- Represented a national shopping center owner and operator on leasing across a multi-state portfolio, including supermarket leases, home improvement store lease, ground leases with restaurant and bank tenants, and anchor and junior-anchor leases with national retailers.
- Represented a real estate investment trust in retail and office leasing at a transit-oriented, mixed-use development in Somerville, Massachusetts, with tenants spanning entertainment, dining, fitness, and specialty retail.
- Represented a real estate developer in multi-property acquisitions and dispositions in California, including negotiation of site development and construction agreements, reciprocal easement agreements, and leases ranging from home improvement stores to department store anchors.
- Represented a food processing and distribution company in leasing processing and distribution facilities.
Melissa S. Rivers
Director, Real Estate Practice Group
Melissa represents developers, landlords, and tenants in the transactions that shape commercial real estate, with a particular focus on retail and mixed-use development and leasing. Her experience spans the full life cycle of commercial real estate projects—from acquisitions, dispositions, financing, and development through leasing, construction, repositioning, and ongoing property operations.
Her practice is grounded in commercial leasing, with extensive experience negotiating retail, office, and industrial leases on behalf of both landlords and tenants. At the same time, her broader transactional experience allows her to understand how individual leasing decisions fit within the larger objectives of a development or investment. She handles the leases, easements, development agreements, construction agreements, purchase and sale agreements, and other documents that bring commercial real estate projects from concept through completion.
Whether representing a developer assembling and leasing a new mixed-use project, a landlord repositioning an existing retail or office property, or a tenant evaluating expansion and footprint opportunities, Melissa brings a practical, deal-focused approach to every transaction. Her broad perspective enables her to identify issues early, navigate the competing interests of developers, owners, tenants, lenders, and other stakeholders, and keep complex commercial real estate transactions moving toward a successful deal.
Direct Business Experience
Melissa’s counsel is informed by in-house experience at a national retailer, a publicly traded REIT, a real estate development company and as a Director at an Am Law 200 law firm, giving her a practical understanding of how clients on every side of a deal evaluate risk and value. Her background spans both the East and West Coasts, which shapes how she approaches regional differences in market terms.
Areas of Focus
- Real Estate
- Leasing
- Mixed-Use Development
- Retail
- Office
Representative Matters
Involvement
Melissa strongly supports organ donation and volunteers for the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation, an organization dedicated to education and support for those affected by pulmonary fibrosis. She is also a member of 100 Women Who Care, a giving circle in which women meet regularly to collectively support local nonprofits, and serves on the committee for its annual golf tournament benefiting youth philanthropy efforts. Melissa also mentors through the ICSC Foundation’s mentorship program.
She is a member of:
- ICSC & US Law Program Planning Committee
- CREW Boston
- Boston Bar Association
Education
- Suffolk University Law School (J.D.)
- Emerson College (M.A.)
- Suffolk University (B.A.)
Admissions
- Massachusetts
- California