Vice President, Legal

Company Description

Northwind Group is a Manhattan-based real estate private equity firm and debt fund manager that focuses on investments through its discretionary closed-ended funds and balance sheet direct investments. For over 15 years, Northwind Group has been involved in the acquisition, development, financing, and management of residential, commercial, and senior-living properties valued at over $9.5 billion across more than 400 properties. Leveraging its strong track record and market experience, Northwind Group focuses on generating attractive risk-adjusted returns while maintaining rigorous investment criteria and adhering to its core values of honesty, transparency, and integrity.

Northwind currently manages $3.0+ billion across five closed-ended debt funds, co-investment vehicles, SMAs, and SPEs. Northwind’s closed-ended commercial real estate debt funds (“Northwind Debt Fund”) focus on traditional bridge lending through direct origination of commercial real estate first mortgage and mezzanine loans across various asset types, geographies, and capital structures.

Job Description

Northwind Group is seeking a Vice President, Legal Counsel to serve as the firm’s dedicated in-house attorney. This individual will provide legal support across the CRE and healthcare debt platforms, covering deal-level transactions, fund formation and fundraising, co-investment structuring, and general corporate matters. The role requires a hands-on, collaborative attorney who can work effectively across the investment, finance, IR, and accounting teams and coordinate closely with outside counsel to manage complexity across simultaneous workstreams.

Responsibilities

1. Deal-Level Transactional Support

• Coordinate with outside counsel on deal closings, loan modifications, and extensions, monitoring progress and helping ensure compliance with fund documentation and timely execution

• Review and provide input on term sheets, loan agreements, intercreditor agreements, participation agreements, guaranties, and related documentation across CRE and healthcare debt transactions

• Assist outside counsel and the investments teams on structuring and closing of co-investment vehicles, co-participation agreements, and SPE arrangements

2. Fund Formation & Fundraising

• Coordinate with outside fund counsel on the formation and ongoing maintenance of closed-ended debt funds, including multi-feeder LP structures, REITs, co-investment vehicles, and SPEs across the NDF and NHDF platforms

• Review and provide input on LPAs, PPMs, subscription booklets, side letters, and MFN election materials, and help track side letter and MFN obligations across the investor base

• Support fund closing processes, including investor onboarding, AML/KYC review, and securities law compliance for private placements

3. Corporate, HR and Compliance Matters

• Serve as the primary in-house legal resource for employment matters, vendor contracts, NDAs, and corporate governance

• Closely work with and help oversee outside counsel relationships, including engagement scoping, fee tracking, and matter budgeting across multiple firms and jurisdictions

• Support regulatory and compliance matters, fund administration, and maintenance of organized legal files across all fund vehicles and corporate entities

Qualifications

• J.D. from an accredited law school and active U.S. bar admission (New York strongly preferred)

• 5–10 years of legal experience with significant exposure to real estate finance, private credit, or fund formation

• Strong understanding of debt structures, loan documentation, intercreditor agreements, and participation agreements

• Experience with fund formation documents, including LPAs, PPMs, subscription documents, and side letter negotiations

• Proven ability to manage and coordinate outside counsel across multiple engagements and practice areas

• Excellent communication skills with the ability to provide practical, business-oriented legal guidance to non-legal stakeholders

• Exceptional attention to detail and ability to manage multiple workstreams in a fast-paced environment

It is expected that the base annual salary range for this position will be $170,000-$220,000. Actual compensation will depend on the candidate’s experience, qualifications, and geographic location. Employees may also be eligible for a discretionary bonus determined by company and individual performance.

Northwind Group does not discriminate employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy status and gender identity), national origin, political affiliation, sexual orientation, marital status, disability status, genetic information, age, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factor.