Allen Matkins Continues its Lateral Hiring Push by Welcoming Environmental Litigation Partner Shawn T. Cobb to its San Diego Office

SAN DIEGO – October 4, 2021 – Allen Matkins, a California-based, full-service real estate and business law firm, announced today the addition of environmental litigation partner Shawn T. Cobb to its San Diego office. Shawn, a trial lawyer who joined Allen Matkins from Latham & Watkins LLC, represents clients in environmental and land use matters, including government environmental investigations and enforcement actions, environmental citizen suits, contaminated site claims, development agreement and construction agreement disputes, and product liability matters. Shawn’s clients come from a broad range of industries including real estate, clean energy, aerospace and defense, manufacturing, and financial services.

“Shawn’s experience on a vast array of environmental, land use, and real estate regulatory issues, as well as his trial experience, is a valued addition not only to our San Diego office, but to our nationally-recognized Land Use, Environmental and Natural Resources group, and to the firm overall,” says Allen Matkins partner Sandi L. Nichols, Department Co-Chair. “Shawn’s energetic approach, entrepreneurial spirit, and passion for what he does fits well with our group. His broad environmental experience and trial work also helps to strengthen our already-strong team of talented environmental and land use lawyers.” 

Shawn is the fifth partner Allen Matkins has hired in previous months, in addition to 35 other hires since January 2020. The firm recently welcomed commercial litigation and trial attorneys Kevin Lloyd in its Los Angeles office and Drew A. Harbur in its Orange County office, real estate transactional partner Michael D. Kostecka also in the firm’s Los Angeles office, and land use partner Caroline Guibert Chase in the firm’s San Francisco office, demonstrating the firm’s commitment to strategic growth.

Shawn’s specific environmental experience includes matters involving the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, CERCLA, RCRA, Hazardous Waste Control Law, California Unfair Competition Law, OSHA, and environmental tort claims, among others. He has extensive experience in all aspects of litigation, arbitration, and mediation, including pre-filing investigations, trial, and post-trial motions and appeals. He is adept at negotiating resolutions of environmental claims and lawsuits brought by regulatory and citizen group enforcers, developing strategic approaches to litigation that often result in rapid summary judgment or settlement, and trying cases, should that prove necessary to resolve the dispute. 

Prior to practicing law, Shawn was a President’s Award recipient at Northrop Grumman, where he conducted independent evaluations of high-risk programs valued up to $10 billion and developed custom risk analysis models for major Department of Defense and Intelligence Community programs. He received his bachelor’s degree from Virginia Tech School of Business, his master’s degree in Security Studies from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, and his J.D. from University of Virginia School of Law, all while serving in the United States Army Reserve as a medic, a Medical Corps Officer, a Tactical Intelligence Officer, a Battalion Intelligence Officer for a Psychological Operations unit, and a Strategic Intelligence Officer.

About Allen Matkins

Allen Matkins, founded in 1977, is a California-based law firm with more than 200 attorneys in four major metropolitan areas of California: Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego, and San Francisco. The firm's areas of focus include real estate, construction, land use, environmental and natural resources, corporate and securities, real estate and commercial finance, bankruptcy, restructurings and creditors' rights, joint ventures, and tax; labor and employment, and trials, litigation, risk management, and alternative dispute resolution in all of these areas. For more information about Allen Matkins please visit www.allenmatkins.com.