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This spring, before the credit market imploded, Tishman SpeyerProperties announced a $22 billion deal with Lehman Brothers to buyArchstone-Smith Trust, which owns apartment buildings across thecountry, including in California and Washington, DC. Overall, realestate deals were closing at a record clip; and real estatelawyers, particularly those who specialize in real estateinvestment trusts, or REITs, were reaping an unprecedentedwindfall.

Then came the credit crunch, and rumors were rampant that Lehmanwas having problems closing the Archstone deal. In analready-sticky Washington summer, things got even stickier insidethree local firms--DLA Piper, Hogan & Hartson, andVenable--where lawyers who worked on the transaction waited to seeif the second-largest REIT deal in history would collapse. When thedeal finally closed, on Oct. 5, it was a great win for the three DCfirms. And the way things look at the moment, they may have a longtime to savor it.