Michael D. Sawyer, Partner

Michael Sawyer is a partner in the Real Estate group at Richards Buell Sutton LLP.  His preferred areas of practice are Commercial Real Estate, Leases, Mortgages, Land Assemblies and Condominiums, Contracts and Business Negotiations.  Leases currently make up more than half of his practice, along with land development and subdivisions.

Michael graduated with his B.A. from the University of Alberta in 1968.  He then earned his LL.B. from The University of British Columbia in 1971 and was called to the Bar in 1972.  He has practised for over 35 years with RBS and its predecessor firms exclusively.  "It's a great place with great people.  I have always felt a strong loyalty to the firm and believe that good things will happen from it."

That loyalty also extends to his clients, many of whom he has serviced for well over 20 years.  "It's gratifying that as the clients got bigger and bigger, they stuck with me.  You grow together.  Loyalty goes a long way."

Growth has been a key component of Michael's enduring career.  Michael finds it exciting to see the firm grow along with the City of Vancouver.  When he was at law school the TD Tower and Bentall 1 and 2 were brand new buildings, Coal Harbour had rail yards and False Creek was industrial land.  The transformation is remarkable.

Representative Client Work

• Leases have always been a big part of Michael's practice. At the start of his career he assisted a senior lawyer at the firm in converting West End apartment buildings to 99 year leases. For the last 20 years he has assisted a major institutional client of the Firm in creating 99 year leasehold strata projects on institutional lands not needed for academic purposes. 
• Michael also acts for numerous private landlords and developers in connection with land assemblies, construction, subdivision, strata title, mortgages, leases and contract negotiations.

Professional Affiliations

• Member, Law Society of British Columbia
• Member, Canadian Bar Association
• Member, CBA (BC) Subsections - Environmental and Real Estate
• Member, Fraser Institute
• Member, National Association of Investment and Office Park Developers

Background

Michael is an avid golfer and enjoys skiing.  His wife Brenda is a retired school teacher who loves to travel and takes him on numerous trips.