Carrie O’Malley Selected as Fellow in American College of Real Estate Lawyers

05.04.2026

Hirschler is pleased to announce that Carrie O’Malley has been selected as a Fellow in the American College of Real Estate Lawyers (ACREL). Carrie is the fifth Hirschler attorney to be named an ACREL Fellow following Michael H. Terry, James W. Theobald, Jay M. Weinberg and, notably, founding partner Edward S. Hirschler, who served as ACREL’s third president in 1983.

“Carrie's selection as a Fellow in the American College of Real Estate Lawyers is a proud moment for our entire team, continuing an unbroken tradition at Hirschler of active service to the College since its inception,” said Michael H. Terry, current ACREL fellow and former executive vice president and past chair of Hirschler Law’s Chambers-rated commercial real estate practice. “Carrie has become a nationally recognized expert on C-PACE financing, and she has extensive experience across all areas of our real estate services, including leading teams in multi-billion-dollar asset pool sales, acquisitions, and financings. As Hirschler celebrates 80 years of legal service, Carrie’s selection marks the latest generation to continue the firm’s long-standing legacy as an industry and community leader.”

ACREL ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS AND MEMBERSHIP STANDARDS

ACREL is the select national association of preeminent commercial real estate lawyers focused on service to clients, colleagues, and the profession. Admission is invitation only after a rigorous screening process. ACREL's distinguished, nationally-recognized 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. Membership in the College is reserved for leading practitioners with a history of giving back to the profession by publishing and speaking on important matters concerning commercial real estate law and practice. 

“I am honored and humbled to join the prestigious ranks of ACREL Fellows across the country and at Hirschler,” O’Malley said. “Over the last 30 years, I have been fortunate to work with all of Hirschler’s Fellows, including Mr. Hirschler. When I worked with him as a summer associate and a 3L law clerk, Mr. Hirschler often spoke of his involvement with ACREL as a charter member and took great pride in the organization’s high standards of excellence. Those conversations left a lasting impression on me and sparked a longstanding aspiration to become a Fellow one day.”

“Mike has been an incredible, career-long mentor and friend, who was instrumental in shaping my career at Hirschler. Mr. Weinberg, Jim, and Mike have continued Mr. Hirschler’s legacy by championing ACREL’s traditions of excellence, professionalism, and leadership in the commercial real estate space,” O’Malley added. “It is an honor to be recognized as part of such an enduring legacy.”

CARRIE O’MALLEY’S NOTABLE ACHIEVEMENTS AND NATIONAL RECOGNITION

Carrie is a nationally recognized leader in Commercial Property Assessed Clean Energy (C-PACE) financing, leading Hirschler’s multidisciplinary C-PACE team that, to date, claims national experience in 17 of the 36 states that have closed C-PACE transactions, including the District of Columbia. She has been actively involved in the development of the Virginia C-PACE market. 

Notably, Carrie was involved in several C-PACE funding “firsts:” the first C-PACE-funded office construction project in the United States (Milwaukee, Wisconsin); the first-ever new construction C-PACE transaction in the District of Columbia (D.C. United Stadium/Audi Field); and the first rated C-PACE securitization in the country.

Beyond her C-PACE work Carrie has worked with clients for nearly three decades to close sophisticated, commercial real estate and finance transactions across the country. She has represented financial institutions and investors in the purchase, sale, and financing of over ninety robust, commercial loan portfolios in the United States and Puerto Rico, amounting to several billion dollars in loans.

Among the many recognitions she has earned for her commercial real estate counsel, Carrie was the first recipient of the ESG Trailblazer Award from the Commercial Real Estate Women Network (CREW) and a member of the inaugural class of Virginia Lawyers Weekly’s Influential Women in the Law.

Carrie earned her law degree from the University of Richmond School of Law, an MBA from the Richard S. Reynolds Graduate School of Business at the University of Richmond and an undergraduate degree from the E. Claiborne Robins School of Business at the University of Richmond.