Richard Dongell led the Firm’s trial team (including Josh Levine and Chris Johnson) in representing one of the nation’s leading shopping center developers in connection with litigation brought by a consumer group challenging the approval of a land exchange underlying the development of the Pike, a major waterfront development in the City of Long Beach.  After the Firm achieved a trial victory, this victory was reversed on appeal.  Subsequently, however, the Supreme Court of California granted our petition to review the appellate court decision.

During the pendency of the Supreme Court’s review, the legislature passed and Governor Schwarzenegger signed a law explicitly authorizing the type of land exchanges being challenged, thus rendering the appeal moot.  The consumer group nonetheless attempted to claim victory based on these developments, and filed a motion in the trial court seeking over a million dollars in attorneys’ fees.  We successfully defeated this motion by demonstrating to the Court that the consumer group had not provided a “substantial benefit” to the public, as the primary effect of the litigation was the passage of legislation that the consumer group had opposed.  As such, the group was awarded nothing in their suit.