Todd A. Williams

Todd A. Williams
Attorney

t: 510.834.6600
f: 510.834.1928
toddwilliams@wendel.com

Education

University of California, Hastings College of the Law; J.D.

University of California, Los Angeles; B.A.

Admissions

State Bar of California

  • Profile
  • AFFILIATIONS
  • Recognition
  • INSIGHTS

Todd, chair of the firm’s Land Use and Environmental Practice Group, represents clients in the broad spectrum of land use, real estate and environmental issues in both litigation and administrative proceedings.

He works with private clients and public entities, including landowners and developers of residential, infill, commercial and industrial property, as well as local agencies, providing property entitlement processing and local government land use approvals; CEQA compliance and litigation; planning and zoning law advice; and real property litigation. He also has experience with infill project streamlining, density bonus and housing laws, affordable housing and historic preservation regulations, as well as advising clients on public-private partnerships, the Subdivision Map Act, the Williamson Act, and cannabis land use regulations, along with easement and boundary dispute matters.

A contributing editor on the 2010 – 2011 edition of State and Local Government Land Use Liability, and a reviewer of the 2012 and 2013 editions of the Municipal Law Handbook, Todd also has spoken throughout the state on land use law, with particular emphasis on CEQA.

SPUR – Oakland

East Bay Leadership Council

  • Land Use Task Force

Alameda County Bar Association

State Bar of California

  • Vice Chair, Real Property Section, Land Use Subsection
  • Selected for inclusion in Northern California Super Lawyers magazine, 2010 – 2021
  • Extern, Hon. Marilyn Hall Patel, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California

Publications

City of Oakland Set to Release More Zoning Details and Host Meetings Regarding the Downtown Oakland Specific Plan

City of Oakland Set to Release More Zoning Details and Host Meetings Regarding the Downtown Oakland Specific Plan

04/27/2022 | Patrick Tuck and Todd Williams

On April 22, 2022, the City of Oakland posted an update to its website about soon-to-be-released proposed zoning amendments and upcoming virtual meetings regarding the much-anticipated Downtown Oakland Specific Plan…

Full Article
Court Upholds City’s Use of CEQA Exemption for 469-Unit Project Consistent with Specific Plan

Court Upholds City’s Use of CEQA Exemption for 469-Unit Project Consistent with Specific Plan

02/08/2022 | Wendel Rosen LLP

Specific plans are a useful tool local agencies use to implement a general plan in smaller geographical areas. If an agency adopts a specific plan for which an environmental impact…

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Wendel Rosen Client Obtains Approval for Contentious SB 35 Project in Santa Cruz

Wendel Rosen Client Obtains Approval for Contentious SB 35 Project in Santa Cruz

12/16/2021 | Wendel Rosen LLP

After a protracted process, the Santa Cruz City Council approved the City’s first SB 35 application, a 140-unit (55 of which are affordable) mixed-use infill project, proposed by Novin Development…

Full Article
Date Category Publication Title
08/02/2021 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP California Supreme Court Denies Review in Berkeley Shellmound Case Paving the Way for Housing Under SB 35
06/08/2021 Other Media Wendel Rosen LLP Webinar: Density Bonus: a Strong Development Tool Gets Stronger
More Articles
10/29/2020 Other Media Wendel Rosen LLP Webinar: How the “Housing Crisis Act” (SB 330) Can Ease Approvals for Housing Development Projects
06/01/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Governor Issues Executive Order Suspending CEQA Deadlines for 60 Days and Revising Related Noticing Procedures
05/08/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Superior Court Validates Cupertino’s Streamlined Approval of Major Affordable Housing and Office Project
05/01/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Due Process Issues Related to Remote Public Hearings
04/29/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP New Bay Area Shelter-in-Place Orders Permit All Construction to Resume
04/21/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP State Legislators Criticize Bay Area Health Officers’ “Arbitrary” Shelter-in-Place Rules Limiting Housing Construction
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04/15/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Alameda County Health Officer Rebukes Oakland Over Interpretation of Alameda County’s Shelter-in-Place Order Regarding Residential
04/09/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Oakland’s Updated Rules for Construction During Alameda County’s Shelter in Place
04/01/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Bay Area Counties’ Extended Shelter-In-Place Order Imposes Strict Limits on Development and Construction
04/01/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP COVID-19: How Wendel Rosen’s Real Estate Litigation Group Can Assist
03/19/2020 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Impacts of the Bay Area Shelter-In-Place Orders on Development and Related Litigation
01/03/2018 Publication Amara Morrison and Todd Williams Slate of New Housing Bills Take Effect January 1, 2018
More Articles
03/27/2017 Publication Neal Parish and Todd Williams California Supreme Court Rules Public Employees’ Personal Email Accounts are Subject to CA Public Records Act
05/20/2016 Publication Todd Williams Governor Seeks to Streamline Approval of Multifamily Housing Projects
03/24/2016 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP Oakland Proposed Developer Fees Updated March 24, 2016
09/28/2015 Publication Todd Williams Governor Signs AB2 Allowing for a New Tool to Combat Blight in Disadvantaged Communities
06/29/2015 Publication Neal Parish and Todd Williams Inclusionary Housing Stays
03/03/2015 Publication Wendel Rosen LLP CA Supreme Court Provides Key CEQA Guidance Regarding Categorical Exemptions
More Articles
08/07/2014 Publication Todd Williams No CEQA Required When Agencies Adopt Citizen Sponsored Initiatives

Events

Streamlined Housing Approval with SB 35, SB 330 and New Pro-Housing Legislation

Streamlined Housing Approval with SB 35, SB 330 and New Pro-Housing Legislation

10/20/2021 | Wendel Rosen

Partners Patricia Curtin, Amara Morrison and Todd Williams discussed recently adopted laws SB 35 and SB 330 that may provide expedited processing and approval of qualifying housing projects, review recent…

Full Article
Bisnow East Bay Multifamily Update

Bisnow East Bay Multifamily Update

08/19/2021 | Bisnow

Wendel Rosen proudly sponsors Bisnow’s East Bay Multifamily Update on August 19, 2021. Todd Williams, Land Use and Environmental Practice Group Chair and Partner, will moderate a discussion with industry…

Full Article
Density Bonus: a Strong Development Tool Gets Stronger

Density Bonus: a Strong Development Tool Gets Stronger

06/02/2021 | Wendel Rosen LLP

Amara Morrison and Todd Williams partners in Wendel Rosen’s Land Use Practice Group, discussed the recent legislative changes to the Density Bonus Law, and how the law works to benefit…

Full Article
Date Category Host Title
11/18/2019 Conference Panel Bay Planning Coalition BPC Expert Briefing: CEQA Update 2019
04/19/2018 Sponsorship Bisnow Alameda County Multifamily & Mixed-Use Expansion
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01/09/2018 Seminar Wendel Rosen LLP Demystifying the New 2018 Housing Laws and Update on Major Oakland Projects
05/09/2017 Sponsorship Bisnow Bisnow – Oakland Multifamily & Mixed-Use Rise and Expansion 2017
11/10/2016 Sponsorship Bisnow Oakland Construction & Development: The Boom Continues!
10/21/2016 Seminar Contra Costa County Bar Association What Every Real Estate Attorney Should Know About CEQA
04/12/2016 Seminar Wendel Rosen Client Seminar The Latest on Oakland’s Development Impact Fees and the California Supreme Court’s Steps to Rein in CEQA
02/23/2016 Sponsorship Bisnow Bisnow – Oakland State of the Market
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02/17/2016 Seminar Alameda County Bar Association What Every Lawyer Needs to Know About CEQA + New Supreme Court Developments
10/06/2015 Seminar Bay Planning Coalition Bay Planning Coalition CEQA Update
09/15/2015 Seminar Wendel Rosen Client Seminar Keeping Your Infill Project on the Approval Track

News

Wendel Rosen Attorneys Selected to 2021 Northern California Super Lawyers

Wendel Rosen Attorneys Selected to 2021 Northern California Super Lawyers

08/03/2021 | Wendel Rosen LLP

OAKLAND, Calif., July 30, 2021 – Wendel Rosen LLP, the largest law firm in the East Bay representing businesses throughout the country, announced that 17 attorneys have been named to…

Full Article
Oakland Planning Commission Approves Final Development Permits for West Oakland BART Station

Oakland Planning Commission Approves Final Development Permits for West Oakland BART Station

11/18/2020 | San Francisco Business Times

Photo Courtesy of JRDV Architects Wendel Rosen attorneys Amara Morrison and Todd Williams represented Strategic Urban Development Alliance, a member of the development team BART selected to entitle and develop…

Full Article
Wendel Rosen Lands 12 in 2020 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America

Wendel Rosen Lands 12 in 2020 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America

08/19/2019 | Wendel Rosen

Partner Michael Dean Named “Best Lawyer” for 37th Consecutive Year Wendel Rosen LLP Partners Michael D. Cooper, Patricia E. Curtin, Michael A. Dean, Monica Dell’Osso, Matthew F. Graham, Tracy Green,…

Full Article
Date Category Publication Title
07/08/2019 Press Release   Wendel Rosen Sees 22 Attorneys Named as 2019 Northern California Super Lawyers and Rising Stars
08/15/2018 Press Release   Eleven Wendel Rosen Attorneys Named to 2019 Edition of the Best Lawyers in America
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07/10/2018 Press Release Wendel Rosen LLP  Wendel Rosen Sees 26 Attorneys Named 2018 Northern California Super Lawyers and Rising Stars
08/15/2017 Press Release   Firm Lands 10 Attorneys in 2018 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America

Education

University of California, Hastings College of the Law; J.D.

University of California, Los Angeles; B.A.

Admissions

State Bar of California