Lawrence L. Ostema          

 

 

Press Release:  March 24, 2008

Lawrence Ostema of Horack Talley Is the First Attorney in the Carolinas
with the LEED Accredited Professional® Designation

Charlotte, NC: Today Lawrence L. Ostema was sworn in as a North Carolina licensed attorney, after the usual eight month waiting period from his arrival in North Carolina last July. In September of 2007, Larry Ostema became the eighteenth attorney in the United States to earn the LEED Accredited Professional designation from the US Green Building Council (USGBC) in its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Program. Mr. Ostema was the first attorney in the Carolinas to become a LEED Accredited Professional, and is one of only 43 nationwide, according the USGBC’s database.

The rigorous training required to become accredited covers all aspects of the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED®) program. Sustainable technologies and "clean tech" products must be learned, along with the air quality standards, energy and water efficiencies, and sustainable growth attributes encouraged by the LEED program. Mr. Ostema heads the Green Initiatives Group at Horack Talley, which advises clients of risks and exposures, rewrites contracts and leases, works with municipal and governmental entities, introduces new technology partners, and advises on carbon credit trade and carbon footprint exposure to corporations and municipalities throughout the Carolinas and beyond.

Mr. Ostema is no stranger to the technologies and issues surrounding Green development. He has spent fifteen years representing emerging growth and real estate companies in domestic and international debt financing, equity financing, and project financing. He has handled mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, and corporate matters.  His clients have included energy technology companies focused on distributed generation and renewable energy technologies, real estate developers and investors, private equity funds, and developers of carbon credits and clean technology projects.

Larry Ostema was first licensed in the state of Texas in 1992 and most recently served as the General Counsel and Chief Operating Officer of a real estate investment company in Denver, Colorado, and as a Partner in the Business Transactions Group of Baker & Hostetler’s Denver office.  With his unique background in clean tech and distributed generation, Mr. Ostema is uniquely qualified to advise commercial developers on green issues, aid the growth of energy technology companies, and assist the emerging green debt and equity financing organizations here in North Carolina.

Because LEED accreditation requires a deep understanding of Green issues and technologies, such accreditation equips attorneys practicing in Green real estate, clean technology venture capital and financing, and the carbon cap-and-trade market with a deeper understanding of the issues and opportunities presented by this new area. Distinct from environmental law, which deals with conservation easements, SuperFund cleanups, and regulations protecting the environment, Green initiatives have to do with the massive changes to law and business practices that the new emphasis on controlling greenhouse gas emissions will require.

For example, although many incentives are available to Green developers, navigating the process of LEED certification for a real estate project from design onward can be costly without the right partner. Since the area of LEED development is still new, many of the players may never have done a LEED project before. The project may require products that are relatively unproven. Warranty provisions must address these technology risks as well as consider the Green building systems as a whole. A subcontractor with LEED experience may be a new partner within a development team, leading to communication difficulties. Objective advocacy by an attorney can be helpful even beyond the paperwork, and attorneys are instrumental to minimizing risk and exposure for the partners involved in a development.

With new municipal, state, and federal legislation regulating emissions of greenhouse gases in process nationwide, the emphasis on Green initiatives and the role of attorneys in the process will continue to grow over the next few years.

 

For more information on the Horack Talley Green Initiatives Group, on LEED accreditation and its importance in Green Real Estate, or the carbon market, please call Thea Grace Morgan. Ms. Morgan is Practice Development Director and acts as marketing and PR liaison at Horack Talley. She can be reached at tmorgan@horacktalley.com and at (704)716-0887.