Pay It Forward: "I Have Always Had a Thirst for Knowledge and an Incredible Work Ethic"
"Business development is something that associates need to start thinking about early in their careers in order to be successful as they climb the ranks," says Karen Scanna of Stroock & Stroock & Lavan.
Karen Scanna, Stroock & Stroock & Lavan, New York
Practice Area: Real Estate
Law school and year of graduation: New York University School of Law, 1995
How long have you been at the firm and when did you make partner/? I have been at the firm for just over 25 years and became a partner on Jan. 1, 2004.
Why did you decide to practice law in the real estate industry? After college, I spent two years as a litigation paralegal at a large New York City firm to get a flavor of law firm practice and to confirm my decision to attend law school. While I learned a lot, I realized that I was probably better suited for a transactional practice. I chose real estate because of the tangible nature of the assets. The best part of what I do is being able to see the results of my work changing skylines and transforming neighborhoods and, ultimately, people’s lives.
What do you think was the deciding point for the firm in making you a partner? Was it your performance on a specific case? A personality trait? Making connections with the right people? I think it was all of the above. I had proven that I had the substantive skill set to run complex transactions. In fact, just a couple of years before I made partner, I was the lead associate on Larry Silverstein’s acquisition of The World Trade Center, just days prior to the Sept. 11 attacks. But the firm also correctly concluded that I possessed the intangibles that would enable me to maintain clients, generate new business and be a leader.
Describe how you feel about your career now that you’ve made partner? I have always had a thirst for knowledge and an incredible work ethic. And while that is what propelled me to becoming a partner and is essential to continued success, there are so many other components to what I do. Being a partner has given me the opportunity to mentor young associates, be a strategic adviser to my clients and, through the trade groups in which I am involved, meet professionals who are involved in all areas of the real estate industry.
What’s the key to successful business development in your opinion and how do you grow professionally while everyone is navigating working remotely? Business development must be a priority. I think that the natural inclination is to allow it to fall to the bottom of the list due to the pressures of getting deals done. During COVID, I made an effort to stay in contact with my clients. In addition to inviting them to our firm-sponsored virtual events and keeping them abreast of market changes, I called them to see how they were doing and to offer a helping hand, both personally and professionally. I even got to meet with some in person in outdoor venues.
What lessons, if any, did you learn in 2020/2021 (the years of COVID-19)? I learned to be flexible and to adapt. I would never have thought that I could close multimillion-dollar complex transactions working out of my bedroom. I also realized the importance of community. The firm had photo contests and live virtual performances by some of our more talented colleagues to bring people together and, within the real estate group, my partners and I made sure to touch base with associates and nonlegal staff on a regular basis just to see how they were doing.
Who had the greatest influence in your career that helped propel you to a partner in real estate? When I arrived at Stroock in 1996, just having completed my first year at another firm, Peter Miller, who was then a partner at Stroock and is now a partner at Greenberg Traurig, immediately took me under his wing. In addition to teaching me the legal substance, he introduced me to his clients, made me part of their team, and helped me gain their trust and confidence. Over time, they saw me as an extension of him and I became their “go-to” lawyer. As I moved up the ranks, I used the skills that I had learned in servicing these existing relationships to obtain new clients and develop my own successful practice.
What advice you could give an associate who wants to make partner in real estate? As a junior associate, be a sponge and pick up as much knowledge as you can. Work on as many different deal types with as many partners as you can. That way, you will be able to determine what you want to focus on substantively in your career and also gain exposure to a broad variety of clients and negotiating styles. Start thinking about business development early, attend networking events, take the junior person at the client to lunch, join trade groups and take advantage of all resources available to you.
What challenges did you have to overcome in your career path? What was the lesson learned and how did it influence your career? As a young lawyer at Stroock, although I received excellent legal training and considered a number of male attorneys my mentors, there were relatively few senior women at the firm who I considered role models. On several occasions I was the only woman participating in a meeting or a conference call. In one such instance, when I unexpectedly had to cover for one of my male colleagues at a closing, upon my entrance into the conference room the opposing male attorney assumed I was my colleague’s secretary.
As a way to fill this void, I made a concerted effort to get to know other women similarly situated, most of whom I met while working on transactions. Through these relationships, I became exposed to women’s real estate organizations. When I ultimately decided to pursue membership in WX – New York Women Executives in Real Estate, my sponsors were two female attorneys who were opposite me on deals.
I believe that my experiences coming up the ranks have made me more in tune to what young women are experiencing today. Although women have more avenues available to them now than they ever did before, including programs promoting diversity and inclusion and ridding the workplace of implicit bias, women are still the minority, and stereotypes unfortunately still exist. I take it upon myself to mentor young women, both through formal programs at my firm and at WX, as well as “organically,” with the hope and expectation that my small contribution will make it easier for the next generation.
Knowing what you know now about your career path, what advice would you give to your younger self? To the extent possible, get out from behind the desk and meet people. This is easier said than done, with the demands of the immediate tasks at hand, but it is so important. Business development is something that associates need to start thinking about early in their careers in order to be successful as they climb the ranks.
Find more career advancement success stories from our “How I Made It” Q&A series on Law.com.
