Welcome to the Benjamin Evans Law Firm LLC. I am a solo practitioner working in St. Louis, Missouri, specializing in commercial real estate and residential development transactions.
Originally a native of St. Joseph, Missouri, I moved around the country extensively (including both coasts) throughout childhood before returning to the Midwest. I attended the University of Missouri-Columbia both for undergrad and law school, and began my legal career at a large, full-service law firm in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1999.
After three years of cutting my legal teeth on real estate and corporate transactions, my wife and I decided to head west for a life adventure in San Francisco. At my law firm there, I had the amazing opportunity to work on numerous complex, high-profile transactions, including some of the most exciting urban development projects then underway in the city.
In spring 2006, my wife (a native of Belleville, Illinois) and I decided to reverse manifest destiny and settle in St. Louis to raise a family. After briefly working in the real estate department of a local law firm, I was hired by a client (a group of real estate investors/developers) to act as their general counsel. Over my four and a half years in-house, I was principally responsible for a wide variety of legal and business matters, including negotiating, documenting, and closing numerous real estate transactions, and handling all internal corporate governance issues.
Although I have worked on a wide range of legal matters over the years, I most enjoy working on transactions, and more specifically, real estate deals. I truly enjoy helping clients buy property; develop, lease, or otherwise put property into productive use; and sell property for a profit. My goal, always, is to add value to the transaction by identifying and properly allocating transactional risks; achieving the client’s business goals while protecting their legal interests; and coordinating with all deal participants to maximize the likelihood of a successful closing.
In 2011, I decided to open the Benjamin Evans Law Firm LLC. My solo legal practice gives me the opportunity to handle transactions not only for my former employer, but a variety of other clients as well—investors, developers, homebuilders, brokers, buyers, sellers, landlords, tenants, lenders, and borrowers. I enjoy both large and smaller deals, and have a particular interest in urban projects. For an idea of the types of services I can offer clients, please see “Services.” For a summary of some of the transactions I have handled over the years, please see “Representative Transactions.”
If you would like any additional information about my legal services, please contact me here.
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Beyond my legal practice, I have greatly enjoyed exploring St. Louis and making it my permanent home over the last half decade. I am interested in what the city and region is now, and what it can become in the future. From time to time, I share my thoughts on St. Louis urban issues on my personal blog, St. Louis Energized.
A related passion is photography, particularly capturing urban landscapes around the City of St. Louis. You can find a sample of some of my favorite personal works on this page, and many more on my Flickr site. (Many of my photographs are now available for sale at local shops; if interested in more details, please send me a message here).
My wife, three children and I live in University City, Missouri—a great St. Louis inner-suburb where I fully intend to live the rest of my life.