developments.

Simmons & Simmons LLP’s clients include OVG, Equinix, Heijmans and Cordea Savills. It advised the municipality of Maassluis on developing a new city district and CRH on retail sector transactions. Practice head Frenk Huisman is ‘proactive, hands-on and analytical’, and his work spans commercial property, energy, infrastructure and TMT.

Van Doorne acts for international retailers on acquisitions and developments; not-for-profit organisations on refinancings; and the municipality of Amsterdam on redeveloping the Nieuw West district. Annerie Ploumen and Cees Kniestedt are recommended.