María Paula Álvarez

Practice Areas

Real Estate

Career

María Paula is the Firm’s Real Estate Practice Group Director.

Her practice focuses on corporate and real estate law, including assistance in real estate transactions for the development, construction, and operation of commercial, residential, and mixed-use projects, as well as the structuring of real estate projects involving both local and foreign investments. She also specializes in the drafting of horizontal property regulations and the operation of hotels. Maria Paula has extensive experience in the structuring and negotiation of various agreements related to the acquisition, leasing, and operation of real estate for commercial, residential, mixed-use, and hospitality purposes, among others.

Within her practice, Maria Paula advises or has advised clients from the real estate, financial, hospitality, natural resources, retail, and PropTech sectors, among others.

She also possesses considerable expertise across the entire real estate development chain, including the structuring of projects, preparation of title studies, drafting and negotiation of promise contracts, public deeds of sale, the establishment of trusts and/or companies for investment processes, memoranda of understanding, investment framework agreements, and operational contracts for hotels, retail, student housing, and other real estate assets.

She graduated from Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, Colombia, and is currently pursuing a specialization in Land Law at the Universidad Externado de Colombia. Additionally, she holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Inalde Business School.

Experience

Confidential Client: Acting as legal counsel in connection with the construction and operation of the first social club aimed at medium-income individuals. The advice includes the acquisition of land, negotiation and drafting of a loan agreement, incorporation of vehicles for the acquisition and operation of the property, drafting of corporate bylaws, establishment of a Trust for investor participation, and negotiation of construction, design, development, and client agreements.

Confidential Client: Advising on the negotiation of a Memorandum of Understanding with a foreign company for the acquisition of a property in Barú, Colombia, aimed at the construction and operation of a resort. The resort will be operated by an international hotel flag company.

Fondo de Inversión Colectiva Inmobiliario de Renta Davivienda Corredores: Advising the Fund on real estate and commercial matters. She advised in the negotiation and acquisition of real estate assets for an amount that exceeds COP$110 billion, including the due diligence of the assets, preparation of the study of real estate titles, the negotiation of the promise to purchase agreements, public deed of sale, loan agreements, lease assignments and other documents necessary to mitigate contingencies identified in the due diligence and to successfully close transactions.

Seguros Mundial: Advising on the acquisition and investment in real estate assets in Colombia.

Azur Private Capital Fund – Dorado Plaza Compartment: Advising on the sale of 159 properties (offices and commercial premises) located in the Dorado Plaza Shopping Center. We acted as legal advisors to the Azur Private Capital Fund on the structuring, drafting and negotiation of all relevant documents, including, but not limited to, the promise to purchase agreement, the public deed of sale, the assignment of the lease contracts and the correction of certain contingencies identified in the due diligence carried out on the assets.

Canopy Growth Colombia S.A.S.: Acting as legal advisor for the revision of the status of different properties where the company constructed its production factory. Permanent advisors on day-to-day corporate and real estate matters.

Bancolombia S.A., Banco de Bogotá S.A., Banco Corpbanca Itaú: Advising on real estate matters related to the review of the state of the properties that constituted the guarantee granted by an important sugar mill in Colombia, as a result of a credit operation. The advice included the preparation of the study of titles of more than 60 properties located in different Colombian towns, the review of the guarantees originally granted, and the correction of the contingencies identified in the due diligence process.

Newmont Mining: Advising the Company on real estate matters regarding Continental Gold’s properties, not only in terms of reviewing the status of the properties but also to mitigate the risks and resolve the existing contingencies.

Econnabis S.A.S.: Acting as legal advisor on the elaboration and review of the real estate agreements, including, among others, the construction agreements, finishes agreements, studies and designs, among others, related to the real estate development of the company.

Confidential: Working as an in-house lawyer for this foreign company and previously as an external legal advisor. She negotiated and structured the housing real estate projects, some for sale and others for rent. The legal advice included the initial negotiation with the project investors, the operation, trust and lease contracts and all the legal structure necessary for the company to operate these real estate assets.

Confidential: Advising on the structuring and negotiation of different real estate projects currently dedicated to commerce, hotels and offices, with major construction companies, collective investment funds, hotel chains, among others, in Bogotá, Cartagena and Barranquilla.

Confidential: Advising on the structuring of a hotel project in an area established as a national natural reserve, negotiating work contracts, architectural, technical, hydraulic designs and others.

Awards

Languages Spoken

English

Spanish

Education