Corporate and Real Estate Attorney Positions

What Real Estate Attorney Positions Require

When we place real estate attorneys, employers consistently emphasize certain capabilities and experiences:

Transaction Leadership

Real estate attorney jobs at every level require the ability to manage deals effectively. This means understanding deal timelines, negotiating principal agreements, coordinating with complementary practice areas like tax, environmental, and land use, and working collaboratively with clients and counterparties. More senior positions involve supervising teams and running complex transactions from beginning to end.

Your deal experience tells the story employers want to hear. They look for evidence of meaningful responsibility—transactions where you played a lead or significant role, not just support work. The types of assets matter: office, retail, industrial, multifamily, hospitality, life sciences, data centers. Complex structures demonstrate sophistication: construction financing combined with mezzanine and preferred equity, CMBS originations and assumptions, intricate ground lease negotiations.

Leasing experience should show range and complexity. Net leases, gross leases, ground leases, and master lease arrangements each present different considerations. Employers value attorneys who understand the business terms, risk allocation, and practical implications for landlords, tenants, and lenders.

Practice Development and Client Relations

For partnership-level real estate attorney positions, business development capability becomes essential. Firms evaluate portable books of business carefully, seeking evidence of genuine client relationships and realistic revenue portability. The market has grown sophisticated in assessing what business actually moves with a lateral partner—transparency and documentation prove critical.

Beyond originations, successful real estate attorneys maintain strong relationships with existing clients, understand their business objectives and risk tolerance, and provide counsel that advances their goals efficiently. The ability to cross-sell services and collaborate with other practice groups adds significant value.

Market Knowledge and Industry Trends

Real estate markets evolve constantly. Strong candidates stay current with financing trends, understand how interest rate environments affect deal structures, recognize emerging property sectors like data centers and life sciences facilities, and adapt their practice accordingly. Knowledge of recent regulatory changes, market standards for deal terms, and regional variations in practice all demonstrate the sophistication employers seek.

Geographic Considerations for Real Estate Attorneys

For attorneys searching real estate attorney jobs near me, location significantly impacts both opportunity and practice focus. Major markets support the full range of sophisticated transactional work—large portfolio acquisitions, complex financing arrangements, major development projects, and high-value leasing transactions.

Regional markets throughout the Midwest and beyond offer compelling opportunities for real estate attorneys seeking meaningful work without the lifestyle trade-offs of the largest markets. These cities provide exposure to substantial commercial real estate activity, competitive compensation, and quality of life advantages that many attorneys prefer.

The Corporate Attorney Landscape

Corporate attorney positions at leading firms demand technical precision across multiple transaction types. The attorneys we place handle public and private M&A, private equity transactions, capital markets work, and corporate governance matters that require both deal experience and sound judgment.

Success in corporate practice requires mastery of complex transaction documents and structures. Stock purchase agreements and asset purchase agreements form the foundation, with disclosure schedules, earn-out provisions, representations and warranties insurance, closing conditions, required consents, and bring-down mechanics all demanding careful attention. Understanding how these pieces interact—and how to negotiate them effectively—separates competent attorneys from exceptional ones.

Core Practice Areas in Corporate Law

Mergers and Acquisitions

M&A work requires attorneys who can manage transactions from initial due diligence through closing and post-closing integration. This involves coordinating multiple workstreams: antitrust review and HSR filings, tax structuring, financing arrangements, compensation and benefits matters, and intellectual property considerations. The ability to keep deals moving while addressing these parallel issues defines successful M&A practitioners.

Public M&A brings additional complexity with SEC disclosure requirements, shareholder considerations, and heightened scrutiny of fairness issues. Private transactions require different skills—managing negotiation dynamics without the structured timeline of public deals, addressing seller concerns about earn-outs and indemnification, and structuring creative solutions to bridge valuation gaps.

Private Equity and Sponsor Work

Corporate attorney jobs increasingly focus on private equity transactions. Buyout structures, roll-up strategies, add-on acquisitions, and recapitalization transactions each present distinct legal and business considerations. Working effectively with financial sponsors and investment banks requires understanding their priorities, speaking their language, and structuring transactions that align with their investment theses.

The pace and volume of PE work demands efficiency without sacrificing quality. Sponsors value attorneys who can move quickly on platform acquisitions and add-on deals while maintaining attention to critical issues. Building these relationships and understanding sponsor expectations creates long-term client partnerships.

Capital Markets Practice

Corporate attorneys working in capital markets must understand securities regulations practically, not just theoretically. Regulation D offerings under Rules 504, 506(b), and 506(c) each carry different requirements and limitations. Rule 144 and Rule 144A transactions require navigating the interplay between exemptions and restrictions. When deals involve broker-dealers, Blue Sky requirements and FINRA considerations come into play.

Private offerings demand careful structuring and clear disclosure to avoid securities law violations. Public offerings involve managing SEC review processes, coordinating with underwriters, and addressing regulatory comments efficiently. The strongest candidates bring experience across the spectrum and understand how to advise clients on the optimal path for their capital-raising objectives.

Corporate Governance

Sophisticated corporate attorneys must understand fiduciary duties and conflict management, particularly under Delaware corporate law. Board-level conflicts, special committee processes, cleansing transactions, and the practical application of Delaware General Corporation Law provisions all arise regularly in deal contexts and corporate counseling.

Staying current with legal developments demonstrates commitment to excellence. Recent changes in corporate law affect how attorneys structure transactions and advise boards on conflict situations. Understanding these developments and applying them practically adds significant value for clients facing complex governance issues.

What Corporate Attorney Roles Demand

Technical Skills and Deal Management

Corporate attorney positions require the ability to manage sophisticated transactions. This means owning deal timelines, negotiating principal agreements, coordinating with complementary practice areas, and building teams to handle discrete workstreams efficiently. Strong candidates demonstrate clear judgment about when to push back on deal terms and when to find creative solutions that keep transactions moving.

Deal sheets provide the evidence employers evaluate. They look for your specific role in each transaction—lead counsel, co-lead, or supporting attorney. Deal size and complexity matter: enterprise value ranges, industry sectors, cross-border components, financing structures, and the critical issues you managed successfully. Generic descriptions don’t suffice; specificity demonstrates real involvement and responsibility.

Collaboration and Communication

Corporate work requires constant collaboration. You work with other practice groups on antitrust, tax, benefits, finance, and IP matters. You communicate with clients about business objectives, risk tolerance, and strategic priorities. You negotiate with opposing counsel to find acceptable middle ground. You manage internal teams to ensure work product meets standards and deadlines.

The attorneys who advance in corporate practice excel at these interpersonal dimensions. Technical excellence provides the foundation, but the ability to communicate clearly, manage relationships effectively, and exercise sound judgment in high-pressure situations determines long-term success.

Business Development

Partnership-level corporate attorney jobs require demonstrated ability to originate and maintain client relationships. Firms evaluate portable books of business carefully, seeking realistic assessments of trailing revenue and genuine evidence of client relationships that will transfer. The market understands that actual portable revenue typically runs lower than initially represented—transparency matters more than inflated projections.

Successful lateral partners bring not just current revenue but the capability to grow their practice at the new firm. This requires understanding the platform, identifying cross-selling opportunities, and building relationships with new colleagues who can help serve clients effectively.

Why Choose MB Attorney Search for Your Corporate or Real Estate Attorney Needs

Our Approach to Legal Placement

Over 25 years, Michelle Bigler has built MB Attorney Search on a foundation that goes beyond matching resumes to job descriptions. We understand the technical requirements, cultural fit factors, and business objectives that determine whether a placement succeeds long-term. This depth of understanding benefits both the attorneys we represent and the employers we serve.

For Attorneys Exploring New Opportunities

Working with MB Attorney Search means gaining a strategic advisor who invests in understanding your career trajectory. Michelle takes time to learn your practice strengths, professional development goals, and the type of firm culture where you’ll thrive. This understanding allows us to identify opportunities that genuinely align with your objectives—not just any open position, but the right position for you.

We prepare candidates thoroughly for interviews, provide candid market intelligence on compensation trends, and advocate for your interests throughout negotiations. The process remains completely confidential. We never share your information with potential employers without explicit permission. You maintain control over your search while benefiting from our market knowledge and extensive relationships.

For Employers Building Transactional Teams

Law firms and corporate legal departments partner with MB Attorney Search because we deliver candidates who meet technical requirements and fit your culture. We personally interview every candidate and present only attorneys we fully endorse. Our approach includes providing market intelligence you need to make competitive offers in today’s environment.

We view our role as actively marketing your organization. Every conversation represents an opportunity to express what makes your firm distinctive—your practice areas, client relationships, growth trajectory, culture, and opportunities for professional development. Whether a hire results from a specific conversation or not, we aim to leave every candidate with a positive impression of your firm.

For lateral partner searches, we help you evaluate portable business realistically, understand market compensation structures, and develop integration strategies that give new partners the best foundation for success. The firms that consistently attract top lateral talent recognize that recruitment extends beyond the hiring decision—thoughtful integration makes the difference between a successful lateral move and a disappointing one.