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Blog: Harp-On This
R. Kymn Harp is a member of RD’s Executive Committee, Chair of the Firm’s Ethics Committee, and former Chair of the Firm’s Business and Real Estate Transactions practice group.
Kymn has over 40 years of experience representing investors, developers, business owners, and other stakeholders in all aspects of commercial real estate transactions and development. He applies a practical approach to project and transaction management through clear identification of transaction objectives and challenges, focused due diligence and creative problem-solving, and personal hands-on transaction management. Kymn understands that the objective is not merely to get to closing – but to enable clients to realize their transaction objectives after closing.
Kymn has comprehensive experience negotiating and drafting development agreements including public-private partnerships, air-rights development agreements, limited liability company (LLC) agreements, private-placement memoranda (PPMs) for real estate investment, IRC Section 1031 tax-deferred exchanges, tenant-in-common (TIC) agreements, reciprocal easement agreements, commercial and industrial leases, forbearance agreements, and other essential agreements for development and operation of commercial real estate.
Kymn is also actively engaged in the complementary practice of business management law, representing businesses, and business owners and investors.
Utilizing a team approach, Kymn works with RD’s construction attorneys, tax attorneys, and others as appropriate to assure a full-service solution to each client’s unique and sometimes intricate transaction challenges. Kymn often assists commercial litigators handling commercial real estate litigation and is an experienced testifying expert witness in real estate disputes. Additionally, Kymn has extensive experience handling distressed loan workouts involving commercial real estate collateral, and investor-side commercial, industrial, multi-family, and mixed-use condominium deconversions.
Widely recognized as an industry thought-leader, Kymn is a frequent author and speaker for the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (IICLE) and the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA). He has published numerous articles and white papers on real estate topics, many of which can be found at his blog, Harp-OnThis.com, and two books on commercial real estate including Illinois Commercial Real Estate – Due Diligence to Closing, with Checklists, 2016 edition. Kymn currently serves as an appointed member of the Illinois State Bar Association Real Estate Law Section Council.
Kymn holds a Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating of AV Preeminent, representing the highest possible rating for both legal ability and ethical standards, and has been an honoree of the Illinois Super Lawyers for the past 17 years including recognition in 2024 for both real estate and business transactions.
- Lead development counsel for the ground-up development of a 14,000 person capacity sports and entertainment arena in Chicago’s northwest suburbs.
- Lead counsel for the redevelopment and modernization of the mixed-use commercial, entertainment, and hospitality complex at iconic Marina City in downtown Chicago, Illinois.
- Lead counsel in the historic preservation redevelopment of a micro-brewery in Chicago’s historic Motor Row entertainment district.
- Lead counsel in the ground-up development, including capital raise, for a twenty-one story mixed-use retail, office, and luxury apartment project in the Streeterville medical district in downtown Chicago.
- Lead counsel representing the Seller of a restaurant chain with 36 locations spread over 14 states.
- Corporate Transparency Act Compliance – Obtain your FinCEN ID Now
- R. Kymn Harp, Presenter, ISBA Real Estate Law Update 2023 on November 17
- Shareholder R. Kymn Harp, Recipient of the 2024 Martindale-Hubbell Award®-“AV Preeminent Rating”
- 2023 Commercial Landlord-Tenant Practice
- ISBA Section on Real Estate Law
- Mitigation of Damages in Commercial Lease Disputes – IL
- Presenter, ISBA Webcast “State and Local Government Incentives for Rebuilding Mixed-Use Residential/Commercial Projects” held January 13
- Co-Presenter for the ISBA Real Estate Law Section on October 12
- R. Kymn Harp Publishes “How to Conduct Due Diligence on an Adaptive Reuse Project” with LoopNet
- R. Kymn Harp, Authors “Key Considerations for Adaptive Reuse Projects” Published in Commercial Property Executive on August 17th
- R. Kymn Harp, Webinar Speaker for the Illinois Real Estate Lawyers Association
- R. Kymn Harp, Participates in Law360 Coronavirus Q&A
- R. Kymn Harp publishes Condominiums: Deconversion (IL) With Practical Law Real Estate
- R. Kymn Harp, Moderator and Speaker at IICLE® #CRETrends 2019 on September 10th
- R. Kymn Harp Publishes Guide to Section 1031-Tax-Deferred Exchanges for Real Estate On LoopNet
- Before Closing: Consider A Tax-Deferred Exchange
- R. Kymn Harp Appointed to ISBA Real Estate Law Section Council: 2019-2020
- Illinois Condominium Deconversion-Getting It Right: An Overview