Purchasing Real Estate for Data Center Development: Due Diligence, Contractual Provisions
Buying Land vs. Existing Buildings, Infrastructure Concerns, Environmental Issues

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Course Details
- smart_display Format
On-Demand
- signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level
Intermediate
- work Practice Area
Real Property - Transactions
- event Date
Wednesday, September 10, 2025
- schedule Time
1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT
- timer Program Length
90 minutes
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
-
Live Online
On Demand
This CLE webinar will examine the increased demand for data centers and the impact on the commercial real estate industry, specifically sales transactions. The panel will address unique due diligence issues for developers and contractual provisions that should be included in the purchase agreement to mitigate the types of risks associated with purchasing land or already existing buildings for data center development.
Faculty

Mr. Golimowski is a trusted advisor to businesses, especially during their most challenging moments. He has a wealth of experience in all aspects of complex disputes, particularly those involving the unique issues affecting post-merger and post-acquisition matters. Mr. Golimowski’s business litigation practice focuses on these disputes, as well as construction matters involving highly regulated projects. In construction, Mr. Golimowski represents companies from the moment a construction project appears to be headed for a dispute, to successful resolution after the last punch list item is complete. His construction industry clients include Fortune 500 corporations and small-to-midsize entities for whom a failed project could mean a failed company. When handling a post-acquisition dispute, Mr. Golimowski’s assistance begins during a deal, where he counsels clients on protecting themselves and their assets. Post-closing, he helps clients preserve and exercise the rights they bargained for, running the gamut from holdbacks to indemnities to insurance proceeds.

Ms. Gorman focuses her practice on hospitality law, advising clients domestically and internationally on a broad spectrum of matters, including hotel acquisitions, licensing, branding, financings, operation, and development. She has extensive experience in management, licensing, and branding agreements for hotels, restaurants, water parks, and casinos. Ms. Gorman has represented a range of institutional investors in connection with their real estate investments, as well as governmental and quasi-governmental agencies with respect to their real estate holdings. In addition to her practice, Ms. Gorman is the Chair of the Timesharing and Interval Use Committee of the Hospitality Group of the Real Property and Probate Section of the ABA; Professor in Residence (Adjunct) at the Washington College of Law of American University in Washington, D.C., as part of the Hospitality and Tourism Law Program; and on the Board of Advisors of the Georgetown University Law Center’s Hotel & Lodging Legal Summit. She regularly speaks at conferences and seminars on real estate and hospitality topics and is the author of The Law Goddess Blueprint and a contributing writer to the textbook Hotel Law – Transactions, Management and Franchising.
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Ms. Peters leads the Walnut Creek office and practices real estate, land use, environmental, and energy law. She advises and counsels commercial developers and property owners in connection with real estate acquisition and sales; development projects, green building, easements, and rights of way; and regulatory and land use approvals, including compliance with CEQA, NEPA, and the Endangered Species Act. She has acted as real estate counsel to potential purchasers and sellers of property valued from $100,000 to over $1 billion, including coordination and review of title, environmental due diligence, and disclosures. Ms. Peters regularly counsels landlords and tenants and negotiates and documents commercial and industrial property leases and indemnities. She also represents contractors, real estate brokers, and owners’ associations in various energy, real estate, and environmental matters. Ms. Peters also regularly counsels in a wide range of commercial and contractual matters. She has extensive experience negotiating power purchase agreements, transmission access, and funding agreements, and the financing of private electric power projects, including drafting contracts for power purchase, purchase and sale of environmental attributes, renewable energy credits (RECs) and carbon credits, distributorship, licenses, non-disclosure, collaboration, development, joint venture, and other arrangements. She has handled many purchases and sales of businesses, with an emphasis on companies with significant real estate portfolios and potential environmental liabilities. In addition to developing corporate environmental compliance, green certification, and sustainability programs, Ms. Peters advises clients on laws and regulations pertaining to air and water quality, hazardous substances, and California’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) statutes. She has worked with regulators on local, state, and federal levels and advises on environmental clean-up responsibility, underground and above-ground storage tank removal and remediation, flow control, e-waste, and recycling issues. Her practice involves all aspects of the alternative energy business.
Description
Soaring demand, including the rise of artificial intelligence, is driving the development of new data centers and significantly impacting the commercial real estate industry. Given the nature of the business and building requirements, data center developers purchasing real estate have unique due diligence considerations and contractual needs of which counsel should be aware.
For example, data centers have high power and water needs. Therefore, part of the property selection process includes assessing average and peak demands and negotiating with local utility providers to ensure adequate supply and infrastructure for the data center needs as well as verifying that local laws allow for sufficient consumption. Securing the necessary environmental permits and conducting the required environmental studies are also important, as well as reviewing title and survey documents to ensure all necessary rights and access are secured since data centers often require specific easements such as those for fiber-optic cables.
In addition to addressing the above needs in the purchase agreement, counsel should also include provisions to mitigate risks faced by data centers that make them particularly susceptible to the impact of outside events including natural disasters, governmental actions, and permitting issues, as well as heightened security concerns.
Listen as our expert panel discusses issues unique to real estate purchases related to data center development. The panel will address necessary due diligence considerations and unique contractual provisions to mitigate client risk.
Outline
I. Introduction
A. The increased demand for data centers
B. Purchasing land vs. an existing building
II. Due diligence considerations
A. Land requirements and zoning
B. Encumbrances, easements, and land use limitations
C. Utility needs
D. Environmental concerns
E. Financial and tax considerations
F. Others
III. Purchase and sale agreements
A. Access rights
B. Force majeure clauses
C. Assignment of obligations
D. Default provisions
E. Casualty and liability
F. Environmental requirements
G. Others
IV. Practitioner takeaways and best practices
Benefits
The panel will review these and other important issues:
- Why is there an increase in data center development, and how is this impacting the commercial real estate industry?
- What due diligence considerations face counsel and clients when purchasing real estate for data center development? How do these differ when purchasing land vs. property with an existing building to be converted into a data center?
- What unique risks are related to data centers? What provisions should be included in the purchase agreement to mitigate those risks?
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