Edward J. Szczepkowski

Partner

Los Angeles
300 South Grand Avenue
25th Floor

TEL: (213) 617-7490
Edward.Szczepkowski@bbklaw.com

Edward J. Szczepkowski is a partner at Best, Best & Krieger specializing in Litigation, Eminent Domain and Land Use/Environmental Law.  Prior to joining BB&K, Mr.  Szczepkowski was with O'Melveny & Myers' litigation department for 9 years, and Brown, Winfield & Canzoneri for 8 years, serving as the Chair of the litigation department for most of his tenure at BWC.  He has extensive experience handling complex litigation for public agencies, private corporations and charitable institutions in eminent domain, inverse condemnation, CEQA, leasehold valuation, business tort, accountant's liability, breach of contract and general real property matters.

Mr. Szczepkowski's eminent domain and leasehold valuation experience has included a broad representation of a wide range of clients in property valuation disputes encompassing a wide range of property interests.  In the early 1990s, Mr. Szczepkowski represented the Los Angeles Unified School District in an eminent domain lawsuit against a Donald Trump entity over the Ambassador Hotel Site in the mid-Wilshire area of Los Angeles.  In the late 1990s, he was part of the trial team for Lockheed Martin in an eminent domain case in which the jury awarded Lockheed over $85 million from the Bob Hope Airport for the taking of a 130 acre parcel.  He also served as lead acquisition counsel for the Los Angeles to Pasadena Metro Blue Line Construction Authority in its efforts to acquire over 100 partial interests in real property so that the adjacent corridor could be used for a 13.7-mile light rail line. In the past few years, he represented Union Pacific Railroad Company in the 62-day retrial of a judicial reference proceeding to determine fair market rent of a 1,871 mile pipeline easement located in the railroad corridor.  He also successfully represented the City of San Diego in a percentage lease rent dispute that the City had with Annheuser-Busch over the lease of Seaworld, an adventure park in the City's Mission Bay area.  While Annheuser-Busch argued for a $2.4 million rent reduction, the arbitration panel actually awarded the City a $4.4 million annual rent increase, over 80 percent of the increase in rent sought by the City.

Mr. Szczepkowski is a member of the California State Bar and frequently lectures to professional organizations about real property valuation topics.  He received a B.S. in Economics from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1984, a J.D. From Boston University School of Law in 1987, and an M.B.A. from the Boston University Graduate School of Management in 1988.  Mr. Szczepkowski has served as lead trial counsel on numerous trials and arbitrations on eminent domain, business and land valuation matters, and argued before the California Court of Appeal.

Bar & Court Admissions

• California, 1988

Education

• JD, Boston University, School of Law
• BA, University of Pennsylvania