Case Study
January 15, 2016

Breaking New Ground

Decades later, the creation of UPREIT structures has helped to drive urban development and economics worldwide.

For generations, collective investment in commercial real estate was conducted through business trusts. These trusts were historically insulated against corporate income tax given the relatively low returns. But amid the post-WWII building boom, real estate investment became increasingly lucrative and taxation became a bigger concern.

Determined to bring about change, Goodwin worked with Congress and the Treasury Department to create a legislative remedy. Together they crafted a REIT bill that would become an amendment to an existing law extending the excise tax on cigars. Decades later, in 1992, Goodwin attorneys again blazed new trails, creating the first public UPREIT structure in the Taubman Centers IPO.

The result: In September 1960, President Eisenhower signed the Real Estate Investment Trust Act into law. REITs, UPREITs and other structures have since become a driving force in the real estate industry and the broader economy, cementing Goodwin’s reputation as a leading law firm in the sector.