Description
Director, Legal & Loan Operations

The Opportunity

Reporting to the Senior Vice President, Risk, Legal & Finance (the "SVP"), the Director, Legal & Loan Operations (the "Director") will lead MarshallZehr's legal and loan operations function across mortgage funding, documentation, transaction compliance and administration. The Director will also assist the SVP and assigned file leads with legal documentation and administrative requirements for special loans, enforcement, restructurings, and joint ventures. The Director will lead the assigned team, including Legal Analysts, and work with internal teams, external counsel, and other advisors to complete transactions and assigned supporting work.

This is a hands-on leadership role focused on day-to-day funding and administration, with opportunities to assist on complex files as well as direct coaching and mentoring of direct reports. Initially, the Director will own funding readiness, loan documentation, routine counsel coordination and administration, while assisting with document preparation, approval tracking and follow-up on special loans and related matters as requested. MarshallZehr relies on external counsel for legal advice; qualification as a lawyer is not required. This is a new vacancy.

The Role

People Operations:

• Lead the assigned team, including Legal Analysts, with responsibility for workload allocation, coaching, performance reviews, and employee development initiatives.
• Set departmental objectives, service expectations, and quality standards; establish backup coverage and maintain visibility over capacity and deadlines.
• Resolve routine operational issues prior to issues becoming unmanageable and report on performance, outstanding exceptions and resource requirements to the SVP.

Mortgage Funding:

• Own the consolidated closing and funding-readiness process for new loans, subsequent advances, amendments, renewals, assignments, and discharges.
• Translate approved terms into clear requirements and timelines; coordinate borrowers, lending partners, external counsel, insurance consultants, and internal teams.
• Ensure required documentation, disclosures, consents, and conditions are completed and evidenced, including confirmation of credit and finance approvals from the responsible teams.
• Oversee funding packages, advance statements, and directions, ensuring consistency with approved terms, lender participations, fees, and administrative arrangements.
• Identify unresolved items, escalate proposed exceptions, and hold the operational release of a funding package where required approvals or conditions remain outstanding.
• Manage the ordinary-course relationship and workflow with external counsel, providing complete instructions within approved parameters and tracking tasks through completion.
• Prepare and review commitment letters, amendments, and other transaction documents for consistency with approved terms; refer legal interpretation and substantive legal issues to counsel.
• Coordinate security, participation, administration, and interlender documentation, including required execution, registration confirmations and closing reports.

Mortgage Administration:

• Track undertakings, deficiencies, and post-closing obligations to resolution; maintain complete, accessible, executed documents and legal records.
• Ensure approved loan changes, assignments, payouts, and discharges are documented and accurately reflected in operational records and communicated to the finance and mortgage operations teams.
• Work with the mortgage operations team, which retain responsibility for credit analysis, project performance and routine portfolio monitoring. Provide accurate file information for consolidated portfolio and committee reporting.

Special Loans, Restructurings and Joint Venture Support:

• Assist the SVP and assigned file leads with special loans and recovery matters, including maintaining relevant records and following up on assigned documentation and administrative tasks.
• Assist with documentation and administrative steps for approved forbearance arrangements, loan restructurings, settlements, enforcement steps, and asset sales, liaising with external counsel and other advisors as directed.
• Help assemble file information, required documents, consents and outstanding items for review by the SVP, assigned file lead, and external counsel; flag issues requiring their attention.
• Assist with agreements, required approvals, closing documentation and records for approved joint ventures and other ownership or recovery arrangements, working with finance and the responsible project or asset lead.
• Follow up on assigned consents, undertakings, and document requests, and provide progress updates to the file lead and those responsible for consolidated reporting and committee materials. Overall file management, recovery strategy and special loans coordination remain with the designated leads.

Mortgage Discharge Support:

• Oversee preparation of payout and discharge documentation, payment requisitions, and counsel instructions, obtaining required approvals and confirming completion and accurate records.
• Coordinate with finance on payment execution and reconciliations. Credit decisions, material exceptions, changes to commercial terms, enforcement and recovery strategy, joint-venture commitments, and final disbursement authority remain with the designated decision-makers, subject to required lender or partner consents.

Compliance Monitoring:

• Own transaction-level compliance procedures and evidence, including applicable disclosures, identity verification, consents, and recordkeeping in coordination with the Principal Broker and designated compliance personnel.
• Maintain assigned compliance calendars, file reviews, and remediation tracking; coordinate information and records for audits, regulatory reviews, and approved submissions.
• Implement approved regulatory and policy changes in operational procedures, templates, and team training.

Administration:

• Review and track legal invoices against the work instructed, investigate discrepancies, and route invoices for approval.
• Coordinate documentation and administrative requirements for onboarding lending partners and establishing their mortgage administration arrangements.
• Own the maintenance and version control of loan templates, precedents, checklists, and procedures, obtaining appropriate internal and external legal approval for substantive changes.
• Improve workflows and use of Navigator and other systems to reduce rework, strengthen records, and make closing status and exceptions visible.
• Establish clear handoffs and source-data responsibilities across teams and train staff on approved procedures and document standards.
• As the mandate develops, coordinate corporate contracts, broader policy and document standards, and selected governance processes. Responsibilities will be allocated alongside finance and other cross functional teams, respecting finance's ownership of accounting policies, financial controls, and assigned governance administration.

What Are We Looking For?

• Minimum experience of 3-8 years as a law clerk, senior law clerk, senior legal specialist, or similar - specifically within the real estate industry.
• A law clerk or paralegal diploma or relevant post-secondary education is an asset; equivalent practical experience will be considered. Qualification as a lawyer is not required.
• Substantial progressive experience in commercial mortgage funding, secured lending documentation, or legal operations, ideally including construction and development lending.
• A strong legal documentation background, such as experience as a senior commercial real estate law clerk or a mortgage funding or operations manager. Residential conveyancing alone would not provide the full experience required.
• Demonstrated experience leading a team, developing staff, reviewing others' work, and taking accountability for delivery, with experience improving lending workflows and coordinating external legal counsel considered particularly relevant.
• Working knowledge of mortgage security, funding conditions, priorities, undertakings, amendments, and discharges.
• Exceptional attention to detail and organization, with the judgment to distinguish routine matters from issues requiring legal advice, credit approval, or executive direction.
• Clear written and verbal communication, confidence in dealing with external counsel and commercial stakeholders, and the ability to manage competing deadlines.
• Experience maintaining procedures, checklists, and document standards together with proficiency in Microsoft Office and comfort learning lending and workflow systems.
• Will be required to obtain a mortgage agent license through FSRA (paid for by the company).
• Successful candidates must meet regulatory and licensing requirements, including background screening prior to the commencement of employment.

Preferred Requirements:

• Experience with syndicated or participated mortgages, multiple lending partners, and construction advances. Exposure to loan enforcement, insolvency proceedings, workouts, restructurings, or real estate joint ventures is an asset.

Work Environment

• MarshallZehr offices are open Monday to Friday, and employees are expected to work on site a minimum of 4 days per week, with the option of working remotely 1 day per week, as agreed to by the direct supervisor.
• Our Waterloo office has 16,000 square feet of modern and accessible space and has been specially updated and tailored to meet our business needs. The result is a world-class workspace that empowers deep collaboration, reinforces business operations with state-of-the-art technology infrastructure, and offers more space to enable our sustained team expansion. We also have a satellite office in downtown Toronto, available for business meetings.

Salary Range

$110,000-$130,000 annually plus bonus incentives

Interested applicants can apply directly by visiting www.marshallzehr.com/careers

Compensation

$110,000.00 - $130,000.00 per year