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Ronald S. Schimel is a principal of Miles & Stockbridge and resident in the Columbia, Maryland office. He is chairman of the firm’s Real Estate Development practice group. He practices in the areas of business and real estate law, representing a wide range of clients from individuals to wholly-owned entities to national and international publicly traded corporations. He was the co-founder of Levan, Schimel, Belman & Abramson, P.C. in Columbia, Maryland, which joined with Miles & Stockbridge in 1996. Mr. Schimel has a wealth of experience representing clients who develop and invest in real estate. Additionally, over his career he has represented numerous business entities in helping them take advantage of the opportunities and address the challenges that they encounter. After earning his Juris Doctor degree from Columbus School of Law, The Catholic University of America, where he was a member of the Law Review, he was awarded an appointment as law clerk to the Honorable Frederick J. Singley, Court of Appeals of Maryland. Mr. Schimel then became associate counsel of The Rouse Company, one of the country’s foremost real estate developers, where he worked on the new town of Columbia which, today, is Maryland’s second most populous city. Later, as a member of The Rouse Company’s corporate legal team, he assisted the company with corporate financings, private offerings and securities compliance. Following his time with The Rouse Company, Mr. Schimel represented property owners in the acquisition and financing of multi-family properties, conversion to condominiums and the disposition of units. His work in this field included The Cove, Watermark, Vantage Point, Bryant Garden and Concord House in Columbia, Maryland, and Fallswood I and II, Goodlow House and Roland Mews in the Village of Cross Keys in Baltimore City. Over his career, Mr. Schimel has assisted clients in the acquisition and disposition of operating properties. For example, he represented U.S. Foodservice and Bowles Fluidics Corporation in the acquisitions of their corporate headquarters buildings in Columbia, Maryland. Recently, in cooperation with lawyers from the firm’s Transactional Finance Practice Group, he represented the owner of Sherwood Crossing Apartments, a residential rental community comprised of 634 luxury units, in its sale at a precedent setting price and with the acquiring party retaining the benefits of favorable financing provided through the assumption of Howard County Housing Authority revenue bonds. A substantial portion of Mr. Schimel’s practice is devoted to representing property owners in the development and sale of land. Illustrative of this practice, he recently represented several owners of prime undeveloped real estate in Howard County in the defense of a suit filed by a co-owner who was seeking a partition of the land in lieu of judicial sale. Mr. Schimel was successful in having the Court order the sale of the property which resulted in a developer, who was known to work cooperatively with his clients, acquiring the interest of the co-owner. Working with other Miles & Stockbridge lawyers, new entities were structured and formed involving the clients and developer to facilitate the development and financing of the property and to take advantage of favorable tax opportunities. In connection with his real estate development work, Mr. Schimel also represents property owners in comprehensive and piecemeal zoning applications, special exceptions and variance cases. He was successful in obtaining the first special applications exception granted in Howard County for a large active adult community. Mr. Schimel also has enjoyed a varied business practice, representing entities of all sizes and types, both public and private. In connection with his representation of Bowles Fluidics Corporation, a leader in the field of fluidics engineering and manufacturing, he handled the Corporation’s financial restructuring out of which the Corporation has grown and thrived. He also took the company from being a publicly reporting corporation to a delisted corporation, thereby saving them considerable recurring costs associated with regulatory compliance. Today, he is counsel to The Columbia Association, the homeowners’ association for approximately 96,000 residents of Columbia, Maryland. In this capacity, he heads up a team of lawyers from various practice groups that provide services to the client in the areas of labor and employment, zoning compliance, contract preparation, finance and negligence claims defense. He is also counsel to The Horizon Foundation of Howard County, Inc., a non-profit foundation that was funded with the proceeds resulting from the sale of Howard County General Hospital. Practice Areas: Corporate & Securities Business Counseling, Contracts & Transactions Corporate Finance Corporate Governance & Disputes Securities Compliance Real Estate Transactions, Land Use & Development Acquisitions & Dispositions Affordable Housing & Community Development Development Entity Formation Land Use & Zoning Real Estate Financing Real Estate Leasing Real Estate Tax Appeals Bar Admissions/Court Admissions:Maryland Education:Columbus School of Law, Catholic University of America, J.D. 1970. University of Maryland, B.S. 1967. Affiliations, Associations and Special Achievements: Baltimore Magazine: Listed as a "Maryland Super Lawyer" (2008) Columbia Festival of the Arts: Chairman (2003) and Board of Directors Howard County Chamber of Commerce: Chairman and recipient of "Business Person of the Year Award" (2003) Leadership Howard County: President (1997) and Board of Directors (1993-2000) and recipient of Unsung Hero Award(2006) The Howard County Economic Development Authority: Board of Directors (2002 to present); County Executive Ulman Transition Team (2007). |
