Robert A. Fishman

Partner Seaport West
155 Seaport Boulevard
Boston, MA 02210 617.439.2204 Fax: 617.310.9204 rfishman@nutter.com rfishman@nutter.com V-card

EDUCATION

• Harvard Law School, J.D., cum laude
• Harvard College, B.A., magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa

ACCOLADES

• Massachusetts Super Lawyer, 2004-2009
• The Best Lawyers in America, 2006-2011
• Super Lawyers, Corporate Counsel Edition, 2009 & 2010
• Chambers and Partners, Leading U.S. Zoning/Land Use Attorney, 2006-2010
• Chambers and Partners, Leading U.S. Real Estate Attorney, 2003-2010
• Community of Excellence Award, Combined Jewish Philanthropies
• NAIOP Public Affairs Award
• International Who's Who of Real Estate Lawyers, 2006

ADMISSIONS

• Massachusetts

ARTICLES & EVENTS

• Robert Fishman presents on energy efficiency and sustainability in real estate development and leasing
  
• Bob Fishman presents on zoning reform at NAIOP’s seminar “Rules of the Game: An Inside Look at the Changing Regulatory Landscape”
  
• Robert Fishman presents on zoning reform in Massachusetts at REBA Spring Conference
  
• Bob Fishman receives NAIOP Public Affairs Award
  
• Amendment to the State Subdivision Control Law and the State Zoning Act Allows Consolidation of Planning Board Hearings for Developments Requiring Both Subdivision Approval and a Special Permit
  Client Advisory, Land Use, Permitting and Development
• The Massachusetts Oceans Act of 2008: New Legislation Regulates Activities, Uses and Structures within the Oceans
  Client Advisory, Land Use, Permitting and Development
• Bob Fishman presents at REFA's zoning and permitting seminar
  
• Combined Jewish Philanthropies presents Bob Fishman with its Community of Excellence Award
  
• Bob Fishman speaks at MCLE seminar on zoning issues
  
• Bob Fishman speaks to BBA on zoning and permitting opinions in financing transactions
  
• NAIOP invites Bob Fishman to speak on zoning practice
  
• Bob Fishman encourages municipalities to take advantage of Massachusetts' expedited permitting process
  Boston Business Journal
• Bob Fishman and Michael Leon receive NAIOP Public Affairs Award
  
• NAIOP invites Bob Fishman and Michael Leon to present on Massachusetts' streamlined permitting process
  
• Governor Romney Signs New Legislation to Streamline and to Expedite the Permitting Process in Massachusetts
  Client Advisory, Land Use Permitting and Development
• Land Use, Permitting and Development group sponsors and moderates NAIOP panel on suburban mixed-use development
  
• More

Robert A. Fishman is a partner in the Real Estate and Finance Department and chairs the Land Use Practice Group. His practice focuses on development, financing, acquisition and disposition, leasing, entity formation, conveyancing, and land use/environmental permitting.

Bob has represented developers, lenders, corporate, institutional, municipal, and nonprofit clients involved in the development and financing of mixed use projects, downtown office buildings, suburban industrial and office parks, shopping centers, hotels, multifamily housing, senior assisted living housing and community facilities.

Bob's representative work includes:

• Acquisition, disposition, permitting, financing, and leasing for National Development of New England on such Massachusetts projects as Station Landing in Medford, ArborPoint at Woodland Station in Newton (40B), Forge Park in Franklin, Fort Point Channel in Boston, MetroNorth Business Center in Woburn, Lake Williams Corporate Center in Marlborough, Blueview Corporate Center in Canton, Mansfield Corporate Center, New England Business Center in Andover, and numerous other office, research and development, shopping center, residential and assisted living projects, and, most recently, successfully completed the permitting for Meadow Walk at Lynnfield, a mixed use retail/office/residential, 40R project
• Contractual, permitting and financing for Hebrew SeniorLife’s recently completed 160 acre intergenerational campus in Dedham, Massachusetts, including closing the bond issue of over $450 million
• Land Disposition Agreement contractual work for the City of Quincy and the Stoughton Redevelopment Authority
• Permitting and entitlement analysis for Wells Fargo Bank, N.A.
• Permitting, contractual and land use litigation for Assembly Square Limited Partnership in connection with Assembly Square Mall and Yard 21 in Somerville, Massachusetts
• Assisting Adobe Systems, Inc. in the acquisition of a new office headquarters building in Waltham
• Assisting Lubert-Adler and its partners in their acquisition out of bankruptcy of the Malden Mills property in Lawrence and Methuen, including all title, permitting, and environmental analyses
• Permitting and land use litigation of numerous new and upgraded stores for Shaw's Supermarkets, Inc. and Charter Realty and Development Corp.
• Acquisition and development of the Oracle Corporation campus in Burlington, Massachusetts
• Contractual and permitting work for the Pearson Education/Addison Wesley campus in Reading, Massachusetts, including adoption of 40R zoning
• Acquisition and financing of 160 Federal Street in Boston and Harvard Mills in Wakefield, Massachusetts, for Taurus Investment Holdings LLC
• Permitting of numerous projects for Tufts University at its campuses in Medford/Somerville, and Boston, Massachusetts
• Contractual and permitting work for numerous community facilities for Combined Jewish Philanthropies of Greater Boston, Inc.
• Development of Bay Colony Corporate Center in Waltham, Massachusetts

Bob also has extensive experience representing insurance companies and pension funds, including CIGNA Corporation, Lend Lease Real Estate Investments, Inc. and The Equitable Life Assurance Society of the United States. Representative matters have included equity and/or debt work on 33 Arch Street, 75 State Street, Rowes Wharf, One Post Office Square, One Boston Place, World Trade Center East and West, Wellesley Gateway, Atrium at Chestnut Hill, Emerald Square Mall, Arsenal Mall, Mall of New Hampshire, and Fox Run Mall, and the acquisition and disposition of numerous suburban commercial properties.

In addition, Bob has a general land use and environmental law practice with a full range of experience in permitting and counseling. He has extensive experience with local zoning and subdivision matters, federal and state environmental impact reports, sewage and wastewater discharge permits, wetlands and waterways licensing, sustainability requirements, energy conservation, and evaluation of brownfields and hazardous waste matters. He has been involved with remediations of contaminated soils and groundwater, environmental insurance, environmental audits, environmental aspects of corporate mergers and acquisitions, and due diligence for real estate and other business transactions.

Bob was elected to the American College of Real Estate Lawyers in 1991. He is an active member and lecturer in the American, Massachusetts and Boston Bar Associations (BBA) and served a two-year term as co-chair of the Development and Land Use Committee of the BBA.  Bob appears among the best real estate lawyers in Massachusetts in the Chambers USA America’s Leading Business Lawyers Guide and was named a “Massachusetts Super Lawyer” in a survey by Law & Politics and Boston magazine. He is listed as one of only five (5) Massachusetts lawyers in the International Who's Who of Real Estate Lawyers for 2009 and in the Best Lawyers in America.

Bob's most recent articles and presentations have addressed smart growth issues, permitting of complex development projects, environmental indemnification and environmental insurance in business transactions, and permitting of assisted living facilities and non-conforming uses and structures. He authors a chapter of MCLE's Massachusetts Zoning Manual. He is an adjunct professor at Suffolk Law School and has taught at Harvard Law School and Boston College Law School.