Blank Rome LLP announced that two accomplished finance and real estate partners have joined the Firm in New York:

Stephen D. Brodie, Partner, Real Estate group and Financial Services industry team Julie Carvalho, Partner, Finance, Restructuring, and Bankruptcy group and Financial Services industry team

Brodie and Carvalho join Blank Rome from Herrick Feinstein LLP where Mr. Brodie served as co-chair of the firm's Corporate Department, chair of the Financial Institutions practice group and, for the last three years, as a member of Herrick’s Executive Committee. 

“We are thrilled to welcome Steve and Julie to Blank Rome,” said Alan J. Hoffman, Chairman and Managing Partner. “Steve and Julie have handled a variety of complex corporate, finance, mergers and acquisitions, and real estate matters on behalf of their clients. With an additional focus on art law, they bring unique knowledge and perspective to our strong financial services team.” 

“We’re very excited to join Blank Rome and work with its deep reserve of high-quality lawyers, in a number of key cities,” said Mr. Brodie. “Personally, in this phase of my career, my clients will benefit from a firm with significant geographic reach and diverse practice areas, such as ABL, aviation finance, and maritime finance; I am happy to have found all of this at Blank Rome.”

“Working with our Financial Services and Real Estate teams, Steve and Julie will continue to provide their clients with strategic counsel, with the benefit of additional capabilities and a deep bench in the financial services industry,” said Lawrence F. Flick, Chair of Blank Rome’s Financial Services industry team. “We are excited that they will have the opportunity to grow their practices at Blank Rome, with the expanded support from our practices and offices throughout the United States. We are confident that their range of experience and strong relationships will be of great benefit to our clients and colleagues.”

Stephen D. Brodie focuses his practice on New York City real estate development and financing as well as other kinds of secured lending, including specialty lending arrangements and high-profile corporate transactions. He has developed considerable experience in a variety of transactional legal work. He often represents commercial banks in secured and unsecured financings, including syndicated and single bank, high-end middle market, “C&I” transactions, construction loans, mezzanine real estate financings, leasehold mortgage loans, asset-based loans, and in workouts and restructurings arising from real estate, corporate, and commercial loans, often involving intercreditor relationships. Additionally, Mr. Brodie has represented owners, developers, and co-op and condominium sponsors in real estate development matters involving construction, building conversions, commercial leasing, and buy/sell transactions, as well as foreign lenders in financings for U.S. borrowers secured by real estate, oil tankers, oil refineries, ski resorts, and other collateral. Mr. Brodie has decades of experience with New York's Lien Law and Real Property Law, as well as Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code, and has been the lead lawyer on numerous cross-border lending transactions.

His clients also include banks and niche lenders lending against nontraditional collateral, including professional sports franchises and fine art owned by both collectors and dealers. He advises art title insurers as well as banks that are creating and revising written credit policies for both art and real estate lending. He also represents collectors and gallerists on matters related to the financing and purchase of fine art. He is a frequent writer and speaker on matters pertaining to financing, title insurance, and risk in the business side of the art world.

Brodie earned his J.D. from the New York University School of Law, and his B.A. from Yale University.

Julie Carvalho focuses her practice on debt financings, including syndicated and single bank high-end middle market transactions, art loans and other private wealth lending transactions, mezzanine financings, and asset-based loans.

She has represented major financial institutions and specialty non-bank lenders, as well as borrowers across a wide range of industries. She also advises clients in mergers and acquisitions, and general commercial corporate matters.

Carvalho earned her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School where she was an editorial staff member of the Michigan Journal of Gender and Law, and her undergraduate degree from New York University.