Goulston & Storrs Director Karen O’Malley Elected as 2023 ACREL Fellow

Goulston & Storrs, an Am Law 200 firm, is pleased to announce that director Karen O'Malley, who co-chairs the firm’s Retail, Restaurant & Consumer Group and Pro Bono Committee, has been elected as a Fellow of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers (ACREL). She was the only attorney in Massachusetts selected for this year’s ACREL Fellows class and joins seven colleagues at Goulston & Storrs who are distinguished ACREL Fellows: Maureen Dwyer, Cecilia Gordon, Matthew Kiefer, Allison Prince, David Rabinowitz, John Ratino, and Alan Rottenberg.

O’Malley is a well-known real estate attorney who focuses her practice on retail and office leasing within mixed-used properties for many large public and private real estate companies.

She also has extensive experience in all other aspects of real estate, including acquisitions, dispositions, development, financing, and leasing. Her projects are often transportation-centered, mixed used projects, including new developments and redevelopments, as well as enclosed malls and lifestyle centers.

O’Malley began her career as a civil rights advocate and is passionate about women’s rights, including protecting and expanding reproductive rights. She helped launch the Victim Rights Law Center (VRLC) in 2003, which is the first nonprofit law center in the country dedicated to serving the critical legal needs of sexual assault survivors. O’Malley also serves as co-chair of the statewide Sexual Assault Response Unit.

As co-chair of the firm’s Pro Bono Committee, O’Malley not only facilitates the firm’s extensive pro bono program, but she also serves as the lead for many clients and is deeply involved in pro bono affordable housing projects. She serves on the Advisory Board at Georgetown University’s Advanced Commercial Leasing Institute, where she also teaches. O’Malley is a member of the Northeastern University School of Law Women in the Law Advisory Group and is actively involved in the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), where she has served on the Legal Update’s Editorial Board and is a frequent speaker at ICSC conferences.

She received her J.D. from Northeastern University School of Law in 1994 and her B.A., magna cum laude, from Boston College in 1991.

The American College of Real Estate Lawyers is the select national association of preeminent commercial real estate lawyers focused on service to clients, colleagues, and the profession. Admission is by invitation only after a rigorous screening process. ACREL's distinguished, nationally known lawyers have been elected to fellowship for their outstanding legal ability, experience, and high standards of professional and ethical conduct in the practice of real estate law.