JMBM is pleased to announce that Daniel Freedman, a distinguished partner in JMBM’s Government Land Use and Energy department and co-chair of the firms Housing Strategy and Litigation Group, has been chosen as an adjunct professor for the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs Urban Planning graduate program. This prestigious appointment highlights his exceptional expertise at the intersection of law and urban planning. Daniel has also served as an adjunct professor in the graduate urban planning program for California State University Northridge. Being selected to teach at one of the nation’s p ..read more

JMBM’s Housing Strategy and Litigation Group represents an affordable housing developer proposing to construct a 44-unit, 100 percent affordable, residential development in the West Los Angeles community. The LA Department of City Planning approved the project in December 2023 and found that it meets the requirements of the Los Angeles Mayor’s Executive Directive-1 (ED-1) program – which provides for expedited approvals and prevents appeals for projects that are 100 percent affordable. Two weeks later, the Department accepted an appeal from a neighborhood group challenging the project’s approv ..read more

In recent years, a series of powerful housing laws have been passed by the California legislature to restrict local agencies from delaying, downsizing, or rejecting housing development projects. These measures aim to enhance the enforceability of key statutes, such as the California Housing Accountability Act (HAA) and the Housing Crisis Act (SB330). The overall objective is to begin to address the state-wide housing crisis by streamlining the approval process for new housing projects while simultaneously curbing a local agencies ability to obstruct the permitting process. JMBM’s Government, L ..read more

The Land Use lawyers of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) represent Neighbors for Hillside Safety, an unincorporated association of homeowners, residents, and stakeholders who live and work within the proposed Wildlife Ordinance District being considered as part of the City’s Wildlife Pilot Study and the associated Wildlife Ordinance District. This proposed ordinance would rezone over 23,000 acres of the City, impacting tens of thousands of homes without any environmental analysis and without legally adequate notice. Ben Reznik, Chair of the Firm’s Government, Land Use, Environme ..read more

Los Angeles—JMBM’s Land Use Group is pleased to announce that three partners in the practice were recognized by Best Lawyers in America® for Land Use and Zoning Law. Department Chairman Benjamin M. Reznik was included on the Best Lawyers in America list for 2023, and partners Neill E. Brower and Daniel F. Freedman were recognized as “Ones to Watch.” Best Lawyers in America is based on a comprehensive peer-review survey in which tens of thousands of top lawyers evaluate the legal abilities of other lawyers within their practice areas. The “Ones to Watch” list recognizes lawyers earlier in their ..read more

LOS ANGELES–Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) is pleased to announce that the Firm’s Land Use & Zoning practice has again received the highest possible designation of National Tier 1 in the 2022 U.S. News and World Report – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” rankings. The report recognizes the top law firms in the country for professional excellence based on peer review. “I’m proud of the level of service we offer, the expertise we have developed, and the results we achieve,” said Benjamin Reznik, Chair of the Government, Land Use, Environment & Energy Department ..read more

LOS ANGELES—Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP (JMBM) is pleased to announce that the firm’s Government, Land Use, Environment and Energy Department has once again been ranked as a National Tier 1 practice by U.S. News – Best Lawyers® “Best Law Firms” for 2021. The designation, which is the highest ranking given by the publication, reflects the practice’s commitment to legal excellence and achieving positive results for clients developing real estate projects throughout the country. “It’s rewarding to have our work recognized by U.S. News again this year,” said Benjamin Reznik, Chair of ..read more

As JMBM government and land use lawyer Sheri Bonstelle explains in the article, “Assembly Bill 1561 provides support for housing development projects,” published by the Daily Journal on September 10, 2020: “AB 1561 will support housing development by allowing additional time for those with approved housing development projects to obtain financing and building permits and to commence construction during the pandemic, and will allow potential additional analysis in a city’s Housing Element to more specifically identify the housing needs of the community.” She notes that even before the pandemic ..read more

On June 12th, the California Court of Appeal, Fourth District, filed its decision in Golden Door Properties LLC v. County of San Diego, __ Cal.App. 5th __ (2020) (WL 3119041). In doing so, the Court extended the now decade-long effort of San Diego County to craft an adequate Climate Action Plan (“CAP”): as the Court itself noted, this is its third decision in that effort. The County’s greenhouse gas (“GHG”) reduction plan within the CAP, particularly the use of offsets, provided perhaps the highest and most broad-reaching issues of interest; however, the Court also addressed a number of other ..read more

by Daniel Freedman and Justin Anderson Substantial changes to state and local laws governing accessory dwelling units (“ADUs”) went into effect on January 1, 2020, and they have significant implications for single-family and multi-family property owners. ADUs are additional living quarters built within, or on the same lot as, the primary residence. New state laws, including Assembly Bills 68 (Ting) and 881 (Bloom), among others, have placed new restrictions on how local governments and Homeowners Associations can condition and limit new ADUs. They have also created new categories of ADUs, expr ..read more