Smith Gardner Slusky Law (previously Dwyer Smith Gardner Lazer Pohren and Rogers) has been in business for nearly 40 years, but that doesn’t mean they have stopped evolving. In November, they added a new partner, Tom McLeay, whose practice focuses on real estate finance, land use/entitlement and entity structures, with a particular emphasis on tax credit and subsidized real estate development.
“In the 1970s and 1980s, the firm’s focus was business law, commercial litigation and general legal matters”, Jerry Slusky said. “When Slusky Law merged with Dwyer Smith Gardner in 2008, the firm’s practice broadened the already existing real estate practice with the addition of Slusky Law’s four primary real estate lawyers.
“We continue to expand the breadth of our practice. With Tom, we now have six real estate lawyers, and two legal assistants, who make up the firm’s real estate group.
“We cover all aspects of real estate law. For example, I focus on development – zoning and land use for new properties. Now with Tom, he brings experience in the low income housing sector and tax credit work. He will help us to broaden our scope of services even further.
“The great depth of our real estate experience has made us very attractive to our clients. In addition to our real estate services, the firm has expertise in mergers and acquisitions, bankruptcy, estate planning, collection systems, commercial litigation/mediation and personal and family matters.”
Having 15 lawyers available to serve its clients’ needs, Smith Gardner Slusky Law is essentially a “boutique firm.” However, for its size, in the Omaha area, it is unique in the breadth of its offerings, specifically in terms of real estate services.
“On our lending side, Dan Smith represents many banks and provides a state of the art commercial real estate loan closing service.”
“For the developer community, we work in partnership with our developer clients in land acquisition, entitlements, leasing, financing and management. Our real estate tax appeal department is one of the largest in Omaha.”
Not only that, but Smith Gardner Slusky Law can also boast the fact that Dan Smith and Jerry Slusky are two of only seven lawyers in the state of Nebraska who belong to the prestigious, invitation-only American College of Real Estate Lawyers (ACREL).
“You have to be nominated by your peers, and there is a rigorous screening process,” Slusky said.
An improved economy is one of the reasons that Smith Gardner Slusky Law is seeing increased activity. “Because of the recession, banks slowed down lending, but in the last 24 months, they came roaring back.”
“The same is true on the development side. Now, due to increased demand for office, retail, apartments and homes, the development community is playing catch up.”
The History of The CRE Summit
In 1990, Slusky had begun teaching the real estate planning, development, and finance course as an adjunct professor at Creighton University School of Law, and he mentioned to then Dean Larry Raful that, “real estate markets were absolutely dead in the water.”
The federal government had initiated the Resolution Trust Corporation, which bailed out billions of dollars of commercial real estate, and Slusky believed that a workshop, during which RTC was discussed, would be welcomed. The Dean agreed. That first year, 375 people signed up.
“No one was lending, no deals were being done, people were concerned about their livelihoods, the industry wanted to know how RTC was going to help, so we had a huge turnout,” Slusky said. “Afterwards, I received many calls/contacts from people who said that it was a really good exchange of information, and that we should do it again. That’s when we started planning No. 2.”
With an improved economy, the second year saw fewer attendees – about 125. Attendance numbers have been growing over the 26-year history, with about 500 attending in 2013 and 600 in 2014.
Those who attend the Summit come from a variety of backgrounds: attorneys, accountants, appraisers, brokers, construction companies, developers, insurance professionals, lenders, managers, title companies, title insurance professionals, and more.
“It’s a good professional mix, and they all share information,” he said. In fact, the last event of the day, from 4 to 5 p.m., is called “The Exchange,” and is a casual way for everyone to enjoy drinks, hors d’oeuvres, and real estate conversation.
Those familiar with the Commercial Real Estate Summit might realize that the annual event has undergone a slight name change. Several years ago, a national group – Commercial Real Estate Women – became aware that its acronym was being used, and they took issue with it. To comply, CREW Workshop has become CRE Summit. But Slusky harbors no ill feelings. “Summit fits us better now. This is the one-day-a-year place for real estate professionals to go, and what they learn here will pay off for the rest of the year.”