Jeff Diener, DLA Piper San Francisco. Photo: Jason Doiy/ALM

DLA Piper announced Friday that Jeffrey Diener has joined the firm's real estate practice as a partner in San Francisco.

Diener, the former vice chairman of Paul Hastings' San Francisco office, also worked in its Los Angeles, Tokyo and London locations.

Diener, who has been based in the Bay Area for the past four years, has represented a variety of clients including private equity funds, sovereign wealth funds and life sciences and technology companies in commercial real estate transactions across North American, Europe and Asia. He also has a subspecialty of representing hospitality companies on major hotel transactions.

“Part of the appeal of the DLA platform is that the clients with whom I work have assets all around the world,” said Diener, whose first day at the firm was Wednesday. “My practice has always been a cross-border practice, and I hope that it continues to be that way. I wanted to be somewhere where I could expand upon that.” 

Diener added, “Obviously, there's quite a bit of interest in our backyard in the Bay Area as well.” 

Over the past few years, Diener has handled some notable Bay Area real estate transactions for technology companies. He represented Chinese tech company Le Technology Inc. in its purchase of more than 45 acres from Yahoo! Inc. in Santa Clara and represented Genentech Inc. in the two-phase $580 million expansion of its South San Francisco campus.

“Once you start working with clients on a deal here, or wherever, you do a first one and you get a sense of what their priorities are on a macro level,” Diener said.

In a press release announcing the move, John Sullivan, the Boston-based chair of DLA Piper's U.S. real estate practice and co-chairman of the firm's global real estate practice, called Diener “a top-tier real estate lawyer with a stellar reputation.”

“His practice is ideally suited to DLA Piper's global platform, where he will complement and enhance our real estate, hospitality and finance capabilities,” Sullivan said.

Stephen Cowan, managing partner of the firm's San Francisco office and co-chairman of the firm's West Coast real estate practice, added that “the addition of Jeff to our ranks will significantly strengthen our Real Estate practice in Northern California and on the West Coast generally.”

Diener is the latest addition for DLA in San Francisco this year. The firm in March brought on Evelyn Kim, a finance partner who previously practiced at Baker McKenzie. DLA previously brought on Tracy Shapiro, who had been of counsel at Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, as a partner in January in the data protection, privacy and security group of the firm's intellectual property and technology practice.

A spokesman for Paul Hastings said that the firm wishes Diener “all the best for the future.”