In March of 2016, IPG Real Estate President George Donohue was selected as a lease expert in the arbitration process for Langan’s Pub and Restaurant, a famous Midtown Manhattan Irish pub that often played host to celebrities and members of the media.
Langan’s previous lease had been for thirty years. As expected, the landlord wanted to increase rent for the Irish pub after the thirty-year lease expired, but the two parties were not able to come to an agreement on the increase due to vague language in the old lease regarding renewal, so the case went to arbitration.
When the time came to find an expert, the team representing Langan’s had an idea of who they wanted. A representative for Langan’s had read a book titled Real Estate Dealmaking: A Property Investor’s Guide to Negotiating and thought the author, IPG’s own George Donohue, was a good fit for this arbitration process due not only to the contents of the book, but for the sheer number of commercial leases he has negotiated through his career.
Langan’s attorney contacted Donohue who is listed in North America’s number one list of experts, the TASA Group Expert Referral Service, and it was time to get to work.
Donohue worked for more than a year as a lease expert during the arbitration period. While not as famous as the likes of frequent Langan’s guests Meryl Streep or Alec Baldwin, he did get to walk through those very same doors. After inspecting the property, analyzing the market and lease, as well as determining the spirit of the lease, Donohue testified in the arbitration case as to what he believed was fair increase for the rent.