Ervin Cohen & Jessup Further Expands Real Estate Team With Two New Attorneys

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Aug 23, 2016, 01:00 ET

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 23, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- If there is any question that real estate is booming in Southern California, look only to the mid-sized law firm of Ervin Cohen & Jessup, where this week's addition of Albert Valencia as a Partner and Elizabeth Dryden as Of Counsel boosts the firm's real estate and land use groups to 21 attorneys.

"We will rival the size of real estate groups in Southern California for many of the national and international firms," said Valencia, who focuses his practice on the full lifecycle of commercial real estate transactions.

Valencia says the long bench of real estate team members means more resources for his clients. He says he moved over from a rival firm in response to repeated client suggestions that he could handle more transactions if he had more support.

"This is something I'm doing for my clients," said Valencia, a specialist in negotiating purchase and sale agreements, forming joint ventures and syndications, structured finance and assisting property owners in asset management. "I now have more resources at my disposal, and the benefit to Ervin Cohen & Jessup is they're getting an attorney who is skilled in all of the primary disciplines of real estate."

In addition to having worked at other major firms including Mayer Brown and Proskauer Rose, Valencia spent the first few years of his career as a business consultant to such firms as Deloitte and Arthur Andersen, which he says gave him an understanding of the businessperson's perspective that many of his clients value. Valencia received his undergraduate degree from University of California Berkeley and his law degree from University of California Los Angeles.

Joining Valencia is Elizabeth Dryden, who specializes in real estate finance and has extensive experience representing institutional and non-institutional lenders, real estate funds, individual investors, developers, high-net worth individuals and family offices across all asset classes. Dryden received her undergraduate degree from Columbia University and her law degree from New York University School of Law.

This is the second time this year that Ervin Cohen & Jessup has brought aboard multiple real estate attorneys from a competitor. In May, the firm added the land use team of Ellia Thompson, Jonathan Riker and Jeffrey Harlan.

About Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP
From employment contracts and buyouts to real estate and taxes, Ervin Cohen and Jessup LLP draws upon a diverse group of professionals to solve the legal issue that will keep your business thriving. Responsive, resourceful, efficient and relatable are but a few words that our clients use to describe us. For more information, visit http://www.ECJLaw.com.

SOURCE Ervin Cohen & Jessup LLP