John McDowall is the President and Managing Partner of Fikso Kretschmer. Real Estate transactions and M&A / business transactions of all kinds have been the focus of his practice for over 20 years. His practice areas and representative transactions are listed below. Prior to joining Fikso Kretschmer in 2018, Mr. McDowall was a shareholder at Carney Badley Spellman in Seatle, where he served on the firm’s Board of Directors for 10 years and chaired both the Real Estate and Business Groups. He stays active in his communities, belonging to several industry organizations and serving on many non-profit and school boards, some of which are listed below.
Practice Areas
Commercial Leases in all asset classes
Real Estate Acquisitions and Dispositions
Real Estate Finance (debt and equity) and Loan Negotiation
Joint Ventures, Entity Formation and General Corporate
Business Transactions and Financings, and Mergers and Acquisitions
Construction and Design Contracts and Development Agreements
Representative Real Estate Projects
Has handled hundreds of real estate lease, sale, acquisition, joint venture and debt and equity financing transactions in all asset classes, including the following:
Represented an international Landlord with respect to a long-term lease renewal negotiation for an 850,000 square foot corporate campus in Bellevue (comprised of five office buildings) with a publicly traded wireless provider.
Represented a publicly traded financial institution in lease negotiations as the anchor tenant in one of Seattle's premier office towers for a 10-year, 145,000 square-foot lease renewal. Years later he negotiated over 15 subleases for this same client to offload four floors of excess office space during the depths of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Has handled sale-lease back transactions for industrial properties in the Kent Valley near Seattle on multiple occasions.
Represented a Washington-based developer in the negotiation of a construction loan valued at $45 Million, as well as a mezzanine loan valued at $22 Million, for the construction of a 324-unit, 11-building garden style apartment complex in Lacey, Washington.
Has handled multiple property dispositions and acquisitions in the office, retail, multifamily and industrial asset classes throughout the Puget Sound region, with sale values of up to $107 Million. Here is a link to several representative Real Estate, Financing and Construction projects that Mr. McDowall has handled: Real Estate Project List
Representative M&A and Business Projects
Has handled multiple M&A transactions in several different industries, both sell-side and buy-side, including the following.
Represented two different RIA groups in sales to private equity backed buyers, with rollover and earnout components, with total sale values up to $70 Million
Represented the seller of genetic testing company in an F-Reorg stock sale to a Fortune 500 company, valued at $11.5 Million.
Handled the $16 Million merger of an internet search company into local database aggregator
Has handled multiple asset or stock purchase and sale transactions in several different industries. Here is a link to several representative M&A Projects that Mr. McDowall has handled: M&A Transaction List
Mr. McDowall has also been an active speaker and moderator over the years, and here is a link to several of his representative speaking engagements
Education
JD, University of Virginia School of Law, 1995
BA, Political Science, BA, Humanities, Seattle University, 1992
Activities and Recognition
Named by Washington Super Lawyers magazine and Super Lawyers Business Edition as one of the top attorneys in Washington State annually since 2013.
Named as Lawyer of Distinction by the Puget Sound Business Journal, 2025 and 2026
Named as Lawyer of Distinction by Chambers, 2025
Named as Best Lawyers in 2026
Board of Regents, Seattle University, 2017-2026
Board of Trustees, Seattle Prep High School, 2018-2024. Served as the co-chair of the school’s most recent capital campaign, and continues to serve on the School’s Advancement Committee
Former Member of Board of Directors, Arc of King County
Member, Washington State Bar Association
Member, Seattle-King County Bar Association
Member, Commercial Real Estate Development Association (CREDA, formerly NAIOP)
Member, Association for Corporate Growth (ACG)