Alison Drane Waterson

• Represented the borrower in a $1.25 billion refinance transaction involving a Class A office building.
• Represented the note purchaser in the acquisition of a $200 million note of a $620 million syndicated mortgage loan. 
• Represented the lender in a $60 million syndicated loan secured by a hotel in South Florida.
• Represented a professional sports franchise in securing a $35 million loan for an innovative training and medical facility, the first time a professional sports team has sourced a significant loan exclusively from Black-owned banks.
• Represented various lenders in loans ranging from $29 million to $43 million secured by grocery-store-anchored retail facilities in the Northeast. 
• Represented the seller in a $100 million disposition of a ground lease interest of an 882,000-square-foot corporate facility composed of manufacturing, distribution, research and development, and office buildings.
• Represented the purchaser in real estate matters on a $384 million asset purchase transaction involving 31 sites in 16 states across the U.S.
• Represented the purchaser in a $378 million membership acquisition involving an over 1 million-square-foot mall in North Florida.

Alison Waterson is a partner with Alston & Bird’s Real Estate Finance & Investment Group and has experience in an array of commercial real estate transactions, including financing, acquisitions, dispositions, development, and leasing.

With a focus on commercial real estate financing, Alison has represented institutional lenders and borrowers in complex loan origination matters, including acquisition financing, construction financing, syndications, ground lease financing, and loans involving TIC structures. She has also represented lenders in loan purchases and in various types of workouts and foreclosures. Alison has experience representing developers and owners in multimillion-dollar acquisitions and dispositions involving mixed-use development, multifamily projects, condominiums, and ground leases. She is also a LEED Accredited Professional and has experience in solar energy projects.

Alison is listed in The Best Lawyers in America^© in the Real Estate category. She has also been named to the Georgia Super Lawyers “Rising Star” lists in Real Estate: Business.

Alison earned her J.D. degree, cum laude, from the University of Georgia School of Law in 2008 and was an editorial board member and notes editor of the Journal of Intellectual Property Law. She received her B.A. degree, summa cum laude, with highest honors, in risk management and insurance from the University of Georgia in 2005.

Bar Admissions

• Georgia

Education

• University of Georgia (J.D., 2008)
• University of Georgia (B.A., 2005)

Memberships