David J Petersen

Practice Areas

Real Estate & Land Use

Energy, Utilities & Renewables

Senior Living

Cannabis

Forest Products

Administrative & Regulatory Law

Construction

Government Law & Disputes

Business Law

Career

David is Co-Chair of Tonkon Torp’s Business Department and immediate past chair of its Real Estate & Land Use Practice Group. His practice is focused on land use and local government law. David has helped bring a wide range of development projects to fruition, including large-scale residential developments, big-box retail stores, educational and office campuses, mixed-use developments and master planned communities, and other industrial and commercial facilities. He has successfully represented clients before a wide range of permitting bodies including the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals and many Oregon and California cities and counties.

David has a subspecialty focusing on renewable energy development, having worked with many clients to bring utility-scale wind and solar facilities online in Oregon, California, and elsewhere. David has represented clients before and has served as a hearings officer for the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council. He is a member of the firm’s Energy Law practice group and often writes on land use topics as they relate to renewable energy.

Beyond land use, David has a robust real estate transactional practice, representing owners and developers in a wide range of title, finance, transactional, leasing, and regulatory matters. He has handled the real estate aspects of several complex mergers, acquisitions and bankruptcies, including the $1.2 billion sale of 146 senior housing facilities arising out of the bankruptcy of Sunwest, at the time the nation’s largest privately-held senior housing provider. He also regularly counsels developers and owners on the intricacies of Oregon law related to owners’ associations and restrictive covenants.

David’s clients repeatedly praise his direct advice, quickness to grasp key issues, and efficiency in completing work on time and under budget. Clients and decision-makers alike compliment his clear, concise, and forthright explanation of complicated issues and presentation of legal arguments.

Prior to law school, David worked as a criminal investigator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. After law school, he practiced real estate and land use law in the San Francisco area for five years before joining Tonkon Torp in 2003.

Professional Memberships

Multnomah Bar Association

Personal

David likes gardening, backpacking, fishing, and skiing. He serves as a volunteer advocate for foster kids through Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA). He is also the voice of the varsity baseball team at Portland’s Ida B. Wells High School and regularly volunteers as a high school football referee and baseball umpire. The things he misses most about his hometown of Buffalo, New York are thunderstorms, fireflies, and truly authentic, extra-spicy chicken wings.

Expert in these Jurisdictions

Oregon State Bar

State Bar of California

U.S. District Courts, Central, Eastern, and Northern Districts of California

U.S. Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit

Publications

David is the founder of, and a regular contributor https://tonkon.com/articles/ear-to-the-ground-blog/?_article_type=ear-to-the-ground-blog&_author=3709 to, Tonkon Torp’s Ear to the Ground blog https://tonkon.com/ear-to-the-ground-blog/, which provides timely commentary on issues that affect the commercial real estate and development communities in the Pacific Northwest.

Awards

Education