Michelle Leigh Berkey

Associate

Michelle Leigh Berkey is an associate in the Firm’s Real Estate Group. Michelle’s practice encompasses all aspects of commercial real estate transactions, including drafting and negotiating complex retail and commercial leases, ground lease agreements, acquisitions and sales, construction lending, secured lending and refinancing. She has represented tenants in retail leases throughout the United States and Canada and has structured several sale/leaseback transactions for Fortune 500 companies. Michelle has also handled legal issues arising out of the construction phase of projects, including environmental matters regarding permitting and remediation.

Michelle is a member of the American, New York State and New Jersey State Bar Associations. She is also a member of the International Council of Shopping Centers, and co-authored “Tenants Must Be Proactive to Protect Tenant Allowances Before Landlord Bankruptcy” for the Council’s Retail Law Strategist publication.

Michelle received her undergraduate degree from Rutgers University in 1996 and her law degree from Rutgers University School of Law - Newark in 2000 where she was Associate Editor (1998-1999) and Notes & Comments Editor (1999-2000) for the Rutgers Computer and Technology Law Journal. Prior to joining Riker Danzig, she was an associate in the New York City office of Phillips Lytle LLP.

She is admitted to practice in New York and New Jersey.