About Godrej Properties Limited
Godrej Properties brings the Godrej Group philosophy of innovation, sustainability, and excellence to the real estate industry. Each Godrej Properties development combines a 125-year legacy of excellence and trust with a commitment to cutting edge design, technology, and sustainability. In FY 2021, Godrej Properties emerged as the largest developer in India by the value and volume of residential sales achieved.Godrej Properties has deeply focused on sustainable development. In 2010, GPL committed that all of its developments would be third party certified green buildings. In 2020,2021 and again in 2022, the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark ranked GPL #1 globally amongst listed residential developers for its sustainability and ESG practices. In 2017, GPL was one of the founding partners of the Sustainable Housing Leadership Consortium (SHLC), whose mission is to spread sustainable development practices across the Indian real estate sector. In recent years, Godrej Properties has received over 300 awards and recognitions, including the Porter Prize 2019, The Most Trusted Real Estate Brand in the 2019 Brand Trust Report, Builder of the Year at the CNBC-Awaaz Real Estate Awards 2019, and The Economic Times Best Real Estate Brand 2018.
Role Overview
The Deputy General Manager (DGM) - Legal will oversee and manage the legal aspects of real estate transactions, litigation, documentation, customer agreements, and legal support for project and society formation. This role requires extensive knowledge of litigation, land laws, real estate regulations, and legal procedures, while also ensuring compliance with statutory requirements. The DGM will work closely with internal teams and external stakeholders, including solicitors, JV partners, and customers, providing strategic legal advice and supporting negotiation processes.
Key Responsibilities
- Litigation and Bills Management:
- Litigation:
- Handles litigation matters related to Consumer and RERA cases, with in-depth knowledge of Maharashtra land laws and society formation-related issues.
- Verifies bills from solicitors/advocates, ensuring the timely processing of payments.
- Ensures compliance with timelines (TAT) for litigation and timely payments.
- Deal Evaluation and Documentation:
- Land Records and Due Diligence:
- Conducts thorough due diligence on land records (titles, deeds, and potential cases) as per the due diligence checklist before meetings with JV Partners.
- Reviews statutory compliance for real estate and all applicable laws, advising business development teams during negotiations with JV Partners and their legal teams.
- Assists in determining the legal structure of the deal (revenue, area, profit-sharing models) in consultation with legal consultants.
- Maintains comprehensive documentation of land records and related transactions.
- Ensures effective negotiation with JV Partners and their advocates/solicitors.
- Drafting Agreements:
- Coordinates with external legal firms for the drafting of various legal documents, such as Development Agreements, Term Sheets, Affidavits, Indemnities, Power of Attorney, Bank Guarantees, Share Purchase Certificates, etc.
- Ensures timely approval and finalization of agreements from the Head Office (HO).
- Customer Documentation and Support:
- Customer Agreements:
- Gathers inputs from cross-functional teams to prepare customer agreements and ancillary documents for both new and existing projects.
- Coordinates with external legal consultants to finalize draft agreements, such as Apartment Buyer Agreements, possession schedules, payment terms, and delay clauses.
- Reviews and finalizes clauses in customer agreements in consultation with HO, ensuring timely and accurate documentation.
- Manages the entire process of stamp duty and registration for legal documents.
- Legal Support in Society/Association Formation:
- Society/Association Formation:
- Handles all legal formalities for society/association formation, including registration, drafting of conveyance/sales deeds, and lease deeds.
- Engages with the Society/Association for finalizing necessary deeds and documents.
- Legal Advisory Support:
- Internal Legal Advisory:
- Provides timely legal advice to internal departments on legal concerns or queries impacting various business functions.
- Reviews contracts prepared by the Contracts team, ensuring legal controls and checkpoints are integrated.
- Contributes to the creation and maintenance of a knowledge repository regarding laws, regulations, and by-laws pertaining to the real estate industry.
- Customer Legal Support:
- Provides required documentation for customers, such as documents related to housing loans, name additions, or property transfers.
- Advises customers on stamp duty and other relevant legal regulations.
- Litigation Representation:
- Court Representation:
- Represents the company in court hearings, particularly in Consumer Litigation cases.
- Provides support in arbitration matters, ensuring the company’s interests are represented effectively.
- Process Adherence and Improvement:
- Compliance and Process Adherence:
- Complies with company-defined legal guidelines, processes, and project timelines.
- Ensures high process compliance levels, continuously striving for improvements in efficiency.
- Process Improvement:
- Identifies opportunities to improve processes and recommends ideas to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and improve productivity within the legal function.
- Actively participates in process improvement initiatives to streamline legal operations.
- People Development and Learning:
- Self-Development and Learning:
- Identifies self-development needs and takes proactive steps to enhance legal expertise through training, education, and project involvement.
- Works effectively as a team player, continuously acquiring new skills and contributing to the development of the legal team.
Who are we looking for?
Required Skills & Experience
- LLB with 15+ years of relevant legal experience in real estate, litigation, or related fields.
- Strong knowledge of Maharashtra land laws, real estate regulations, RERA, and statutory compliance.
- Proven experience in managing legal documentation and advising on deal structures.
- Excellent negotiation and communication skills, with the ability to engage with external legal consultants, JV partners, and internal stakeholders.
- In-depth experience in handling consumer litigation, arbitration matters, and real estate disputes.
- Ability to manage multiple tasks efficiently while ensuring adherence to legal and process guidelines.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):
- Effective and timely closure of deals with minimal legal disputes.
- Accurate and timely documentation and legal agreements.
- Timely processing of litigation-related bills and payments.
- Zero delays in the formation of societies/associations and related legal documentation.
- Contributions to the knowledge repository and successful implementation of process improvements.
An inclusive Godrej
Before you go, there is something important we want to highlight. There is no place for discrimination at Godrej. Diversity is the philosophy of who we are as a company. And has been for over a century. It’s not just in our DNA and nice to do. Being more diverse - especially having our team members reflect the diversity of our businesses and communities - helps us innovate better and grow faster. We hope this resonates with you.We take pride in being an equal opportunities employer. We recognize merit and encourage diversity. We do not tolerate any form of discrimination on the basis of nationality, race, color, religion, caste, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, age, or marital status and ensure equal opportunities for all our team members.If this sounds like a role for you, apply now!We look forward to meeting you.
