Katharine “Kate” A. Coffey and Craig M. Gianetti
By Joshua Burd
Day Pitney LLP has tapped two of its New Jersey-based partners as co-chairs of the law firm’s real estate and environmental practice.
Based in Parsippany, Katharine “Kate” A. Coffey and Craig M. Gianetti will lead a team of 40 attorneys and paralegals providing a full range of real estate legal services, according to a news release. Its clients in the field include financial institutions, utility companies, Fortune 500 companies, private equity funds, joint ventures, manufacturers, real estate developers, academic institutions, hospitality and retail companies, religious organizations and lenders.
Day Pitney, which is headquartered in New York, noted that it has offices from Boston to Miami.
“Day Pitney’s real estate and environmental team is fortunate to be led by this duo,” said Michael P. Byrne, immediate past chair of the real estate and environmental practice. “Both Kate and Craig are consummate professionals, understand what our clients need and value, and have a growth mindset for the practice.”
Byrne was elected to the firm’s executive committee, effective April 2.
“Under Mike’s leadership, the real estate and environmental team has established itself as a premiere practice, representing sophisticated clients on complex deals and projects across Day Pitney’s footprint,” Coffey said. “I am honored that the firm has entrusted leadership of our group to Craig and me. We look forward to future growth opportunities for our team across all offices.”
Coffey has more than 15 years of experience representing developers and property owners in all aspects of commercial, industrial and multifamily and affordable housing development and redevelopment, the news release said. Those areas include land use and zoning, rezoning, acquisitions and dispositions, financing, financial incentives and leasing.
Gianetti, who also chairs the New Jersey office’s business development committee, assists developers, companies and institutional investors in all aspects of real estate development, from the initial transaction to development approvals, financing and litigation, the firm said. He has extensive experience in affordable housing matters related to developer and municipal compliance with affordable housing laws, while he represents several developers in projects financed through the New Jersey Housing Mortgage and Finance Agency and the federal Low Income Housing Tax Credit Program.
He has also represented developers in securing rezoning or development approvals for more than 4 million square feet of industrial space in New Jersey since 2021.
“Over the past decade Mike has done an incredible job in leading and growing the firm’s real estate and environmental practice to become one of the largest business units in the firm,” Gianetti said. “I am appreciative that the firm has entrusted the leadership and growth of this group to Kate and me. I look forward to continuing to work closely with Kate, the real estate and environmental team, and the attorneys in the firm’s other practices, such as corporate, tax and litigation, to drive value to our clients and the firm.”
Coffey, who was named PulteGroup’s Land Consultant of the Year for the Northeast in 2021, is also co-chair of the Morris County Bar Association’s land use committee. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Washington & Lee University and her J.D. from Emory University School of Law, while she is admitted to practice in New Jersey and New York.
Gianetti, meantime, is a recent past chair of the New Jersey State Bar Association’s land use law section and a longtime member of the New Jersey Builders Association. He earned his bachelor’s from Villanova University and his J.D. from Quinnipiac University School of Law, where he was an editor on the Quinnipiac Law Review, and is admitted to practice in New Jersey and New York.
“First, I’d like to thank Mike for his tremendous leadership for the last 12 years, and I look forward to working closely with him on the Executive Committee,” said Gregory A. Hayes, who was elected Day Pitney’s managing partner effective April 2. “Kate and Craig’s vast experiences across the real estate spectrum make them a great pair to lead our group into the next phase of client service and growth objectives.”