Vivian C. de las Cuevas-Diaz - Partner, Holland & Knight

This week we poured Ocho reposado for Vivian de las Cuevas-Diaz, who runs one of the biggest real estate practices in the country as firmwide deputy section leader at Holland & Knight, sits as vice chair of Florida State’s Board of Trustees, and sums up her job in three words: “I am definitely a dirt lawyer.” Her story starts with a grandfather who flew for Cubana and, in 1961, got his family out of Cuba the only way a pilot could. “He stopped a plane in Miami and gave it to his co-pilot and says, I’m getting out.” Her father arrived at 17, worked his way up in banking, opened a bank, lost it in the savings and loan crisis, and built homes in Homestead that Hurricane Andrew took down. The lesson that survived: “they can’t take away two things, your education and your travel.” She went to FSU “because it was the capital, and if I went there, I could intern,” then Tulane, then into corporate law thinking she would be a litigator. Mentors kept handing her real estate files, her father taught her loan documents at his kitchen table, and a state representative named Marco Rubio recruited her to Broad and Cassel in 2006. Her one condition: “guys, I need white hair. Not in a bad way, but like I don’t know what I don’t know.” Then 2008. “I became a workout person.” She rebuilt the practice around note sales and workouts, pulled litigators into the real estate group, and in December 2012 moved her whole team to Holland & Knight with ten days’ notice and 22 closings in progress. On today’s market she does not sugarcoat it: “It’s not fucked, but it’s really hard.” Everything is delayed, everyone is retrading, and every conversation is “where are you on the capital stack?” Her bigger worry is affordability: “We need the subsidy.” Her advice to anyone starting out: “Go work. Banking sucks.” Connect with us Want to dive deeper into Miami’s commercial real estate scene? 📧 Get in touch: Built World Advisors 🎙️ Listen & Watch: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | YouTube 📱 Follow the show: LinkedIn | Instagram Connect with the Hosts: Felipe Azenha  Ben Hoffman  Our Partners & Sponsors 🏢 Studio Space: A special thank you to Büro coworking space for hosting us!  Proudly sponsored by: Top of Mind PR Vizzda Vinya