A Dentons team led by Warsaw partner Piotr Szafarz and Counsel Jakub Sobotkowski advised Goodman, the global property group that owns, develops and manages logistics space, on building a new central warehouse and office facility in Poznan for grocery and DIY franchising chain Mousquetaires Group. The site will dedicate 74,000 sq.m. to logistics and 8,500 sq.m. to office space. Goodman signed a 10-year lease with the Mousquetaires Group and delivery is due early next year.

Top 20 business law firm DWF has advised Custodian REIT plc, a £130 million closed-ended investment company, on its flotation on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange. Custodian REIT plc, a newly incorporated company formed by Mattioli Woods plc, is expected to become a real estate investment trust. The flotation is believed to be the first UK REIT IPO to combine a fundraising with the acquisition of a seed portfolio of properties.

International law firm Pinsent Masons has advised Capital & Counties Properties PLC (‘Capco’) on the formation of a new joint venture with Transport for London (‘TfL’) which will enable the development of Earls Court 1& 2 in line with the Earls Court Masterplan.

Macfarlanes acted for Intu Properties Plc on the acquisition of three shopping centres from Westfield for a consideration of £867.8m.  The centres are in Derby, Sprucefield (Northern Ireland) and Merry Hill (West Midlands). In the case of Merry Hill, Intu acquired a 50 per cent interest, with the remaining Merry Hill interest being owned by QIC, an Australian fund.  The interests were held in a complex trust/partnership/corporate structure and the firm led on the acquisition of those interests and all underlying real estate.

Addleshaw Goddard has advised Mount Anvil, central London’s specialist residential property developer, on a £200 million partnership with leading global alternative asset manager Ares Management to purchase new sites and build more, much-needed homes in Central London. The Pears Family has participated in the refinancing of certain of the existing Mount Anvil facilities.

King & Wood Mallesons has advised ABL Group on the refinancing of its existing financing.

ABL Group’s previous financing was replaced by financing arranged and provided by Baden-Württembergische Bank, thereby creating a framework for the funding of further international expansion.

“The particular challenge in this transaction was finding and implementing a refinancing concept ideally suited to the group’s continued growth strategy”, commented Finance partner Clemens Niedner.

Global law firm Eversheds has advised RPW (Southampton) Limited, a joint venture company owned by Morgan Sindall Investments Limited (“MSIL”) and funders Lucent Group (“Lucent”) on the signing of the conditional development agreement for the regeneration of the Royal Pier Waterfront in Southampton.

K&L Gates LLP has advised global credit manager Marathon Asset Management on the acquisition of a €280m continental European commercial property loan portfolio from Lloyds Banking Group. Known as Project Aberdonia, the transaction covers a portfolio secured by 82 properties primarily in France and Germany, and follows last year’s acquisition by Marathon Asset Management of the Lloyds Project Chamonix loan portfolio.

Burges Salmon have advised Canadian & Portland Estates Plc on the sale of 103 New Bond Street in London for in excess of £30 million.

Led by partner Ross Polkinghorne, a multi-disciplinary team from Burges Salmon provided Canadian & Portland Estates Plc with Real Estate, Planning, Tax and Construction advice in relation to the sale to an investor from Hong Kong. Burges Salmon worked closely with Canadian & Portland's investment agent, Lawrence Gluckstein, from John Miles and Company.

Travers Smith has advised the shareholders of Banner Homes, Prowting Family Trust and Management, on its sale to Cala Homes for an undisclosed sum.

The combined Cala and Banner Homes business will directly employ more than 600 people and have a turnover of more than £500m in its first full year, with net assets of £200m.  In the longer term, the company expect to deliver about 2,000 homes annually by 2017.