Our friend and colleague Bernard Lee passed away on Sunday, November 7. Bernard was a member of Cozen O’Connor’s Real Estate Practice Group since he first joined the firm in 2009. Bernard was not only highly regarded by his clients, but he was a great partner, mentor, and friend to all of us. He will be greatly missed.
Bernard served two terms as a member of the board of directors of Cozen O'Connor and a five-year term as co-chair of the real estate practice group. Bernard’s practice areas included real estate development and financing, mixed-use and mixed-finance projects, construction and architect agreements, and hotel management, acquisition, and development. His clients included individual developers and joint venture partners, small and major corporations, and governmental and quasi-governmental entities. He also represented borrowers in workouts of loans, as well as owners and tenants in terminations and settlements of leases.
Bernard recently served as a commissioner on the Philadelphia City Planning Commission. He is a past member of the Executive Board of the Real Property Section of the Philadelphia Bar Association, and former president of the Barristers’ Association. Bernard’s recent pro bono work included the representation of a church in the acquisition and financing of a building and served as a mediator in the tenant-landlord Philadelphia Bar Association program. Bernard was active in his fraternity and provided legal services for them and was also an active member of the Real Estate Executive Council; a national member organization of experienced black real estate professionals.
Bernard earned his undergraduate degree from Lake Forest College, where he served as president of his class, and received his law degree from the University of Pennsylvania Law School.