Best Lawyers in America for Litigation - Land Use and Zoning

Ed Casey represents a variety of residential, retail and commercial developers in land use matters, including those arising under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). His practice encompasses every facet of the entitlement process, from pre-acquisition due diligence to permitting, and he has successfully prosecuted and defended CEQA and other land use lawsuits for a number of major development projects. Ed was listed in the 2015 and 2016 editions of The Best Lawyers in America &co...

David C. Pierson is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Construction Law, Litigation - Construction and Litigation - Land Use and Zoning. David C., who practices law in Portland, Maine, has been recognized since 2007. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which David C. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Julie P. Kendig-Schrader represents both the public and private sector in land use and environmental matters and administrative litigation. She works with clients to create public/private partnerships for infrastructure needs, particularly those related to transportation. With sustainability concerns and initiatives cutting across virtually all sectors of business today, Julie strives to keep her clients ahead of the curve to maximize opportunities and minimize unnecessary costs and risks. Pr...

Kenneth B. Bley is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Land Use and Zoning Law, Litigation - Land Use and Zoning and Real Estate Law. Kenneth B., who practices law in Los Angeles, California, has been recognized since 1995. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Kenneth B. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Hayley's practice primarily focuses on labor and employment law, civil litigation, and alcoholic beverage law. Hayley regularly advises individual and corporate clients on matters of covenants not to compete, employment discrimination, discipline and termination, harassment, wrongful discharge, wage and hour matters, personnel policies and procedures, and preparation of employment agreements and employee handbooks. She also litigates employment-related matters in North Carolina state and fede...

Alan’s primary practice focus is land use, zoning, real estate and local government law with a particular emphasis on development permitting and related transactions. Alan is a former land use planner for Montana local governments, who combines his professional planning background with his work in land use law to provide clients with a unique blend of practical skills and legal analysis. He is frequently called upon to provide advice to private and government sector clients and has serv...

James L. Ahlstrom is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Commercial Litigation, Litigation - Construction, Litigation - Land Use and Zoning and Litigation - Real Estate. James L., who practices law in Salt Lake City, Utah, has been recognized since 2016. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which James L. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Deborah is a partner and land use attorney at Givens Pursley. She helps clients navigate the land use process from start to finish, performing due diligence, preparing applications, negotiating with agency staff, presenting projects at hearings, and handling any challenges. She also helps companies obtain the legal entitlements required for the siting or expansion of a business or development. These entitlements include land use and zoning permits, transportation approvals, tax and workforce ...

Robert Fine is a board certified construction law attorney and a Florida-registered, nationally certified architect. His practice focuses on land use, zoning, historic preservation, environmental, and administrative law. Robert’s work ranges from representation before local governments for zoning and other development approvals to building code appeals, code enforcement and unsafe structure defense; and at a state level, petitions for declaratory statements, lobbying for and challenging...

Richard Rattner has more than thirty years of experience in real estate law, with specialties in real estate acquisition, sale and loan transactions, land use development, zoning, and corporate law. Mr. Rattner is a member of the Oakland County Bar Association, the State Bar of Michigan, the American Bar Association and the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation. He served on the Governing Council of the Real Property Law Section (RPLS) of the State Bar of Michigan and remains an active parti...

Kenneth A. Porro, has over forty years of governmental, land use, real estate and business litigation experience practicing throughout the State of New Jersey. Ken is General Corporate Counsel to the Meadowlands Municipal Mayors Committee; Meadowlands Construction Officials Association; GOP Ironworks, LLC; Lyndhurst Little League Inc. and Indian Hills Boys Soccer Boosters Assoc. He has previously served as general counsel to the Lyndhurst Board of Education and the Town of Secaucus. Ken was t...

Christopher J. Oddo exclusively focuses on representing individual and corporate landowners throughout Texas in eminent domain and condemnation matters. He is a member of the American Board of Trial Advocates and is recognized by Best Lawyers in America for eminent domain and condemnation law and litigation for land use and zoning matters. Mr. Oddo is also recognized by Austin Monthly as one of Austin’s top eminent domain attorneys. Mr. Oddo is a partner with Barron, Adler, Clough &...

A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and its law school, Marc Jonas is co-chair of the firm's Land Use and Zoning practice group. He has extensive experience in real estate, land use, municipal law, and zoning matters, representing individuals, businesses, institutions, non-profit organizations and municipalities. Marc has practiced land use and real estate law for more than 30 years. In his career, Marc has appeared as counsel in Pennsylvania state and federal courts in matters invol...

Matthew D. Harper represents in a wide range of business, construction, and real estate disputes. He is a member of Eastman & Smith’s Bankruptcy and Creditors' Rights, Business Litigation, Construction Law and Eminent Domain Practice Groups. Mr. Harper is admitted in state and federal courts throughout Ohio and Michigan and has appeared pro hac vice in business litigation in Indiana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Wisconsin.

Experience doesn't make us smarter, but it does steer us to solutions where the less-experienced might only see problems. Experienced land use counsel is particularly critical in California, for it is here that creative "been down this path before" thinking is needed to meet the challenges of an often-daunting convergence of federal, state, and local land use regulation. For more than four decades, Tim's insight has been shaped by work on some of California's most complex entitlement projects...

Steve Pfeiffer is a partner in the firm's Real Estate & Land Use practice. He focuses on land use, natural resource law and real estate development, and his representation includes the full spectrum of development interests including office, retail industry, institutional and resort.