Real estate
Victor De la Cruz , chair of Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP’s land use practice, advises a broad range of clients on high-stakes development, entitlement, and regulatory matters across California. His recent work includes representing a leading waste management company in franchise agreements, facility entitlements, and litigation defense on projects exceeding $1bn in value. He also counsels a major Los Angeles university in litigation and entitlement disputes tied to campus expansion, with matters valued at over $100m. Beyond these, De la Cruz advises cultural institutions, nonprofits, and international event organizers on large-scale, complex projects.
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Position
Victor De la Cruz leads Manatt’s land use practice. He counsels clients in various matters at the nexus of law and government—in particular, real estate development, where his work on complicated, high-profile land use entitlements has earned him consistent accolades from Chambers USA (“go-to adviser for the most complex legal matters”; “always comes in with very thorough and thoughtful counsel”), The Best Lawyers in America, the Los Angeles Business Journal (Most Influential Minority Attorneys in Los Angeles), and the Daily Journal (California Lawyer of the Year; Top 40 under 40).
Victor has substantial experience with the California Environmental Quality Act, the Coastal Act, the Subdivision Map Act, historic preservation statutes and regulations, and other laws related to the development of land throughout the state. Among his projects are regional malls, transit-oriented developments, athletic arenas, waste hauling facilities, college and university master plans, big-box retail stores, large-scale signage projects, and residential, mixed-use and commercial office projects. In the course of his land use practice, he advocates for clients’ projects before agencies, boards, commissions and legislative bodies and also defends land use entitlements in litigation as necessary.
As a result of his work with administrative agencies and experience working with clients and consultant teams to craft legal, political and community outreach strategies, Victor is also routinely called upon to counsel clients on high-value, controversial government contracts and bid protests. His work in this area has involved both the duty-free and food and beverage concessions at Los Angeles International Airport, the Hollywood Bowl and Greek Theater operating contracts, social services agreements with the county of Los Angeles, and signage franchises. Representation of clients in these forums includes preparing bids and proposals (including coordinating media and political strategies), filing and defending protests, and participating in contract negotiations.
Victor is active in Los Angeles’ civic life through service in various real estate advocacy groups, including as a prior co-chair of the Housing, Land Use & Development Committee of the Central City Association of Los Angeles. He is also a registered lobbyist with both the city and county of Los Angeles.
Particularly passionate about supporting educational opportunities and legal representation for underrepresented communities, Victor serves on the boards of directors of Community Partners, Bet Tzedek Legal Services, Uncommon Good and the Mexican American Bar Foundation. He also enjoys mentoring college students through LEAP, the Legal Education Access Pipeline.
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Key clients
- Athens Services
- Mount Saint Mary’s University
- Self-Realization Fellowship
- The American Musical and Dramatic Academy
- Bicycle Transit Systems
- Orange Barrel Media
- Ike Smart City
- The California Endowment
- LoanCore Capital
- Toll Brothers
- Sun Communities
- Rising Realty
- The Peninsula Beverly Hills Hotel
Work highlights
Representing Athens Services in its Southern California expansion, including securing a contested Thousand Oaks franchise agreement and entitlements for a $1bn Irwindale facility capable of processing 6,000 tons of waste daily.
Successfully represented Mount Saint Mary’s University in preserving critical easement rights in a high-profile lawsuit against the Getty Center and in defending entitlements for its $100m Wellness Pavilion, overcoming three CEQA lawsuits and neighborhood opposition to secure unanimous city approval.