Data centers are the critical infrastructure of the modern economy—powering cloud computing, AI, and data-driven technologies. Our Data Center practice is at the forefront of guiding companies through complex and strategically important data center, digital infrastructure and compute capacity projects. Our team operates at the intersection of real estate, energy, finance, and technology—delivering innovative solutions to help clients build, scale, and invest with confidence.
We advise cloud providers, AI innovators, developers, investors and global enterprises on high-stakes transactions that are shaping the future of digital infrastructure. With experience across every stage of the data center lifecycle, we bring together top-tier legal talent, deep sector insight, and seamless global execution.
Global Capabilities. Industry Depth. Market Impact.
From site acquisition to financing, construction, leasing, power supply, operations, supply chain and regulatory experience, our Data Center practice delivers support for key stakeholders in the data center ecosystem. We combine deep industry knowledge with sophisticated legal capabilities to help clients navigate complex, high-value transactions with precision and speed.
Our team advises on:
Real Estate
- Site acquisition and development, including purchase agreements, construction, and access agreements
- Lease agreement negotiations and related development issues
- Site due diligence, including title, survey, and zoning review
- Large-scale developments, including addressing environmental and project development considerations
- Complex environmental regulations, including utility easements and special exceptions
- Coordination with energy, environmental, and utility teams to align real estate strategy with power and sustainability objectives
Network & Connectivity
- Full spectrum of energy and power considerations for data center development and operations
- Structuring and negotiating traditional and virtual power purchase agreements
- Grid interconnection issues, wholesale electric markets, and strategies for deploying behind-the-meter generation for onsite power
- Regulatory compliance for energy procurement, including local, national, and cross-border requirements
- Licensing of new nuclear reactors
- Nuclear insurance and regulatory considerations for data centers co-located with nuclear reactors
- Environmental and sustainability issues
Financing Throughout the Lifecycle
- Structuring and execution of complex financing arrangements, including those involving project finance, development and construction loans, term loans, mezzanine debt, data center–tailored hybrid financing structures, and portfolio and platform-level financing investments
- Greenfield developments and brownfield expansion—from initial funding to operational refinancings
- Arrangements with banks, institutional lenders, private equity and infrastructure funds and investors, as well as developers and operators
- Navigation of unique revenue models for data center operations, including capacity contracts, service agreements, and power arrangements—allowing for risk allocation in financing documents
- Innovative deal structures to accommodate rapid capacity expansion
Tax Structuring
- Full range of tax considerations impacting data center projects
- State and local economic incentive programs, including tax abatements and development grants
- Identification and securing of government tax incentives, credits, and other financial support
- Tax implications that impact long-term commercial viability of projects
- Integration of tax strategy into overall project planning and execution
Investment, M&A, and Joint Ventures
- Strategic investments
- Collaborations, partnerships and joint ventures
- M&A transactions with deal teams integrating key subject matter experts
- Cross-border transactions and multiasset platform deals
- Platform investments and private placements, including carveouts and spinoffs
- Portfolio acquisitions, recapitalizations, and roll-up strategies
- Antitrust, foreign direct investment, and other regulatory analysis and reviews
Data Center Operations, Technology & Supply Chain
- Arrangements with data center operators, cloud providers, and other parties on day-to-day operational issues
- Uptime guarantees and service level agreements
- Colocation, smart hands, and other service agreements
- Equipment, software, and technology acquisition, lease, and sale
- Supply chain issues, including force majeure and delay
- Procurement services and logistics
- Compliance support including for audits and operational reviews
- Insurance programs
Compute Capacity Agreements
- Long- and short-term capacity agreements
- Strategic buy commitments, including associated risk mitigation strategies
- Flexible buy commitments
- Agreements to buy compute capacity from greenfield data centers
- Facility, CPU, and GPU availability and pricing models
Privacy, Compliance & Data Governance
- Complex global data protection and cybersecurity regimes
- Incident response protocols designed to mitigate risk
- Critical infrastructure requirements
- Privacy and AI regulations
- Data localization and cross-border data transfer issues
- Data governance practices
- International trade issues, including working with supply chain teams on cross-border asset acquisitions and tariff issues
With a global footprint, our data center team is positioned to support clients wherever their projects arise. Beyond our extensive presence in the United States, we support key international hubs including throughout Europe, the Middle East, Asia, and Latin America. This geographic reach enables us to provide timely, market-specific guidance, navigate local regulatory terrain, and work in lockstep across jurisdictions to deliver practical, business-oriented solutions for data center developments worldwide.
