Real Estate Development Legal Director

JMC Legal Recruitment Limited; West Yorkshire; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

JMC Legal Recruitment Limited is seeking a senior Real Estate Development lawyer for the Leeds office. You will advise housing associations, local authorities, developers, investors and funders on the full span of property and development work, from land assembly to funding.

The culture emphasizes flexibility and trust, with growth and collaboration across offices. The role offers ownership of key client relationships and a platform to shape the practice’s development trajectory within a Legal

Qualifications

• Solicitor with 8+ years PQE in real estate development.
• Experience running complex development mandates independently.
• Established client relationships and ability to win new work.
• Experience leading and developing a team.
• Commercially astute with current development market awareness.
• Following is welcome but not required.
• Collaborative and able to operate across offices at senior level.

Responsibilities

• Own client relationships and lead on the firm's most complex development mandates.
• Advise on strategic land acquisition, site assembly, plots, joint ventures and development funding.
• Work across housing, regeneration, health and education sectors.
• Lead the Leeds practice growth and build the team beneath you.

Skills

Real estate development

Client relationship management

Leadership and mentorship

Commercial acumen

Collaborative working across offices

Business development

Following is welcome but not required

Job description

Real Estate Development Legal Director | 8+ Years PQE | Top 100 Firm | Leeds

A senior opportunity for a Real Estate Development lawyer to take a leading role in a Legal 500 ranked team acting on regeneration, housing and development schemes for public and private sector clients. What sets it apart is the working culture. Flexibility here is not a policy to be negotiated, it is simply how the team operates.

The Firm

This is a Top 100 UK firm with a Legal 500 ranked real estate practice, in a sustained period of growth and expansion across its offices.

The firm has built its reputation not just on the quality of its work, but on how it treats its people. There is a genuinely grown up culture here: no unnecessary presenteeism, no rigid expectations around office attendance, and no sense that flexibility needs to be earned. You will be trusted to do your job and supported to do it well. That culture has not come at the expense of growth. The business has grown consistently year on year and is firmly on an upward trajectory, while remaining a place where output matters more than optics.

The Role

You will join the Leeds team as a senior figure within a national development practice, advising housing associations, local authorities, developers, investors and funders on the full span of property and development work, from strategic land acquisition and site assembly through to plot sales, joint ventures and development funding. The firm's strength in the public and regulated sectors means the work has a dimension most development practices cannot offer. Schemes frequently sit across housing, regeneration, health and education, which gives you real breadth and a client base that keeps instructing rather than transacting once and disappearing.

At this level the role goes beyond the files. You will own client relationships outright, lead on the firm's most complex development mandates, and take a meaningful part in how the Leeds practice grows, from winning work to building and developing the team beneath you. The structure is national and genuinely collaborative, so your profile and influence are not confined to one office.

The Ideal Candidate

• Solicitor at 8+ years PQE with substantial real estate development experience
• A track record of running complex development mandates independently
• Established client relationships, and the credibility to win and hold new ones
• Experience leading, supervising and developing a team
• Commercially astute, with a clear view of the current development landscape
• A following is welcome but not a requirement given the existing workflow
• Collaborative, and comfortable operating across offices at a senior level

What’s on Offer

• A senior role in a Legal 500 ranked practice within a Top 100 firm
• Complex, high value development work across the public and private sectors
• Ownership of client relationships and a say in how the practice develops
• A national platform and real visibility with the firm's leadership
• Competitive salary and strong benefits package

To find out more, contact Ollie Fearon at [e-mail] or call 07441 937638