Criminal Law

• Theft
• Restraining Order
  Mr. Brown has successfully represented clients in numerous substantial land use matters in D.C., including: Wesley Theological Seminary of the United Methodist Church in obtaining Zoning Commission approval for its first Campus Plan; W.C. & A.N. Miller Development Company in obtaining BZA and other approvals for completion of the Spring Valley West Residential and Commercial development, including 164 single-family detached dwellings and five commercial buildings; Crate & Barrel in obtaining HRPB approval for the adaptive redevelopment of the former Garfinkel’s department store in the Spring Valley neighborhood of D.C.; District of Columbia Government in obtaining BZA approval for the construction of an eighty-bed youth detention facility; and numerous successful BZA appeals of D.C. zoning determinations, including obtaining a temporary restraining order from the BZA blocking imminent enforcement action by the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs.

Business and Corporate Law

• Corporate Law
• Mergers and Acquisitions
• Business Formation
  GDL’s Business Formation and Organization attorneys provide clients with strategic and transactional planning advice and representation with regard to the organization, operation, governance and dissolution of all manners of privately-held businesses, ranging from start-up investment companies, to restaurants, to some of the largest real estate development companies in metropolitan Washington, D.C. When necessary, the Business Formation and Organization attorneys work seamlessly with GDL’s attorneys in other practice areas, in order to provide clients of the firm with comprehensive legal services and strategies, including the following...
• Business Disputes
  Mr. Greenberg is a litigator. His practice concentrates on general commercial and residential real estate and business matters, including landlord-tenant issues, redevelopment of real estate, rent control, Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) matters, Human Rights claims (e.g., fair housing claims, housing discrimination claims and ADA reasonable accommodation claims), contract disputes, bankruptcy and post-judgment collections. Mr. Greenberg is a Member of the D.C. Superior Court’s Landlord & Tenant Rules Advisory Subcommittee (membership composed of various Judges, Landlord & Tenant Court and Superior Court staff and lawyers from both the Landlord and Tenant practices). Mr. Greenberg is licensed in all three metro-area jurisdictions (District of Columbia, Maryland and Virginia) where he has litigated many cases at the state and administrative levels, representing landlords and developers in diverse areas of commercial and residential real estate and business litigation.
• Business Transactions
• Limited Liability Companies
  Choice of entity and the organization of closely-held partnerships, joint ventures, limited liability companies and corporations, including the preparation of articles of organization, certificates of limited partnership, and articles of incorporation and amendments thereto and restatements thereof;
• Construction Contracts
  Representation in general real estate matters, including disputes concerning real estate contracts, construction contracts, mechanics’ liens, zoning, and title matters;
• Trade Secrets

Employment Law

• Wrongful Termination
  Advising clients about employment discrimination claims, the Fair Housing Act (FHA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), wrongful termination claims, and outsourcing and independent contractor arrangements; and
• Employment Discrimination
• Employment Contract
  Negotiating and documenting shareholders’ agreements, joint venture agreements, employment agreements, partnership agreements, limited liability company operating agreements and other agreements relating to the operation and governance of business organizations;
• Employment Litigation
  GDL lawyers represent employers to help develop and manage their workplace with as few legal conflicts as possible. GDL also litigates employment claims whenever necessary to vigorously represent our clients’ interests. GDL attorneys have experience in representing employers in the following areas...
• Sexual Harassment
  Attorneys in the Employment Law Group also provide representation in miscellaneous actions, including discrimination claims, sexual harassment investigations, and the defense and prosecution of employment contract and non-competition agreement claims.

Property Law

• Real Estate Litigation
  Richard Luchs practices principally in the areas of real estate and commercial law, with a concentration in litigation on both trial and appellate levels. He has extensive experience in the areas of real estate brokerage, property management, real estate matters, rent control, fair housing and employment law. Mr. Luchs is a leading practitioner as a landlord/owner advocate with respect to D.C.’s Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act and D.C.’s rent law rules and regulations.
• Construction Litigation
  The Legal 500, a nationally recognized independent source, has ranked GDL among the best real estate and construction law practices in Washington, D.C.
• Real Estate Transactions
  GDL attorneys have decades of experience in counseling commercial and residential real estate developers, property owners, construction contractors, real estate brokers, and property managers with respect to residential, commercial and mixed use real estate transactions in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area (and throughout the country with respect to several clients), in the following areas...
• Land Use and Zoning
  District of Columbia Building Industry Association; Commercial Real Estate Women; District of Columbia Bar (Section on Real Estate, Housing and Land Use); Maryland State Bar Association (Section on Real Property, Land Use and Zoning); American Bar Association (Section on Real Property, Probate and Trust Law).
• Landlord-Tenant Disputes
  GDL attorneys also provide legal assistance with respect to landlord-tenant matters, including determining the applicability of rent control laws and providing representation in administrative and court proceedings concerning rent increases, tenant petitions, evictions and other landlord-tenant matters.

Trusts and Estates

• Estate Planning
  GDL attorneys also have extensive experience guiding clients through the following transactions as they relate to estate planning...
• Wills
  GDL attorneys provide dynamic income, estate and gift tax planning advice and analysis with regard to planning, structuring, negotiating and documenting a broad range of matters and transactions, including the preparation of wills and revocable trusts, irrevocable trusts for life insurance or other assets, durable general powers of attorney, living wills, health care directives (such as living wills) and estate administration, as well as planning strategies for inter-vivos gifts, business succession plans and the transfer of business interests.
• Trusts
• Power of Attorney
  Lewis Morse has more than 40 years of experience in the areas of business and tax planning. Mr. Morse advises clients in connection with a variety of business and commercial transactions, including the purchase/sale and other disposition of business assets, corporate stock and other business interests and tax planning relating to the formation and operation of business entities, the acquisition and disposition of assets, and tax deferred exchanges. Mr. Morse has assisted developers and investors in connection with the acquisition, development, financing, management, operations, financing and disposition of numerous hotel, commercial, retail, residential, mixed use and redevelopment projects in the D.C. metropolitan area. Mr. Morse’s practice also includes advising clients in connection with the formation and organization of various business entities and tax-exempt organizations and the preparation and negotiation of organizational documents, such as shareholders’ agreements and employment contracts, partnership and joint venture agreements and limited liability company operating agreements. He has advised management of nursing and senior assisted living facilities in connection with various real estate, operational and management issues. In addition, Mr. Morse assists clients with estate planning matters and the preparation of wills, family trusts, insurance trust agreements, health care directives and durable powers of attorney.

Finance Law

• Bankruptcy
• Foreclosure
  GDL attorneys understand that in matters of bankruptcy and foreclosure, speed and precision are a must. GDL attorneys provide cost-sensitive yet sophisticated representation to creditors in bankruptcy, lenders and borrowers in foreclosure proceedings, owners and contractors in mechanic’s lien disputes, condominium developers in disputes with purchasers, owners and lien-holders with claims on title insurance policies, District of Columbia tax sale purchasers seeking to foreclose the right of redemption, owners and lien-holders seeking to redeem properties from D.C. tax sales and plaintiffs and defendants in other general civil litigation.
• Tax Law
  Patrick Brown practices in the fields of land use, planning, zoning and historic preservation; real estate development, acquisition and financing; legislative and municipal affairs; administrative litigation; and real estate tax appeals in the District of Columbia. Since 1987, Mr. Brown has successfully completed projects in all eight Wards of D.C., involving commercial, residential, industrial, hospitality, educational, institutional, D.C. government and foreign government projects. He regularly represents clients before the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA), D.C. Zoning Commission, U. S. Commission of Fine Arts and Old Georgetown Board, National Capital Planning Commission, D.C. Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB), Mayor’s Agent for Historic Preservation, D.C. City Council, D.C. Court of Appeals, D.C. Office of Administrative Hearings, Board of Real Property Assessments and Appeals, D.C. Public Space Committee, virtually every Advisory Neighborhood Commission, and countless local and civic organizations. Mr. Brown also has extensive experience in handling complex legal issues involved in the sale, purchase and use of real property in the United States by foreign governments for diplomatic and commercial purposes.