Rick Ross is the chair of Dentons’ global Hospitality and Leisure practice and is widely regarded as a global hospitality industry leader. Described as "iconic" and "one of the deans of the industry” by Chambers USA, Rick has over four decades of experience advising owners, operators, investors and lenders on the acquisition, development, financing and operation of hotels, resorts and mixed-use projects, including hotels with serviced residential condominiums, condo hotels, serviced apartments, convention centers, spas, wellness facilities and golf courses. He has advised on projects throughout North, South and Central America and the Caribbean; Europe and the Middle East; Asia; and Australia and the Pacific Islands. Rick’s clients include some of the country’s largest private equity firms, public companies, private companies, sovereign wealth funds, ultra-high-net-worth individuals and their family offices.

Rick is also the global co-chair of the firm’s Family Office and High Net Worth sector (DFO) which provides cross-sector and cross-practice services to our ultra-high-net-worth individuals and their family offices. His extensive work over more than four decades with dozens of ultra-high-net-worth families and their family offices has expanded well beyond servicing them in just the hospitality and leisure sector. Rick has also functioned in a general counsel capacity to a large family office. His combined inside and outside experience provides a broad range of advice to assist these individuals and their families across their for-profit and not-for-profit activities across the globe. Rick is often asked to create a “team of teams” of seasoned professionals to address the complex issues these families face at home, and across the globe.

Clients regard Rick as an integral member of their team, a strategic advisor who delivers value-added insight on hospitality investment, development and operations from having been intimately involved in all aspects of the purchase, sale and development of hundreds of hotel/leisure assets or mixed-use real estate that includes a hotel/resort/leisure component, from negotiating letters of intent and overseeing due diligence to negotiating and reviewing key documentation. He has also been actively involved in identifying, structuring, negotiating and documenting the capitalization of hotel and leisure developments, including equity, mezzanine and traditional debt financing.

Rick views much of his success to his disciplined approach of viewing everything from the eyes of the client, and having their goals, objectives and concerns as his primary focus. He is also known for his incredible responsiveness to the needs of his clients.

Rick has handled single asset and multiple-asset transactions; acquisitions and sales of businesses in whole and in part; deals structured as an asset sale, stock transaction or a combination thereof; and joint ventures as to a single project or a strategic relationship.

After a transaction is complete, Rick often continues to advise his clients going forward on their future endeavors. Most of his clients have been with him for 5-20 years, and as a result, he has counseled them through several business cycles. During the global economic crisis of 2008, Rick was heavily engaged in aiding and advising owners, operators and lenders in managing distressed hotels and resorts, both standalone and as part of mixed-use developments, mining his many years of industry experience to come up with strategies to help them weather the economic downturn as well as take advantage of market opportunities. As the hotel sector and global markets more broadly continue to ebb and flow, his knowledge and experience continue to help clients navigate both short-term issues and strategic long-term challenges. Clients describe him as a "go-to counselor for advice in tricky situations."