Cozen O’Connor announced three of Canada’s leading real estate lawyers — Enzo Sallese, Steven I. Pearlstein, and Andrea Wong — will join its fast-growing North American Real Estate practice. As the firm’s first real estate lawyers to be based in Canada, they come to Cozen O’Connor’s Toronto office from Minden Gross LLP. As such, they will reunite with former colleagues Andrew Elbaz, Alexander Katznelson, Zachary Janes, and Michael Shafarenko, corporate lawyers who joined Cozen O’Connor in 2023.
Sallese, who joins Cozen O’Connor as a shareholder, focuses on banking and financial services, including asset backed lending, loan restructuring, and mortgage enforcement. He also brings to the firm an extensive background handling matters related to general commercial real estate law, including asset acquisitions and dispositions, joint ventures, property development, and commercial leasing. Recognized by Best Lawyers in Real Estate Law for 2024, he is a member of the Law Society of Ontario and the Canadian Bar Association. He earned his LLB Osgoode Hall Law School (York University), an M.A. in Italian language and literature and a B.A. (Hons) in languages at the University of Toronto.
Pearlstein, who joins as senior counsel, focuses his practice on commercial real estate, banking, and insolvency law. In addition, he brings to the firm a strong business background, having previously served as a managing partner of a Toronto-based law firm and manager of a real estate investment company. With a practice comprising many long-standing clients, he regularly handles asset acquisitions and dispositions, issues related to banking and financing, commercial real estate, and insolvency matters, joint ventures, and variances. He earned his J.D. at Osgoode Hall Law School (York University) and is presently on the faculty at the law school as an adjunct professor of law. Pearlstein is a recipient of the Award of Excellence in Real Estate Law from the Ontario Bar Association and a certified specialist in real estate law by the Law Society of Ontario.
Wong, who joins as a member, focuses on all aspects of commercial real estate law, including lending, acquisitions, and the disposition of commercial properties. She routinely represents both lenders and borrowers in challenging commercial real estate financing transactions, leveraging a strong background in commercial mortgages and financing, mortgage remedies, condominium development, commercial agreements and contracts, and acquisitions and dispositions. Fluent in Cantonese and a member of the Law Society of Ontario, Wong earned her J.D. at the University of Windsor, and a B.A. in criminology and sociology at the University of Toronto.
Established in 1970, Cozen O’Connor has over 825 attorneys who help clients manage risk and make better business decisions.
