Jim Harris

About

Advises and operates through a lens of in-house risk management with respect to legal, business and retail real estate matters.    

Jim has over 34 years of in-house retail legal and real estate experience.  His expertise focuses on domestic and international legal department structure, management and handling complex real estate projects.  Jim assesses and drives assignments to completion through engagement with internal and external partners, stakeholders and law firms.  Jim uses his retail business experience and knowledge to assess/resolve legal or business issues.  He is a servant leader emphasizing teamwork, collaboration and transparency to get the best results.             

Experience

• Manages large and small in-house legal teams and network of outside counsel.  Provides oversight and expertise to resolve matters or issues quickly.  Negotiates alternative law firm fee arrangements.
• Team leader for complex multiparty domestic and international retail flagship projects.  Expanded Victoria’s Secret into Europe and Asia.  Assessed and re-organized in-house legal team at The Seiyu, Ltd. Tokyo, Japan for Wal-Mart International.  Works closely with in-country law firms and understands cultural challenges.  Delivers projects on time with favorable lease terms.  Sets parameters for successful lease negotiations with cross functional teams.  Approaches negotiations in a non-adversarial mutual beneficial team approach.  
• Mentors and guides attorneys, paralegals, assistants and business partners.  Works closely with store design and construction, finance and c-suite executives to deliver aggressive retail store opening goals.
• Responsible for organizing, training, and implementing real estate legal procedures and processes.
• Advises c-suite executives regarding legal and business guidance on wide variety of commercial contract, lease administrative issues, co-tenancy, tenant termination rights, general corporate, risk management, litigation, claims management, premise liability, e-discovery and FCPA compliance.  
• Successfully analyzes and implements organizational change, when needed.  
• Provides real estate due diligence guidance for acquisition or disposition matters.