Senior Associate Counsel - Litigation

Fairstead is a purpose-driven real estate firm dedicated to building affordable communities across the country. Headquartered in New York, with offices in Colorado, Florida, and Washington DC, Fairstead owns and manages a portfolio of more than 30,000 apartments, including pipeline, across 28 states. As an integrated owner, operator, and innovator, Fairstead brings development, construction, and property management under one unified platform to deliver high-quality affordable housing that serves our residents at scale.

At Fairstead, we believe affordable housing should be thoughtfully designed, professionally managed, and responsibly operated. We seek to create and preserve housing that serves residents while delivering long-term value to communities, partners, and stakeholders.

Fairstead challenges industry norms through our tech-forward, entrepreneurial approach to affordable housing. In addition to core real estate capabilities, we operate innovative service lines designed to improve resident outcomes, strengthen communities, and drive operational efficiency. We embrace digital transformation, data-driven decision-making, and emerging technologies, including AI, to build scalable systems that support sustainable growth, grounded in a culture of entrepreneurship, innovation, partnership, dedication, and integrity.

Fairstead is seeking a Senior Litigation Attorney to join our in-house legal team. This role will manage a broad and varied docket of commercial, corporate, and employment litigation and dispute resolution matters arising across the firm's businesses. The ideal candidate is a seasoned commercial litigator who has handled complex, high-stakes matters in the New York State Supreme Court (including the Commercial Division), the Delaware Court of Chancery and Superior Court, federal court, and arbitration, and who is equally comfortable running the regulatory, investigative, employment, and routine commercial matters that come with a large operating platform. This is a hands-on role for someone who can carry many matters at once and serve as both a strategic advisor and an advocate.

Responsibilities

• Oversee and have primary responsibility for all phases of litigation, arbitration, and regulatory proceedings, including pre-suit strategy, pleadings, discovery, motions practice, hearings, trial, and appeals
• Manage outside counsel on complex matters, including supervising strategy, reviewing work product, and controlling legal spend
• Handle or oversee a wide range of disputes, including:
• Complex commercial and corporate: contract disputes, business torts and fraud claims, partnership, LLC, and joint venture disputes, breach of fiduciary duty and books-and-records demands, governance and control disputes, advancement and indemnification, lender/borrower and guaranty disputes, and post-closing purchase price, earn-out, and indemnity claims
• Employment and HR: discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, wage and hour, restrictive covenant, and executive separation matters, including administrative charges and agency proceedings (EEOC, NYSDHR, NYCCHR, DOL)
• Routine commercial disputes: vendor, supplier, and service provider claims, collections, insurance coverage and tenders, subrogation, and pre-litigation demands and settlements
• Regulatory, investigative, and administrative: federal, state, and local agency investigations and enforcement proceedings, attorney general inquiries, subpoenas and civil investigative demands, licensing and permitting disputes, audits and examinations, and compliance-related claims
• Respond to government and regulatory inquiries, including managing document productions, witness preparation, internal investigations, and negotiated resolutions with agencies
• Serve as the day-to-day point of contact for business teams, HR, compliance, and finance on threatened and pending disputes, and resolve routine matters directly without outside counsel where appropriate
• Work with compliance and business teams to convert regulatory findings and litigation outcomes into policy and process fixes
• Brief senior leadership and board members on material litigation matters
• Manage litigation holds, preservation obligations, and the company's discovery and e-discovery processes
• Assist with contract drafting and negotiation across business lines to minimize future dispute risk
• Partner with business teams early in transactions, hiring decisions, and project planning to identify and mitigate litigation exposure across the firm's operations
• Help build and refine litigation management systems, including matter tracking, budget forecasting, and reporting

Requirements

• J.D. from an accredited law school
• Active bar membership in NY; admission or ability to waive into additional jurisdictions preferred
• 15+ years of complex commercial and corporate litigation experience
• Substantial first-chair or lead-role experience in the New York State Supreme Court (including the Commercial Division), the Delaware Court of Chancery and Superior Court, comparable complex commercial courts in other jurisdictions, federal district court, and arbitration (AAA, JAMS)
• Demonstrated ability to manage a high volume of simultaneous matters across subject areas - from significant commercial and corporate disputes to routine HR and vendor matters - without losing control of deadlines, budgets, or strategy
• Experience handling government and regulatory matters, including investigations, subpoenas and civil investigative demands, enforcement actions, and administrative proceedings
• Proven track record taking cases through trial, arbitration, or dispositive resolution
• Experience supervising outside counsel and managing litigation budgets
• Willingness and ability to handle routine employment and commercial disputes personally, not solely through outside counsel
• Strong drafting, negotiation, and oral advocacy skills
• Sound business judgment and a practical, risk-calibrated approach to dispute resolution

Preferred

• Prior in-house experience at an operating company or similarly complex organization
• Service as a partner or of counsel at a law firm, with demonstrated ownership of client relationships and a portfolio of matters
• Experience with Delaware corporate and alternative entity litigation, including fiduciary duty, Section 220, and advancement and indemnification proceedings
• Depth in employment litigation and HR-adjacent counseling and investigations
• Experience with regulated industries and with attorney general, agency, or other governmental enforcement matters
• Experience with alternative dispute resolution (mediation, arbitration)
• Familiarity with insurance coverage, tenders, and working with carrier-appointed counsel
• Exposure to real estate, construction, or housing-sector disputes is welcome but not required

Exact compensation may vary based on skills, experience, and location.

Salary Range

$225,000—$325,000 USD

Diversity in backgrounds and experiences is key to Fairstead’s success. Being an equal opportunity employer is a central tenet of our philosophy that shapes who we are and the communities we serve. Our goal is to ensure competitive total compensation that is commensurate with experience, location, and other market benchmarks.

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