Ruth J. Mitchell

Ruth J. Mitchell is a commercial real estate attorney and trusted business advisor who represents developers, homebuilders, investors, property owners, landlords, tenants, lenders, and medical and other operating businesses in a broad range of real estate transactions and development matters. Her practice spans the full real estate life cycle, including acquisitions and dispositions, development, leasing, financing, title and survey matters, easements and other development agreements, entity formation and governance, joint venture and entity structuring, and the real estate aspects of broader corporate and M&A transactions.

Before returning to private practice, Ruth spent nearly a decade as in-house real estate counsel for Hillwood Development Company, a Perot company, and Ashton Woods Homes, a national homebuilder and developer. That experience shapes her practical, business-focused approach to legal issues and gives her a firsthand understanding of the operational needs, timing considerations and risk-allocation decisions that drive real estate transactions. Ruth understands that legal documents are only one piece of a transaction. She works to understand each client’s business, risk tolerance and ultimate objectives and actively participates in the decision-making process from the earliest stages of a deal through closing and post-closing matters. By anticipating practical and operational issues and evaluating risk in the context of the client’s broader objectives, Ruth develops workable solutions that keep transactions moving forward.

Ruth has particular depth in residential land development and homebuilding, while maintaining a broad practice across other areas of commercial real estate. She advises clients on raw land acquisitions and dispositions, to-be-finished and finished lot transactions, phased lot takedowns, and the acquisition and disposition of development pods for single-family residential communities. Her development work includes development and annexation agreements, plats and declarations, easements and rights-of-way, reciprocal easement and access agreements, utility matters, oil and gas easements and interests, encroachments, municipal requirements, infrastructure and construction obligations, development schedules, title and survey issues, and other matters affecting the development, use and marketability of real property. Ruth also represents clients in the acquisition and disposition of a broad range of commercial real estate assets, including retail and shopping center properties, office properties, medical facilities and other commercial assets.

Ruth also has substantial experience in office, retail and medical leasing, including leases, subleases, amendments, renewals and assignments, as well as SNDAs and subordinations, real estate financing and lender matters, due diligence, closings and post-closing obligations. Ruth frequently coordinates with business teams, title companies, surveyors, engineers, municipalities, lenders and other stakeholders to identify issues early and develop workable solutions that advance the client’s business objectives.

Ruth also serves as outside real estate counsel to operating companies with multi-state portfolios. Her work includes advising a national network of physician-led medical aesthetic practices on its real estate portfolio, acquisitions of practices and locations around the country, leasing and subleasing, portfolio strategy, and the real estate aspects of broader corporate and M&A transactions. She helps operating companies evaluate and manage real estate considerations associated with acquisitions, dispositions, expansions and other business initiatives.

This combination of in-house and private-practice experience allows Ruth to function as an extension of her clients’ internal teams and to provide advice grounded in both legal analysis and commercial reality.

Representation matters, how Ruth J. Mitchell represents her clients:

• Represent national and regional homebuilders and residential developers in acquisitions and dispositions of raw land, to-be-finished lots, finished lots and development pods, including phased takedown structures, development obligations, construction deadlines, infrastructure requirements and related development documentation.
• Represent developers and property owners in development matters involving easements and rights-of-way, reciprocal easement and access agreements, utilities, oil and gas matters, encroachments, plats, declarations and restrictive covenants, municipal development and annexation agreements, and infrastructure obligations.
• Represent buyers and sellers in acquisitions and dispositions of retail, shopping-center, office and other assets, including the negotiation of letters of intent, purchase and sale agreements, due diligence, title and survey resolution, acquisition financing, closing and post-closing matters.
• Serve as outside real estate counsel to a premier national network of physician-led medical aesthetic practices in connection with its real estate portfolio and acquisitions of practices throughout the United States, including leasing, subleasing, real estate diligence, acquisition matters and portfolio strategy.
• Managed the real estate components of an approximately $70 million transaction involving a New York portfolio of four existing locations as part of a merger and acquisition, including lease and sublease structuring, diligence, transaction documentation and broader real estate strategy.
• Represent landlords and tenants in office, retail and medical leasing matters, including leases, subleases, amendments, renewals, assignments, SNDAs, estoppels and related agreements.
• Advise clients on title, survey, easement, access, utility and development issues that could affect the acquisition, financing, construction, use or disposition of property, coordinating with title companies, surveyors, engineers, municipalities and other stakeholders to resolve those matters.
• Advise clients on entity formation and governance, joint venture structuring and entity matters, and related corporate matters in connection with real estate investments, development projects, acquisitions and other business transactions.