Paula C. Rothenberger

Paula Rothenberger distinguishes herself through her rare combination of sophisticated commercial real estate experience, deep utility and renewable energy sector knowledge, and a practical, solutions-oriented approach to guiding complex transactions efficiently from concept to closing.

Paula brings more than 15 years of experience handling complex commercial real estate transactions, including multi-property portfolios, joint ventures, distressed assets, and matters involving challenging title and survey issues. She advises national developers, property owners, investors, and lenders throughout the full real estate development and finance lifecycle. Her practice also includes substantial representation of public utilities in acquiring and disposing of property rights for energy transmission and renewable energy projects. Known for disciplined deal management and effective negotiation, Paula helps clients move sophisticated transactions efficiently from concept to closing.

She is the commercial real estate co-chair of the State Bar of Georgia’s Real Property Law Section. Through her pro bono work, Paula has served with Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation’s Advocates Against Domestic Violence Project and with Georgia Appleseed’s Georgia Heirs Property Project and Juvenile Justice Reform Project. She serves her community by volunteering with the Cherokee County Election Board as an election precinct manager.

Paula received her B.F.A. degree, magna cum laude, in Arts Management from Brenau University. She graduated, cum laude, earning her J.D. from Georgia State University College of Law. While at Georgia State Paula served as Research-Associate Editor of the Georgia State University Law Review and as an Urban Fellow with the Georgia State University Center for Comparative Study of Metropolitan Growth. She was awarded the Attorneys’ Title Guaranty Scholarship Award for Excellence in Real Estate Law and the CALI Award for Excellence in the Bankruptcy and Advanced Real Estate Transactions courses.

Paula's Practice

Representative Matters

• Lead the legal team representing a large public utility in the sale of an energy transmission facilities portfolio and associated real property assets crossing 90+ Georgia counties representing the largest transaction of its kind, both in terms of the number of facilities involved and the sales price, in the client’s history.
• Represented a national commercial real estate investor/developer in the disposition of a distressed asset comprised of a 138-acre urban, mixed-use development project with a complex ownership structure.
• Advised a regional commercial real estate investor/developer in the acquisition of a 15-property portfolio totaling over 2 million square feet of developed retail, office, and industrial space.
• Provided strategic analysis of real estate issues involved in the acquisition and leasing of multi-property sites to be developed as renewable energy projects.
• Represented a large public utility in all of its real estate related matters including negotiating acquisitions and dispositions, easements, leases, license agreements, and other agreements with land owners throughout Georgia and providing authoritative counsel on unique property ownership issues such as heirs property and water rights.