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Michael Donner’s Take on Real Estate Dispute Over a Dead-End Alleyway in San Francisco

Loeb Litigation partner Michael Donner is quoted in the San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Business Times, Daily Journal and The Real Deal discussing the firm’s handling of real estate litigation pending in San Francisco. That litigation involves a true ‘David versus Goliath’ battle over easement and other property rights between a publicly-traded real estate development corporation and a group of 13 property owners represented by Loeb. The developer filed the action to advance its redevelopment project, a 2.4 million square foot mixed-use project in San Francisco’s SOMA neighborhood.

Michael explained to the San Francisco Business Times that the dispute begs the question of whether "a publicly traded, billion-dollar real estate development corporation should be permitted to dominate and control a historic alleyway for the near-exclusive benefit of its planned project."

“The outcome of this case could have significant implications for property owners in San Francisco and other cities,” he told the Daily Journal. “[It] could have a chilling effect on the ability of property owners to use their property as it has historically been used; could impose on existing easement areas unforeseen burdens; and depreciate adjacent properties.”

On May 3, 2023, Superior Court Judge Charles F. Haines partially sustained the property owners’ demurrer and struck all but two of Kilroy Realty Corporation’s causes of action. The action is expected to continue.

To read the full articles, please visit the San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Business Times, Daily Journal and The Real Deal (subscriptions required).