Richard Arthur McDonald

Richard specializes in land-use, zoning, real estate, commercial, environmental, and appellate law, including complex business litigation and class actions. He represents property owners, developers, neighborhood associations, midsize and large U.S. companies throughout Southern California on numerous hotel, medical office, and multi-family residential projects. He serves as lead trial and appellate counsel in traditional/administrative writ of mandamus proceedings, arbitrations, and private attorney general actions. As part of his land use practice, Richard manages all of the CEQA, planning, zoning, and other entitlements required by state, county, and city governments. In Pasadena, Richard’s projects include the restoration of the Constance Hotel and the YWCA Julia Morgan Building, the Colorado at Hill Hotel, the Marriott Residence Inn, the Paseo Colorado, the Crown City Medical Building, and the former Pasadena Athletic Club site.

As an experienced trial attorney, Richard successfully prosecuted a CEQA and land use trial against the City of Brea in Orange County, and successfully defended through trial a $45 million class action lawsuit in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. He previously was successful in defending a $75 million licensing arbitration, a $30 million unfair competition class action, a $40 million securities fraud and RICO class action in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California, and a $20 million insurance coverage action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, as well as numerous contract, real estate, and limited partnership actions. Richard has a number of appellate decisions in California to his credit, including Harper v. 24 Hour Fitness, 167 Cal. App. 4th 966 (2008), Mount Olympus Property Owners Association v. Shpirt, 59 Cal. App. 4th 885 (1997), Re-Open Rambla, Inc. v. County of Los Angeles, 39 Cal. App. 4th 1499 (1995), and Cole v. Sea Ray Boats, Inc., 32 Cal. Rptr. 2d 431 (1994) (de-published).

Education

Richard is a 1986 graduate of Loyola Law School, where he externed for Justice Otto Kaus of the California Supreme Court, and was a member of the St. Thomas More Law Honor Society, Scott Moot Court Honors Board, and the 1985 Best Oralist in Moot Court Competition.

Richard also has a Master's in Public Administration from the University of Southern California, where he was admitted to Pi Alpha Alpha, National Honorary Society for Public Affairs & Administration, received the SCAPA Praetor Scholarship Award, and worked for the Congressional Budget Office in Washington, D.C.

Richard earned his B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1979, and studied at Worcester College, Oxford University, England.