Prominent East Bay Land Use and Environmental Attorney Duo Join Wendel, Rosen, Black & Dean LLP

OAKLAND, CA--(Marketwire - Nov 17, 2011) - Bringing a combined total of nearly four decades' experience in land use and environmental law, Patricia Curtin and Todd Williams join Wendel, Rosen, Black & Dean LLP as partners. Curtin will lead the firm's Land Use practice. Formerly principals with Walnut Creek's Morgan Miller Blair, Curtin and Williams represent both private and public sector clients throughout the state and contribute to the breadth and depth of Wendel Rosen's core practice areas.

"We have long respected Pattie's and Todd's work and professionalism, and we are thrilled to now call them partners," said Wendel Rosen's Managing Partner Daniel Rapaport. "While we are well recognized for and very proud of our land use and environmental capabilities, these lawyers bring even greater dimension to the group, and their additions reflect our efforts to attract senior-level talent in several key areas, including land use, employment and trusts and estates."

Added Curtin, "Wendel Rosen has an outstanding reputation throughout Northern California and beyond. When we looked at opportunities to move and expand our own platforms to benefit our clients, Wendel Rosen, with its strength in real estate, land use and environmental work and its complementary service offerings from green business to intellectual property, seemed a natural fit."

"Wendel Rosen's deep roots in the region, broad areas of expertise and its demonstrated commitment to the community were all key attractions," said Williams.

With 25 years of focused experience, Curtin, who previously chaired the Land Use practice at Morgan Miller, advises clients on applicable planning, zoning and environmental laws, prepares land use applications, and obtains project approvals, including environmental and regulatory permits. She manages and directs development projects from inception to ribbon cutting and also represents several public agencies as special land use counsel and is general counsel to ten Geologic Hazard Abatement Districts. Curtin has worked with landowners and developers of commercial, industrial, residential and agricultural property, including wine growers, wineries and related businesses; shopping center owners; hotel/resort owners; educational institutions; public agencies; and hospitals and other medical facilities. Curtin is currently the chair of the planning commission for the City of Lafayette.

Curtin has presented and written extensively on land use-related topics, including formerly serving as a professor of environmental law at California State University, Sacramento. She is a member of the League of California Cities and the American Planning Association, as well as a founding member of the California Association of Geologic Hazard Abatement Districts.

Recognized as a Northern California Super Lawyer for the past five years, Curtin also has made the list of Top 50 female attorneys in the region and was featured in the "Top 25 Land Use Attorneys in California" in 2011 by the Daily Journal. She earned her J.D. from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law in 1987 and her B.A. in political science at California State University, Chico in 1984.

Williams served as vice chair of Morgan Miller's Land Use Group and represents clients in the broad spectrum of land use, real estate and environmental issues in both litigation and administrative proceedings. He works with public and private clients, including landowners and developers of residential, commercial and industrial property, as well as local agencies, providing property entitlement processing and local government approvals; CEQA litigation and compliance; planning and zoning law advice; and real property litigation. Williams also has experience with redevelopment and affordable housing, historic preservation projects and advising on the Subdivision Map Act, Williamson Act, and easement and boundary dispute matters.

A contributing editor on the 2010 - 2011 Edition of State and Local Government Land Use Liability, Williams also has spoken throughout the state on land use law, with particular emphasis on CEQA and has been recognized as a Northern California Super Lawyer for the past two years. He earned his J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law in 1998 and his B.A. in English from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1989.

About Wendel Rosen
Wendel, Rosen, Black & Dean LLP serves a diverse clientele of business, public and individual clients located throughout California and the United States. With offices in Oakland and Modesto, California, the 102-year-old firm advises clients on transactional and civil litigation matters in several related fields of law, including real estate; business/corporate; construction; creditors' rights/bankruptcy; eminent domain; employment; environmental; estate planning, trusts and probate; green business; insurance; intellectual property; land use; taxation; and technology. In 2003, the firm became the first law firm in the country to gain third-party certification as a green business and has won numerous recognitions for its leadership in the green economy. Additional information about the firm and its attorneys may be found at www.wendel.com.