Grant Puleo
California
Duane Morris LLP
750 B Street, Suite 2900
San Diego, CA 92101-4681
United States
Tel: +1 619 744 2234
Email:
gpuleo@duanemorris.com
Web:
www.duanemorris.com
His finance practice includes representation of both borrowers and lenders in complex debt and equity transactions, such as acquisition and construction financing, mezzanine financing and synthetic leasing arrangements. He also advises clients on business matters involving asset transfers, joint ventures, private placements, opportunity funds and other business entity structures.
In addition to his transactional work, Mr. Puleo is a seasoned trial attorney, having tried more than a dozen jury trials and numerous arbitrations and mediations involving real estate, finance and business disputes, including quiet title, partition and lis pendens actions. He regularly provides risk management and litigation avoidance counseling and has testified as an expert witness in multiple proceedings. His mediation training includes AAA Advanced Mediation and Dispute Resolution and Pepperdine University’s Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution.
Mr. Puleo is an adjunct professor at California Western School of Law, lecturing on commercial real estate transactions. He serves on the advisory board of Endeavor Bank and provides pro bono counsel to charitable organizations.
Grant is the author of Closing the Deal: A Practical Guide to Commercial Real Estate Transactions published by PLI. Both a textbook for students and a practice guide for attorneys, Closing the Deal offers a step-by-step roadmap through the lifecycle of commercial real estate transactions. It balances doctrinal foundations with applied skills training, teaching law students how to think like practicing attorneys and giving practitioners ready-to-use tools to manage complex deals. The book functions as both a teaching resource and a quick reference, blending substantive law, practical examples, negotiation strategy, and ethical considerations.
The practice is structured around an integrated, interdisciplinary model. Real estate lawyers collaborate closely with attorneys from capital markets, finance, construction, tax and related disciplines to deliver coordinated and efficient representation. This approach allows the firm to address both routine real estate issues and highly complex transactional and regulatory challenges.
Duane Morris represents clients across a broad range of asset classes, including office, retail, residential, assisted-living and healthcare facilities, as well as new development projects. The team emphasizes practical problem-solving, combining industry knowledge with a detailed understanding of regulatory frameworks, deal structures, profitability considerations, leverage and liability protection.
The firm’s Real Estate Practice Group is recognized by Commercial Property Executive and Law360 as among the leading U.S.-headquartered real estate law practices. Its attorneys bring diverse professional backgrounds, including architecture, accounting, urban planning, mortgage brokerage and real estate brokerage, which enhances the group’s commercial and technical perspective. Many lawyers also hold leadership roles in prominent real estate and development organizations, reinforcing the firm’s close connection to the industry it serves.
The firm represents a diverse range of clients, delivering legal services across numerous industries and practice areas. Duane Morris is known for providing innovative and practical solutions to complex legal and business challenges, supported by its international reach and multidisciplinary capabilities.
Despite its growth, the firm has remained grounded in a partnership culture that emphasizes collaboration, inclusiveness and consensus building. This philosophy has shaped its internal structure and its client relationships for more than a century. Duane Morris’ development and culture have been the subject of academic study, including a Harvard Business School case examining the firm’s strategic evolution in a changing legal market.
Today, Duane Morris continues to operate as a unified global partnership, committed to supporting client objectives through teamwork, professional integrity and long-term perspective.
“Grant Puleo is a trusted adviser for complex real estate and financing matters. Clients highlight his effectiveness in navigating multifamily, affordable housing, and public-private partnership transactions, while peers respect his litigation insight, risk-management focus, and credibility as both a trial lawyer and expert witness.”