Cox, Castle & Nicholson LLP is pleased to announce that prominent land use and environmental attorney David Waite has joined the firm’s Los Angeles office as a partner. Waite brings 20 years of experience to the firm’s nationally recognized real estate practice, with particular expertise in real estate development of infill sites and master-planned communities.
“David is an outstanding addition, and we are delighted with the compliment of skills he brings to our practice,” said Mario Camara, the senior member on Cox Castle’s Executive Committee. “He is a gifted lawyer who brings a wealth of expertise to our core land use and environmental practices.” In California’s increasingly complex regulatory environment, Camara added, “David is a problem solver. He’s practical and skillful in cutting through the regulatory thicket to achieve successful outcomes for clients.”
Waite, who was formerly a partner with Jeffer Mangels Butler and Mitchell LLP, represents land owners and developers, real estate investors, commercial and residential owners and builders. He also represents public agencies. He appears before planning commissions, city councils, and other federal, state and local governmental agencies on land use and regulatory matters. He has successfully litigated a variety of land use and environmental matters under California and federal law.
His environmental practice includes environmental regulatory compliance, CERCLA, RCRA, and Proposition 65 litigation. He also represents clients on transitional matters involving Brownfields and other environmentally impaired real property.
At Cox Castle, Waite will continue to advise clients on zoning and land use matters, CEQA compliance, discretionary permits and entitlements, subdivisions, development agreements, public-private partnerships, infrastructure agreements, and compliance with climate change laws.
“I have known and worked alongside many talented attorneys at Cox Castle during my career and in several cases shared successes with them,” says Waite. “I am joining an established group of colleagues and friends, comprised of many of the leading practitioners in California. He added “Cox Castle is unparalleled in the breadth and depth of its real estate practice and I am delighted to join a firm that has deep California roots, an expansive reach, and a longstanding commitment to serve the real estate industry.”
He received his B.A. from New York University and his J.D. from Georgetown University Law Center. A frequent author and speaker on land use issues, David is also the incoming Chair of the Urban Land Institute, Los Angeles District Council. He is Chairman Emeritus of the Southern California Real Estate Alliance and member of the Westside Urban Forum. He also serves on the Advisory Board of the California Infill Builders Association.
