Mr. Piesner is a partner in the firm’s Real Estate Group and is the head of the firm’s Asia real estate practice. Mr. Piesner’s practice focuses on the representation of funds, banks, REITs and other institutional clients in all major aspects of real estate-related transactions in Japan, China, India and other markets in the Asia-Pacific region -- including:

• Fund Formation
• Acquisitions and Dispositions
• Financings
• Construction and Development
• Sale-leasebacks
• Joint Venture arrangements
• Private Equity investments

Mr. Piesner has significant experience working with all major asset classes and has particular expertise in hotel/resort and industrial properties.

Mr. Piesner received his A.B. (Phi Beta Kappa and cum laude) in East Asian Studies from Colby College in 1988, and his J.D. in 1992 and M.A. in Asian Studies in 1993 from the University of Hawaii. Mr. Piesner also was a Ph.D. student in History and East Asian Languages at Harvard University before returning to the practice of law in 1997. Mr. Piesner has lived in Japan for over 10 years and is proficient in spoken and written Japanese. Mr. Piesner currently divides his time between Morrison & Foerster’s offices in Tokyo and China.