Retail Development
Cox, Castle & Nicholson LLP consists of attorneys with substantial expertise in every aspect of retail development, from acquiring and developing retail projects (including mixed-use projects with retail components) to leasing up projects and to disposing of improved shopping centers. Our business-oriented approach to the drafting and negotiation of the many documents needed for a successful development provides our clients with tremendous value.
With one of the largest concentrations of attorneys in California devoted primarily to retail development and leasing, we have extensive experience in representing developers in connection with all aspects of retail development and for all types of retail projects, including regional malls, entertainment/lifestyle centers, community centers, and mixed-use projects. Among other things, our attorneys are experts in sales and acquisitions, design, engineering and construction contracts, reciprocal easement agreements, development and management agreements, listing agreements, and leasing. Our retail attorneys work closely with our other real estate attorneys, who have special expertise in such areas as joint ventures, finance, land use, zoning and environmental matters, hazardous materials, insurance coverage, bankruptcy, tax, and construction. This close cooperation provides our retail development clients with comprehensive legal services.
We have expertise in the negotiation and documentation of all types of retail leases. Our experience includes the representation of developers for premises within regional malls, power centers, entertainment/lifestyle centers, community shopping centers and neighborhood shopping centers in a variety of different lease transactions, including build-to-suit leases, reverse build-to-suit leases, pad leases, major tenant leases, and shop leases. In addition, we have significant experience representing developers in the ground leasing of real estate.
Over the years, we have represented developers and landlords of a significant number of retail and mixed-use projects. As a result, we have successfully completed multiple transactions with most national and regional tenants, including nearly all “big box,” major power center, and neighborhood center tenants and most regional mall and entertainment/lifestyle center tenants. Based primarily on our experience and familiarity with virtually all national and regional tenants and our resulting understanding of the fundamental needs of retailers, we are able to complete retail leasing transactions in a thorough, expeditious, and cost-effective manner.
As the development of a retail center sometimes involves the sale of parcels to department stores and anchor (or pad-site) retailers, we also have extensive experience in the representation of developers and retailers in the sale and acquisition of portions of land within a retail center and the preparation of corresponding purchase and sales agreements, reciprocal easement agreements, development agreements and other agreements common to the acquisition, development, and construction of retail projects. Such agreements range in complexity from the relatively simple reciprocal easement agreement necessitated by the sale of a pad site within a neighborhood or community center to the exceedingly complex construction, operation, and reciprocal easement agreements used in the development of major mixed-use developments or regional malls.
We also have substantial experience in structuring, negotiating, and documenting land acquisitions and transactions involving large income-producing properties. In addition, we have the capacity to effectively perform and manage any due diligence review in connection with any acquisition. We also have significant experience in structuring real estate dispositions with particular emphasis on minimizing residual liability.
Our Firm’s retail attorneys are actively involved with the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC), Urban Land Institute (ULI), Association of Corporate Real Estate Executives (ACRE), and other similar real estate trade organizations, which, together with the depth of exposure to all varieties of real estate transactions, has enabled us to understand the business objectives of real estate developers and the current real estate market. We closely monitor all federal and state legislative and regulatory developments relating to the development of retail projects. We pride ourselves on our ability to keep abreast of and contribute to the rapidly changing legal environment for the retail development community. With the extensive breadth of its experience and knowledge, we can provide any retail developer with unmatched service and expertise in a cost-effective manner.
