McGuireWoods lawyers in London advised St. Martins Property Limited in negotiating the £43.9 million sale of highly coveted property in the heart of one of London’s most famous residential, entertainment and business districts.
HB St. Martins Pte. Ltd. (HBSM), a wholly owned subsidiary of Ho Bee Land Limited, has agreed to acquire the property in a transaction agreed on Oct. 24. It is the second time in the last three years that McGuireWoods has been involved in negotiating the sale of the historic property, a testament to the firm’s strong relationship with St. Martins Property Limited. McGuireWoods represented the company when it acquired the real estate in February 2012 for approximately £37 million.
The property, known as 60-62 St. Martins Lane, is located in the world renowned Covent Garden in London’s West End. It includes a prime office and retail building that was comprehensively redeveloped in 2011 and is fully leased through 2026. The adjacent building has four self-contained and privately accessed residential apartments that are under long-term leases. The property is ideally situated on St. Martins Lane, with four London Underground Stations located nearby.
“This is a trophy asset in the middle of London’s West End, and we were pleased to represent St. Martins Property Limited in both the acquisition and sale of such prime real estate,” said McGuireWoods partner Petar Orlic, whose practice focuses on corporate real estate work.
London partner Philip Newhouse, the firm’s lead attorney for St. Martins Property Limited, and associate Thomas Piper worked on the McGuireWoods team with Orlic.
Ho Bee Land Limited was represented by Mayer Brown with Martin Wright as lead partner and associate Danielle Gerber.
McGuireWoods is listed as a recommended firm for commercial real estate in the Legal 500 UK guide for 2014. The guide also lists Orlic as a recommended lawyer in the category of Real Estate – Commercial Property, and lists Newhouse as a recommended lawyer in the category of Corporate and Commercial – M&A: Mid-market.