Real Estate Law
Nellie S. Sullivan
Recognized in Best Lawyers since 2011 Awarded Practice Areas
Biography
Nellie represents parties in the acquisition (owned or leased), financing, entitlement, development, re-development, operation and disposition of real property throughout North America, including projects involving corporate expansions, relocations and acquisitions, mixed-use developments and multi-family developments. She represents developers, investors, corporations, lenders and governmental entities with commercial real estate interests. Nellie has earned LEED Professional Accreditation, the leading professional accreditation in the sustainable construction and development industry. She was one of the earliest attorneys in North Carolina to earn the accreditation, and she did so to be more effective in helping clients make innovative uses of their real estate.
Nellie's practice is relationship-driven and is characterized by her pragmatic, collaborative and strategic approach to helping clients identify and achieve their project goals, take advantage of opportunities and prevent and solve problems. She helps owners and potential owners (including developers, corporations and lenders) in today's market evaluate options and negotiate and effectuate deals. Nellie's clients will tell you that she helps them reach for the stars while keeping their feet on the ground, without dragging the deal under.
Overview
- Yale University, BS, graduated 1987
- North Carolina, North Carolina Bar Association
- Cary Chamber of Commerce - member
- CoreNet Global - member
- CREW Network - member
- NCDDA - member
- NCEDA - member
- SEDC - member
- ULI - member
- USGBC - member
- North Carolina, North Carolina Bar Association
- Cary Chamber of Commerce - member
- CoreNet Global - member
- CREW Network - member
- NCDDA - member
- NCEDA - member
- SEDC - member
- ULI - member
- USGBC - member
- Yale University, BS, graduated 1987
Client Testimonials
Awards & Focus
Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America® 2026 for work in:
- Real Estate Law
Special Focus:
- Finance
Awards:
- AV rating, Martindale-Hubbell
- Women of Western Wake Award, Cary Magazine, 2008
- Women in Business Award, Triangle Business Journal, 2006
- Woman of the Year, Triangle Commercial Real Estate Women, 2002
News & Media
Case History
Transactions
- 450,000 Square Feet Headquarters Office Lease (with additional construction)
Negotiated a lease for 450,000 square feet of initial buildings, plus construction of an additional building and parking facility, for the US headquarters of a global technology corporation.
- Assemblage and Development Project - Single Family Development
Represented a single-family developer in the acquisition of multiple tracts of land. The project involved resolving various title defects, altering the deal to a multi-phase takedown instead of a single-take deal, and adding a joint venture party to the project. A pragmatic approach to problem-solving was critical throughout the initial due diligence and acquisition stages.
- Hospital Conversion Project
Assisted a hospital and medical center client in the conversion from a non-profit to a for-profit entity, with a JV component. The project required understanding various real estate tracts owned by the client, clearing existing covenants and establishing appropriate new covenants.
- Downtown Apartment Site Acquisition and Development
Assisted client with the acquisition of a downtown site to be developed into an apartment project. Challenges in this project included understanding and in some cases altering numerous old easements and covenants affecting the property, coordination with adjacent owners, city approvals, establishing appropriate rights in an adjacent public parking deck and a change of JV partner midway through the acquisition.
- Corporate Expansion (Including Assemblage)
Represented a national retail manufacturing, distribution and sales client in the expansion of its operations to a new site that consisted of multiple tracts of land owned by unrelated parties. Challenges of the project included resolution of title issues on property previously used as farmland and coordination of multiple parties to allow concurrent closings in connection with economic development incentives.
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