Real Estate Law Attorney, Director

GENERAL PURPOSE:

This position provides or obtains legal services for the departments of the Property Development Division of Ross Stores, Inc., its subsidiaries and related companies.

The objective is to negotiate and prepare legal documents and perform other real estate legal services on an in-house basis in order to minimize outside legal fees, while building in-house expertise.
 
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

Prepare documentation for new and existing store, office and warehouse facilities:

• Negotiate and draft leases.
• Supervise and review the preparation of memoranda of lease and other related documents by paralegals.
• Review due diligence lease materials and analyze the impact on the lease and transaction.
• Prepare lease amendments and letter agreements, as requested by Management.
• Supervise, review and approve Estoppel Certificates prepared by a paralegal based on information provided by other departments.
• Negotiate Subordination, Non-disturbance and Attornment Agreements as necessary, and review and approve the agreements in the form prepared by a paralegal.
• Approve, review and supervise change of Landlord entities.

Manage Landlord – Tenant disputes and litigation as requested by Management:

• Respond to and prepare demand letters.
• Represent the Company, negotiate resolutions to disputes, and prepare settlement agreements as requested by Management.
• Determine when, and if necessary to, assign matters to outside counsel.
• Manage outside counsel and coordinate requested information.

Render legal advice on real estate related issues:

• Analyze and render opinions on the potential impact of proposed changes to existing lease arrangements.
• Analyze and render opinions on real estate related issued raises by the Property Management Division, as directed by Management.

Coordinate legal services provided by outside counsel:

• Coordinate all work that is assigned to outside counsel, particularly the preparation of newly approved lease agreements and amendments to leases.
• Serve as in-house "contact" for outside counsel in order to maintain cost controls over services rendered and to avoid unnecessary duplicative or excessive costs.
• Obtain advice, documents, or other services from outside law firms as needed.

Prepare and review standard real estate documents:

• Review and revise form letters of intent to correctly reflect current corporate requirements.
• Review and revise form lease as necessary to correctly reflect current corporate requirements, as appropriate in conjunction with outside counsel.
• As directed when necessary, draft property deeds, escrow instructions, corporate resolutions, mechanic's lien releases, and other standard real estate documents for pending transactions.

OTHER JOB DUTIES:

• Maintain and distribute legal documents (letters of intent; leases; memoranda of lease; estoppel certificates; subordination, attornment and non- disturbance agreements, and lease amendment formats) and templates for repetitive use by Property Managements department, including added and alternate provisions.
• Develop and create "Policies and Procedures" for the production and handling of real estate legal documents and information derived from the documents of the Real Estate Department. 
• Other special projects or assignments as required.

COMPETENCIES:

• Quality   
• Problem Solving 
• Influence
• Communication

QUALIFICATIONS AND SPECIAL SKILLS REQUIRED:

• Law degree and admitted in good standing with a state bar, preferably California
• Minimum of 5-7 years prior experience in commercial real estate transactions (retail and shopping center experience, preferable), document drafting, and business or corporation law.
• Maintain the requirements for bar license by attending necessary continuing legal education courses, with a study emphasis in real estate, construction, environmental, business and corporate law.
• Prior experience in transactional real estate, document drafting, litigation and business or corporation law.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to prioritize and handle multiple tasks and projects without supervision.
• Proficient in Microsoft Word, with a basic knowledge of Microsoft Excel and Outlook.
• Job requires ability to work in an office environment, primarily on a computer. 
• Requires sitting, standing, walking, hearing, talking on the telephone, attending in-person meetings, typing, and working with paper/files, etc.
• Consistent timeliness and regular attendance. 
• Vision requirements\: Ability to see information in print and/or electronically.

• Paralegal
• Administrative Assistant
• Real Estate Counsel/Manager

• Job requires ability to work in an office environment, primarily on a computer. 
• Requires sitting, standing, walking, hearing, talking on the telephone, attending in-person meetings, typing, and working with paper/files, etc.
• Consistent timeliness and regular attendance.
• Vision requirements\: Ability to see information in print and/or electronically.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Paralegal
• Administrative Assistant
• Real Estate Counsel/Manager

DISCLAIMER

This job description is a summary of the primary duties and responsibilities of the job and position.  It is not intended to be a comprehensive or all-inclusive listing of duties and responsibilities.  Contents are subject to change at management's discretion.

Ross is an equal employment opportunity employer. We consider individuals for employment or promotion according to their skills, abilities and experience. We believe that it is an essential part of the Company's overall commitment to attract, hire and develop a strong, talented and diverse workforce. Ross is committed to complying with all applicable laws prohibiting discrimination based on race, color, religious creed, age, national origin, ancestry, physical, mental or developmental disability, sex (which includes pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding), veteran status, military status, marital or registered domestic partnership status, medical condition (including cancer or genetic characteristics), genetic information, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, as well as any other category protected by federal, state or local laws.