Real Estate and Land Use
We represent investors, owners, borrowers, and lenders in reviewing and completing secured real estate transactions. We advise clients through all phases of a development project or sale of real estate. We help clients negotiate and documenting the transaction, including drafting letters of intent and financing documents, and escrow instructions, and negotiating terms for purchase and sale agreements, easements, trust deeds, and other recorded instruments. We also advise on land use issues and advocate for our clients at both the local jurisdiction level and on appeal. For completed projects, we assist landlords and tenants draft or negotiate large commercial leases.
We also represent clients in a wide range of real estate-related litigation. For example, we represent commercial lenders in the enforcement of secured real estate loans inside and outside of bankruptcy, including foreclosure and receivership. We regularly represent owners and government entities in eminent domain proceedings. We litigate commercial lease disputes on both sides. And we also have experience defending commercial and residential brokers.
CLIENTS
- Real estate buyers and sellers and their commission agents
- Land use applicants and appellants
- Insurers in the business, design and construction, and real estate arenas
- Farmers, ranchers and commercial fishermen
- Commercial landlords and tenants
- Commercial leasing companies, factors and other specialty financiers
- Government project owners and land developers, including school districts
REPRESENTATIVE EXPERIENCE
- Assisted with the closing of more than a hundred private commercial real estate transactions. Recently represented a school district as buyer in a $18,700,000 real estate exchange transaction, a $6,450,000 real estate purchase transaction and a $4,500,000 real estate transaction.
- Represented commercial landlords in the documentation of more than 200 commercial lease transactions.
- Assisted with the closing of more than 150 real estate acquisition and development loans for a commercial lender worth more than $330,000,000.
- Won a coastal land use and ownership dispute representing 20 landowners.
- Defended real estate broker against claims by former client for professional negligence, misrepresentations, and fraud. Acted as lead counsel during two-day arbitration proceeding, resulting in plaintiff’s recovery of only 10 percent of the total amount of claimed damages.
- Represented property owner in condemnation action. Worked with appraisers to evaluate appropriate value and negotiated favorable settlement through mediation.
- Defended agricultural tenant against action by landlord seeking specific performance of alleged oral agreement to modify lease and allow landlord to construct a private airstrip in the middle of the property used by tenant, as well and monetary damages. Obtained dismissal of all of landlord’s claims with prejudice.
- Regularly advise commercial property management company in all tenant-related disputes, including forcible entry and detainer (eviction) proceedings.
- Represented a school district as defendant in successfully mediating and resoving a $2.2 million inverse condemnation case filed against the district.
- Represented a minority owner in a court battle over real estate sale proceeds after the majority refused to acknowledge the minority owner’s interest and settled the matter in mediation.
- Litigated a boundary dispute to conclusion in state court and obtained a judgment in favor of our client which included an award of substantial attorney fees.
- Favorably settled a minority shareholder plaintiff’s claim in mediation for payment of his fair share of refinance proceeds and withdrawal from a real estate holding company.
- Settled a timber trespass demand for a client without having to file suit.
- Settled a dispute in mediation for the trustee of testamentary trust over ownership of several parcels of real property alleged to be in the trust after taking over the case following years of prior litigation.