What are the responsibilities and job description for the Commercial Real Estate Paralegal position at Fawkes IDM?
Responsibilities:
- Assist attorneys in all aspects of commercial real estate transactions from contracts and loan commitments through closing and post-closing.
- Draft and/or review and analyze all required correspondence and commercial purchase and sale, lease, loan, tax and escrow documents, including, but not limited to: Letters of Intent, Purchase and Sale Agreements, Escrow Instructions, Deeds of Trust, Promissory Notes, Releases of Liens, Continuing Guaranties, Loan Agreements, Environmental Indemnity Agreements, Leases, Estoppel Certificates, UCC forms and Security Agreements.
- Assist with commercial real estate due diligence, including title and survey reviews, title objection letters, lease reviews, municipal lien searches, and UCC, judgment, litigation and lien searches.
- Coordinate transaction from the beginning through close of escrow in preparation of commercial and municipal real estate deals, which includes affordable and public housing transactions.
- Prepare organizational documents and assist in entity formation.
- Prepare closing checklists, critical date timelines, title commitments, title policies, closing statements, title and other affidavits, entity authorizations, customary closing documentation, etc.
- Responsible for closing binders and assisting with other aspects of the transactions as needed, both locally and nationally.
- Provide coordination efforts with respect to documentation and closing of real estate transactions, including sales, purchases, leases and financing.
- Serve as liaison between legal team and client to assure quality and timely response. Daily contact (in person, in writing, or on the telephone) with clients, opposing counsel, brokers, as well as title and escrow officers, while demonstrating a positive attitude with professionalism, courtesy, and appropriate tact and discretion in all interactions.
- Assist in performing due diligence review, including hiring consultants, corporate or other entity status (obtaining good standing certificates and certified copies of formation documents from Secretaries of State), review and analysis of environmental studies, surveys and preliminary title reports, maps and underlying title documents.
- Online research using Westlaw, Lexis, various Secretary of State business portals, Board of Equalization, State and Federal Tax Form portals and County and City portals.
- Select, assemble, summarize and compile substantive information by use of federal, state and local agency statutes, regulations, ordinances, resolutions, digests, commentaries, legal instruments and other materials/sources of information specific to the applicable practice area.
- Conduct legal, public records, and other research relating to simple and complex matters. Summarize findings and recommend proposed courses of action and/or solutions to the assigning attorney; is knowledgeable about internet research sources; assists with problem formulation, data collection, and analysis as needed by the assigning attorney.
- Prepare legal documents and correspondence applicable to the practice area in draft and final forms – including redline, as directed by the assigning attorney, and utilizes independent judgment to determine proper distribution; proofread legal documents and correspondence and make required corrections in spelling, grammar and punctuation.
- Perform research and analysis of real property legal descriptions, property ownership, property profiles, title reports, leases, licenses and contracts.
- Must possess a paralegal certificate from an ABA-approved program OR accredited post-secretary institution
- Minimum of four years of specific paralegal experience working in commercial real estate in a law firm
