Martin N. Burton is a partner in Gilchrist & Rutter. His practice focuses on land use and real estate transactions. He is the author of "Winning Development Strategies for Land Use Attorneys", Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine (January 1999); and "Preparing an EIR for Battle", Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine (January 1993).
Mr. Burton is a former executive with Unocal Corporation, where he managed that company's $700-million real estate portfolio. He has an extensive background in the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and has represented both private and public agency clients in some of the region's most significant land use projects, inluding Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Alameda Corridor and the LAX Master Plan.
Mr. Burton received his J.D. degree in 1985 from Yale Law School. He earned his B.A. magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa in 1981 from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Representative Experience
The Walt Disney Concert Hall: (1989-1991) Supervised the prepartion of the EIR on behalf of Los Angeles County for this project, including a 55-story office building, 400-room hotel, retail shops and the Concert Hall, itself.
Elsmere Canyon Landfill: (1990-1991) Supervised the preparation of the EIS/EIR on behalf of Los Angeles County, and participated in negotiations with the National Forest Service regarding the EIS/EIR, for a proposed major landfill in Angeles National Forest.
Unocal Real Estate: (1993-1997) As Manager of Real Estate, managed 1,400 service station properties and thousands of miles of pipeline rights-of-way throughout California and the West.
Alameda Corridor: (1997-2000) Successfully negotiated on behalf of the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority, the agreement with Metropolitan Water District for the largest utility line relocation project.
Ambassador College: (2000-2004) As special counsel to the City of Pasadena, advised on all aspects related to the preparation of the EIR for a 2000-unit residential and mixed-use project.
LAX Modernization Project: (2003-2004) Advised the City of Los Angeles on NEPA and CEQA requirements in key Responses to Comments on its EIS/EIR for the most massive modernization project ever proposed for LAX.
