Tampa land use attorney David Singer is joining Older Lundy’s local office, and he’s bringing a team of attorneys who helped him build the zoning and land use practice at his former firm, Shumaker Loop & Kendrick.
Older Lundy Founding Partner Michael Lundy said the specialty real estate practice is the remaining piece of the puzzle for the firm.
Older Lundy was founded in 2003 as a family law firm but has evolved over the years to include commercial litigation, corporate and tax, and real estate, among other disciplines. Zoning and land use was a “blind spot” for the firm, Lundy said.
The former Shumaker colleagues joining Older Lundy, effective immediately, are Matt Newton, Colin Rice, Elizabeth Kellar and Amanda Brewer. The additions will add depth to Older Lundy’s existing real estate practice, Lundy said.
“I have been pretty relentlessly searching for the right group and the right fit,” Lundy told the Tampa Bay Business Journal. “With David’s team, we’re now offering an array of services that are really hard to find out there in the legal community.”
The talent pool for land-use attorneys is slim because many abandoned the practice area in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis when development screeched to a halt, according to Singer. However, he said his team stuck it out through the recession and emerged on stronger footing.
“Here we are 10 years later, a little older, a little wiser, a little more experienced, and I think the development community has recognized that,” he said.
Singer joined Shumaker, the region’s second-largest law firm, in 2019 and was later tapped to lead the firm’s national real estate, construction and development practice. He also served as a zoning and land use attorney at two of Tampa Bay’s other largest firms, Holland & Knight and Johnson Pope Bokor Ruppel & Burns.
“My group is looking for a different platform, [something] a little more nimble, a little more creative, a little more client focused,” Singer said. “In a small community like Tampa, where almost everyone in the legal community knows each other, change can be positive.”
Singer said he takes a holistic approach to working with developers as clients and emphasized that they must build community relationships.
“You don’t want to scare neighborhoods,” he said. “The Tampa Bay area is growing at such a fast clip that developers have to be a little bit cautious about the pace of change and how they communicate what they’re doing. It’s not just a technical practice … we counsel our clients on how to approach neighborhood and elected officials so that everyone is comfortable with the development.”
Singer also practices first amendment law and specializes in public policy and government affairs, state and federal litigation and election law. He recently represented Hillsborough County State Attorney Andrew Warren in the high-profile legal battle with Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Singer said he and his team are “pleased to join with a growing group of lawyers who share a commitment to practicing law with creativity, depth and practical intelligence.”
Older Lundy is the 27th largest law firm in Tampa Bay, with more than 30 attorneys and five offices across Florida.
