Jerome D. Whalen is a graduate of the University of Washington and the Harvard Law School. He lives in Seattle, Washington and was a member of the board of directors of Wright Runstad & Company, a Seattle-based office building developer, from 1984 until 2004. His major ground lease projects have included the Four Seasons Olympic Hotel and the Wells Fargo Center in Seattle; One Bellevue Center, Two Bellevue Center, and Key Bank Center in Bellevue, Washington; and the Calais Office Center in Anchorage, Alaska.

Mr. Whalen has taught and lectured extensively in both real estate and securities law, including courses at the University of Washington and University of Puget Sound (now Seattle University) Law Schools, and at programs sponsored by the Washington State Bar Association, Seattle-King County Bar Association, Northwest Center for Profes-sional Education, and International Law Seminars. He has served as chairman of the Section on Corporation, Business and Banking Law of the Washington State Bar Association, and the Washington State RICO Task Force. Mr. Whalen is currently acting as a consultant (and sometime arbitrator) in ground lease and other real estate matters.