April 30, 2007
THE DAILY JOURNAL
By William-Arthur Haynes
SAN FRANCISCO – Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps’ San Francisco office is making a stir in the real-estate and land-use bar. The firm announced Friday that David B. Franklin has joined that office as partner from Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Preston Gates Ellis.
Franklin focuses his practice on real-estate transactions and land use in California and Hawaii for large retail clients and offers counsel on general business needs, including entity structure and formation and multistate operations.
Franklin’s addition enhances Luce Forward’s position in the California market, according to San Francisco managing partner Allan E. Low, also a real-estate attorney.
“Attracting top talent like Dave demonstrates our commitment to the expansion of our thriving real-estate and land-use practice and our growing San Francisco office,” Low said in a statement, adding that the firm will continue to develop a “premier real-estate practice in the region.”
The announcement comes on the heels of a five-lawyer group, headed by Timothy A. Tosta, joining the office. Tosta, two partners and two associates formerly at 50-plus-attorney Steefel, Levitt & Weiss begin their Luce Forward tenure in San Francisco today.
Luce Forward maintains 200 attorneys in five California offices. The 1,400-lawyer Kirkpatrick & Lockhart is a combination of Pittsburgh-based Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham and Seattle’s Preston, Gates & Ellis. The firm, made official Jan. 1, has offices in 17 U.S. cities and five international outposts.