Senior Legal Counsel - Property

Company Description

Join one of New Zealand's most recognised retail groups and play a key role in shaping the future of our property portfolio.

We're looking for an experienced property lawyer to join our highly regarded in-house legal team. This is a role that offers genuine scope, autonomy and flexibility, while working alongside talented colleagues in a supportive and collaborative environment.

At The Warehouse Group, we're proud to be home to some of Aotearoa's most iconic brands, including The Warehouse, Warehouse Stationery and Noel Leeming. Together, we're focused on creating relevant and meaningful experiences for our customers and communities across New Zealand.

Job Description

Reporting to our Chief Legal, Corporate Affairs & Sustainability Officer, you'll be a trusted advisor and an integral member of our legal team.  Your primary focus will be supporting The Warehouse Group's extensive property portfolio, providing strategic and practical legal advice across a broad range of property matters, including:

• Lease renewals and rent reviews
• Negotiation and drafting of commercial leases and related agreements
• New store acquisitions and developments
• Property transactions and projects
• Managing legal risks across our primarily retail property portfolio
• Building strong partnerships with internal stakeholders and external partners
• Ability to assist with other broadly connected areas which may include commercial, consumer, insurance, construction or other fields would be considered desirable.

This is a role where you'll be trusted to operate with a high degree of independence while remaining closely connected to the wider legal and business teams.  Our legal team is small, so given capacity/workload, there is a degree of ‘flow to work’ so you will be expected to support in other areas outside of property from time to time.

As a team, we're also exploring how AI can help us work smarter and create more capacity for complex, high-value legal work. You'll have the opportunity to contribute to this journey, whether through existing experience or simply a curiosity and willingness to embrace new ways of working.

We anticipate this role being full-time, however we're open to discussing a 4-day week for the right candidate.

Qualifications

You're a commercially minded lawyer who enjoys building strong relationships and finding pragmatic solutions. You can confidently translate complex legal issues into clear, practical advice and thrive in a collaborative environment.

You'll ideally bring:

• A current New Zealand practising certificate (or eligibility to obtain one)
• Minimum 8+ years' PQE, gained in private practice and/or in-house
• Strong expertise in commercial property law
• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills
• A proactive and adaptable approach, with the ability to navigate a dynamic and evolving business
• An interest in innovation, including how AI can support legal teams to work more effectively

Additional Information

When you join The Warehouse Group, you'll enjoy a range of benefits that support your career, wellbeing and lifestyle, including:

• Team member discounts across our brands
• Birthday leave
• Free parking at our Northshore Support Office
• A collaborative and flexible working environment, including one work-from-home day each week (Friday)
• Onsite gym and café
• Wellbeing initiatives and professional development opportunities

This is a unique opportunity to combine high-quality property work with the scale, variety and visibility that comes from supporting one of New Zealand's largest retail groups.  Interested? Apply now. We'd love to hear from you.