- SEATTLE: 206-621-1110
- TACOMA: 253-572-1000
Land Use and Environmental Law
Our land use and environmental attorneys advise and represent property owners throughout the real estate acquisition and development process. The firm’s experience and well-established relationships with a wide range of industry groups, state regulators, and local governments enables our team to provide comprehensive legal advice resulting in successful outcomes for our clients.
Our land use experience includes:
- Securing permits for nearly 1.7 million square feet of warehouse distribution center space in Thurston County
- Assisting residential developers with plat approvals for projects ranging in size from 4 to nearly 1,000 lots
- Working with development clients and property owners on strategies to retain entitlements to plats, approvals, and permits during the Great Recession and ongoing real estate crisis
- Advising and representing shoreline property owners in public hearings and appeals associated with local Shoreline Master Program amendments
Our Services:
- Land use entitlement due diligence and permitting
- Land Use Petition Act (LUPA) Appeals
- Subdivisions and Platting
- Conditional/Special Use Permits
- Zoning, Rezoning, and Variances
- Master Plans
- Planned Unit Developments
- Reasonable Use Exceptions
- Development Agreements
- Comprehensive Plan Amendments
- Code Amendments
- Eminent Domain
- Essential Public Facility Permitting
- Growth Management Act Regulation and Appeals
- Shoreline Regulation, Permitting and Appeals
- Critical Areas Regulation, Permitting and Appeals
- Corps of Engineers Permitting
- NPDES Permitting
- SEPA/NEPA Review
- Federal Endangered Species Act Regulation and Permitting
- Conservation Easements
- Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) Liability and Defense
Attorney Robert Dickson
The core of Rob’s legal practice is civil litigation, with an emphasis on construction, real estate, and business law. He represents a wide range of clients, from large construction companies to individual homeowners. His is a practical approach to law, which strives to balance the need for a successful legal outcome with a client’s financial goals (or constraints). Outside of his private practice, Rob serves as an adjunct professor at the Seattle University School of Law where he teaches real estate litigation. [ Attorney Bio ]
Thomas L. Dickson
Tom is an experienced litigator and the founding partner of the firm. For over 30 years, he’s helped clients prevail in their real estate, construction, and business law matters.
Heather Burgess
Heather represents property owners and developers in all phases of real estate development, from pre-acquisition due diligence through local permitting and appeals.
Robert P. Dickson
The core of Rob’s legal practice is civil litigation, with an emphasis on construction, real estate, and business law. He represents a wide range of clients, from large construction companies to individual homeowners.
Daniel J. Frohlich
Dan’s legal practice focuses on civil litigation, real estate law, business law and probate law. He has more than 10 years of experience as an attorney serving clients throughout Western Washington.
Mark S. Johnson
Mark’s legal practice focuses on civil litigation, real estate law, business law and family law. He works tirelessly to help his clients achieve the outcome they are looking for.
Trevor A. Zandell
Since graduating with honors from law school in 2005, Trevor has been serving the legal needs of businesses, individuals, and families across Southwest Washington.
Daniel E. Pizarro
As an associate at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess, Daniel is active in the firm’s civil litigation department. His practice is mainly centered around real estate law, landlord-tenant law, construction law, and probate law.
Alexander J. Wisbey
Alexander Wisbey comes to the firm with 5 years of experience as a litigator and trial attorney. He has first chaired several jury trials and has extensive experience handling arbitrations, mediations, depositions, and settlements.
Andrew Hata
Andrew is the head of our Transactional Department and focuses his practice on corporate governance, real estate transactions, commercial contracts, and corporate finance.
Kelley Duggan
As an associate at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess, Kelley practices in a wide range of areas, including estate planning, probate, civil litigation, and intellectual property law.
Cambria A. Queen
Cambria is an Associate with Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess in the civil litigation department, where she practices primarily real estate and probate law.
George Knight
As an associate at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess, George is active in the firm’s civil litigation and transactional departments. His practice is mainly centered around business law, real estate law, construction law, employment law, and probate law.
Chris Pierce-Wright
Chris comes to Phillips Burgess Tacoma from Seattle, where he served as an associate attorney focused on insurance litigation with Wilson Smith Cochran Dickerson.
Jennifer Yoo
Jennifer is an associate attorney at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess where her current practice focuses on real estate law, contract and commercial disputes, and business law.
Katherine E. Baals
As an associate at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess, Katherine practices in a range of areas, including real estate, construction, business, and civil litigation.
Kenneth Chan
As an associate at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess, PLLC, Kenny is active in the firm’s civil litigation and transactional departments. Prior to working at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess, Kenny was an in-house attorney for a Fortune 100 company.
Brian Buske
Following his graduation from Lewis & Clark Law School, Brian garnered valuable client experience working on international compliance and intellectual property issues.
Kyla S. Bennett
As an associate at Dickson Frohlich Phillips Burgess, Kyla practices in a range of areas, including real estate, land use, and civil litigation.
