Senior Counsel

Job Title: Senior Counsel

Location: Onsite (Chevy Chase, MD)

Salary: $200,000-$250,000

Skills: enclosed mall, shopping center, retail, commercial, leasing, leases, reciprocal easement agreements, REAs, development agreements, acquisitions, dispositions, real estate

About the Opportunity:

Join a publicly traded commercial real estate company and become part of a collaborative legal team supporting a portfolio of enclosed mall and retail properties. This role is ideal for an attorney with direct in-house experience supporting an enclosed mall owner, operator, or developer. You will play a key role in advising business leaders and negotiating complex retail real estate matters, including leasing, development, reciprocal easement agreements, acquisitions, dispositions, and other strategic real estate transactions.

Responsibilities:

• Draft, review, and negotiate legal documents related to enclosed mall and retail real estate matters.
• Advise business leaders on complex or high-exposure legal matters, balancing legal risk with business objectives.
• Lead negotiations for complex, strategic, or sensitive retail real estate transactions.
• Provide practical legal advice on shopping center leasing, development, redevelopment, property dispositions, and related commercial real estate matters.
• Analyze complex legal issues and develop thoughtful, business-oriented solutions.
• Partner closely with leasing, development, asset management, acquisitions, dispositions, and other business teams.
• Advise on matters involving reciprocal easement agreements, operating agreements, development agreements, easements, and other property-level agreements.
• Deliver clear, practical counsel to business leaders, including in complex or contentious situations.
• Establish and leverage strong relationships across the legal and business organization.
• Mentor and train less experienced attorneys or paralegals on legal procedures and best practices.
• Coordinate and lead cross-functional projects involving multiple business lines.

Must-Have Skills:

• Juris Doctor (JD) degree from an accredited law school and active bar license.
• 10+ years of experience practicing transactional real estate law, with significant experience in commercial retail real estate.
• Current or prior in-house legal experience with an enclosed mall owner, operator, or developer is required.
• Direct experience supporting an enclosed mall or regional mall platform, including complex retail leasing matters.
• In-depth knowledge of shopping center leasing, reciprocal easement agreements (REAs), operating agreements, development agreements, and property acquisitions and dispositions.
• Demonstrated experience handling complex commercial real estate transactions in a fast-paced business environment.
• Experience advising on the redevelopment, repositioning, or transformation of enclosed mall and retail properties.
• Strong oral and written communication skills with the ability to advise business leaders at all levels.
• Proven ability to independently manage and lead negotiations involving high-value or high-stakes real estate transactions.
• Strong business judgment and the ability to provide practical, commercially focused legal advice.

Nice-to-Have Skills:

• Experience with team coaching, development, and cross-functional leadership.
• Experience supporting a large or geographically diverse enclosed mall portfolio.
• Experience with complex mall redevelopment, anchor tenant matters, major tenant leasing, or property repositioning.
• Business acumen and understanding of key commercial real estate goals and priorities.
• Experience working closely with leasing, development, asset management, acquisitions, dispositions, and other real estate business teams.
• Experience with publicly traded REITs or other large commercial real estate platforms.