Real Estate Law
Jack Fersko
Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2007 Awarded Practice Areas
Biography
Mr. Fersko is the Chair of the firm's Real Estate Department. His practice reflects his extensive experience as a commercial real estate and general business lawyer. His legal services emphasize industrial and commercial real estate activities, with a particular focus on industrial leasing, project financing, sustainable development and alternative energy initiatives, urban redevelopment, and the impact of environmental laws on commercial real estate transactions, including the acquisition and redevelopment of environmentally contaminated sites. He has successfully negotiated numerous real estate agreements involving complex environmental transactional issues and related insurance agreements.
Mr. Fersko’s participation in high-value real estate transactions in New Jersey includes his leading a team of lawyers as real estate, land use and public finance counsel to a major private equity firm, his involvement in one of the largest portfolio sales of industrial real estate to be completed in New Jersey in recent years, and his key role throughout the planning, financing and construction phases of one of the country’s largest roof-mounted solar energy installations.
In response to the expansion of New Jersey’s legal medical marijuana program and possible enactment of an adult-use recreational program, Mr. Fersko is prepared to meet the needs of both existing and future clients by providing counsel related to the business and legal impacts of a New Jersey-based cannabis industry.
Mr. Fersko also counsels clients on transactional issues and funding options related to green building and solar development and the impact of these initiatives on leases and other agreements, including the negotiation and drafting of Engineering, Procurement and Construction Agreements (EPC) and Power Purchase Agreements (PPA).
Mr. Fersko joined the firm in January 2012. He was previously chair of the Real Estate & Redevelopment practice group at Farer Fersko.
Since the 1990’s, Mr. Fersko has been coordinating, moderating and lecturing at comprehensive annual seminars addressing a variety of transactional and leasing issues for the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education. Throughout his career, he has chaired and presented programs for groups including the American College of Real Estate Lawyers, NAIOP, the American and New Jersey State Bar Associations and the International Council of Shopping Centers. Mr. Fersko has also been a guest lecturer at Monmouth University’s Kislak Real Estate Institute, and has been invited to lecture at New York University and Columbia University’s graduate school real estate programs.
Jack is editor in chief of the three-volume treatise Commercial Real Estate Transactions in New Jersey published by the New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education and is the author of the “Environmental Issues in Commercial Real Estate Sales and Leases” chapter in Commercial Real Estate Transactions Handbook published by Wolters Kluwer.
Results may vary depending on your particular facts and legal circumstances.
Overview
- Ohio Northern University, J.D., graduated 1978
- Marietta College, B.A., graduated 1975
- New Jersey, NJ - 1979
- Jewish Bar Association of New Jersey - Member
- American Bar Foundation - Fellow
- American College of Real Estate Lawyers - Fellow; Chair, Programs Committee; past Chair, Changes in the Profession Task Force Committee; Chair, Energy Subcommittee of Land Use and Environmental Committee; past Chair, Land Use and Environmental Committee; past member, Board of Governors
- American Bar Association - Member, Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section; member, Corporate Sponsorship Committee; Chair, Government Submissions Task Force; member, Green Leasing Task Force; member, Section of Environment, Energy and Re
- Industrial and Office Real Estate Brokers Association - Member, Executive Committee
- NAIOP NJ Chapter - Member, Legal Action Committee; member, Energy & Sustainability Committee; member, Legislative Committee; past member, Board of Trustees
- New Jersey State Bar Association - Member, Cannabis Law Committee Executive Committee, Co-Chair of Corporate-Transactional Subcommittee; Member, Renewable Energy, Cleantech and Climate Change Committee
- Temple Sharey Tefilo-Israel - Past President
- NAIOP - Member; Former Chair, Environmental and Infrastructure Committee
- New Jersey, NJ - 1979
- Jewish Bar Association of New Jersey - Member
- American Bar Foundation - Fellow
- American College of Real Estate Lawyers - Fellow; Chair, Programs Committee; past Chair, Changes in the Profession Task Force Committee; Chair, Energy Subcommittee of Land Use and Environmental Committee; past Chair, Land Use and Environmental Committee; past member, Board of Governors
- American Bar Association - Member, Real Property, Trust and Estate Law Section; member, Corporate Sponsorship Committee; Chair, Government Submissions Task Force; member, Green Leasing Task Force; member, Section of Environment, Energy and Re
- Industrial and Office Real Estate Brokers Association - Member, Executive Committee
- NAIOP NJ Chapter - Member, Legal Action Committee; member, Energy & Sustainability Committee; member, Legislative Committee; past member, Board of Trustees
- New Jersey State Bar Association - Member, Cannabis Law Committee Executive Committee, Co-Chair of Corporate-Transactional Subcommittee; Member, Renewable Energy, Cleantech and Climate Change Committee
- Temple Sharey Tefilo-Israel - Past President
- NAIOP - Member; Former Chair, Environmental and Infrastructure Committee
- Ohio Northern University, J.D., graduated 1978
- Marietta College, B.A., graduated 1975
Client Testimonials
Awards & Focus
Named "Lawyer of the Year" by Best Lawyers® for:
- Real Estate Law, Newark (2022)
Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
- Real Estate Law
Additional Areas of Practice:
- Administrative / Regulatory Law
- Environmental Law
Special Focus:
- Commercial
- COVID-19
- Development
- Environmental
- Industrial
- Real Property Law
- Tax Certiorari
Awards:
- Recipient of the NAIOP-NJ Industry Service Award (2006)
- Recipient of the NAIOP-NJ President’s Award (2005)
News & Media
Case History
Cases
- Des Champs Laboratories, Inc. v. Martin
Was part of the team and provided real estate related support in the firm’s successful representation of plaintiff Des Champs Laboratories in Des Champs Laboratories, Inc. v. Martin, 2012 N.J. Super. LEXIS 115 (App. Div. 2012), in which the Court struck down an unauthorized regulation of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) which threatened to significantly increase clean up obligations under the Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA) for businesses using very small amounts of hazardous substances. The case was argued in court by Daniel L. Schmutter, partner in the Litigation Department.
Transactions
- Sale of 3 commercial buildings
Representation related to the sale of three commercial buildings in New Jersey for a total sales price of $80,000,000. This complex transaction included tracing the various transfers of the entity interests, issues related to open permits and violations, resolving tenant issues with estoppels and subordination, non-disturbance and attornment agreements, title issues including outstanding judgments against a prior owner of one of the properties, arranging for transfers of security deposits in the form of letters of credit, negotiating agreements related to building repairs, and working through broker agreement issues.
- Disposition of major distribution facility
Advised the sellers on the disposition of a major distribution facility in Jacksonville, Florida to an institutional investor for $90,500,000. The sellers, which owned the landmark property since 1994, leased the property to a credit tenant under a complex, long-term triple net lease. The team negotiated and drafted the purchase and sale agreement for the transaction, guided the sellers through the buyer’s due diligence and coordinated a successful closing that set a sales price record in the geographic location of the property.
- Portfolio sale of industrial real estate
Played a lead role in one of the largest portfolio sales of industrial real estate to be completed in New Jersey in several years as a member of the firm’s real estate team representing affiliated entities of Avidan Management LLC as the sellers of approximately 2.6 million square feet of office and warehouse space located in South Brunswick, Edison, Elizabeth and Bayonne. The high-value transaction, which closed in late August 2012, involved the acquisition of a nine-building portfolio of properties, including office, light industrial, cold storage and bulk distribution space, by Cohen Asset Management Inc., an industrial and commercial real estate investment firm. Mr. Fersko and his team negotiated five power purchase agreements covering over 6 MWs of solar production on behalf of Avidan, a leading solar developer in the New Jersey market who has worked closely with our real estate group on a number of alternative energy projects in the past. The deal was closed in 2012 and the project led to the team being named Finalists for the Industrial Deal of the Year by NAIOP New Jersey Chapter in 2013.
- Joint venture
Counseled a joint venture between developer Jonathan Rose Companies and JP Morgan Chase on title and construction loan closings for a mixed use redevelopment project in South Orange, NJ. The project will consist of a 215 unit LEED certified apartment building, retail space and a 500+ space parking facility, a portion of which will be available for public use. The firm advised on the transfer of property to our client pursuant to a Redevelopment Agreement previously negotiated by our team, and also negotiated a $38,500,000 million construction mortgage loan for the project. The deal represents a major milestone for the project and a significant step forward for South Orange’s downtown redevelopment.
- Acquisition
Lead a team of lawyers as real estate, land use and public finance counsel to private equity firm KTR Capital Partners in its 2011 acquisition of the iPort 12 International Trade and Logistics Center in Carteret, New Jersey. The 70 acre former brownfield site and prior municipal solid waste landfill was redeveloped in 2007. Representation addressed a broad range of issues including those related to right of access and title, the transfer of permits, and the transfer of access rights, a process which required extensive negotiations with multiple public and quasi-public entities. Mr. Fersko also negotiated and orchestrated the assignment, assumption and amendment of existing public financing through the New Jersey Environmental Infrastructure Trust (EIT) and the NJDEP, which was secured by Payments in Lieu of Taxes pursuant to a financial agreement under New Jersey’s long term tax exemption law. This process required approvals from the Borough of Carteret, the Carteret Redevelopment Agency, the EIT (subject to the Governor’s right of veto), and the Commissioner of the NJDEP. KTR’s acquisition of the 1.26 million square foot warehouse space included the negotiation of a short sale with the original developer’s lender and the assumption of public financing originally obtained to fund environmental remediation of the site.
- Roof-mounted solar energy installation
Played a key role throughout the planning, financing and construction phases of one of the country’s largest roof-mounted solar energy installations with his representation of Avidan Energy Solutions in its development of a massive 4.26 megawatt solar energy system in Edison, NJ. Mr. Fersko spearheaded negotiation of an Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) agreement, handled the review and negotiation of related warranties and agreements covering roof contracting and system services and maintenance, and coordinated real estate debt financing for the project. Representation also included oversight of an application for federal grant money, advising on the sale of solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs), and implementation of a power purchase agreement (PPA). The completed rooftop solar array, which covers 650,000 square feet and draws power from approximately 18,000 photovoltaic solar panels, was designed to generate enough solar power to meet approximately 50 percent of the facility’s 1 million kilowatt hour monthly energy needs, effectively reducing the building’s carbon footprint by half and significantly reducing tenants’ operating expenses by bringing down energy costs.
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