Dana R. White

Senior Counsel


Dana White counsels clients on the most effective, most strategic ways to get deals done so they can focus on the bigger picture. A seasoned dealmaker and real estate lawyer, Dana wastes no time identifying the heart of each matter, helping developers, owner/operators, lessors, and lessees prioritize their needs and achieve their goals.

Clients appreciate Dana’s experience and dexterity with a broad spectrum of commercial real estate matters, including acquisitions and dispositions, leases, commercial financing, and real estate partnerships and joint ventures. Her expertise encompasses industrial, office, and retail projects; single-family home communities, condominiums, and mixed-use developments; and adaptive reuse and new construction projects. Beyond her substantive legal skills, Dana prides herself on getting to know clients and what matters to them so she can streamline negotiations and achieve positive results efficiently.

Dana’s real estate practice has evolved and kept pace with changes in the economy. After the recession, she handled a heavy volume of high-end single-family, condo, multi-family, and mixed-use developments in Illinois and nationally. Dana also has significant commercial finance experience, representing lenders and borrowers in real estate construction, development and acquisition loans, as well as other secured financing transactions.

Leasing has been a mainstay throughout Dana’s legal career, and she has negotiated myriad commercial leases for both landlords and tenants. Before and during the pandemic, she carved a niche in medical office and restaurant/retail leasing.

Dana has worked in professional services since college, and delivering exceptional client service comes naturally to her. Before law school, she oversaw business development and marketing for a well-respected engineering firm. Driven to pursue her knack for real estate and become a service provider herself, Dana earned her law degree in Chicago and rose through the ranks of smaller full-service law firms in Illinois and Michigan before joining Dykema.

I want to connect with each client individually in order to better understand the outcome they have in mind. Getting to know my clients and their needs is personally satisfying, and professionally, it makes me a better lawyer by allowing me to represent my clients’ best interests.
    • Loyola University Chicago School of Law, Master of Laws candidate, Tax Law, 2011
    • Loyola University Chicago School of Law, J.D., cum laude, May 2010
    • Indiana University, B.A., May 2004
  • Bar Admissions

    • Illinois
    • Michigan
    • Named to Lawdragon's List of 500 Leading Global Real Estate Lawyers, 2024

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Latest News and Insights

Press Releases5.25.22

Real Estate Attorneys Dana R. White and James W. Sargent Join Dykema

Dykema announced the addition of Dana White and James Sargent, each as Senior Counsel in the firm’s…

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