| | James L. Lott, Jr. is a Partner in Riker Danzig's Government Affairs Group.
His practice encompasses all aspects of land development regulation, as well as redevelopment, municipal, and transportation law.
Jim has significant experience in handling complex and controversial development projects and has appeared before more than 75 municipal, county, and regional land use and transportation agencies. He has litigated development approval rights in the Superior Court of New Jersey and represented clients in contested administrative agency actions and permitting matters before the New Jersey Departments of Transportation, Community Affairs, Environmental Protection, and Agriculture, the Board of Public Utilities, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and National Transportation Safety Board. Jim has considerable experience and expertise in land development and transportation matters arising under Municipal Land Use Law, Local Redevelopment and Housing Law, as well as the State Highway Access Management Act.
Jim has also counseled public and private clients in matters involving compliance with the Open Public Meetings Act, Open Public Records Act, HUD, and NJ.D.CA affordable housing and community development programs, and the Local Government Ethics Law; the drafting and enactment of local government legislation; public contracting procedures; and the sale and lease of public property under the Local Lands and Buildings Law. He also provided advice in connection with local finance, taxation, and budgetary matters.
Jim is special condemnation counsel to New Jersey Transit in the ARC-THE Tunnel project. He also served as legal counsel to the Township of West Caldwell Zoning Board of Adjustment and previously served as an alternate member to the Board.
Prior to joining the Firm, he served as a Special Assistant to the Regional Administrator in the New York/New Jersey Regional Office of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. In addition, he served at the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs as the Commissioner's Executive Assistant for housing, development, and urban policy initiatives.
Jim is on the Board of Directors of the New Jersey Alliance for Action, an economic development and smart growth public infrastructure support group.
Best Lawyers in America ®, a peer review of U.S. lawyers, has included Jim on its Best Lawyers list in the field of Land Use and Zoning Law since 2015. He was named "Lawyer of the Year" for Land Use and Zoning Law for 2019 in the Newark region, an honor given annually to a single attorney in each practice area in each region.
Thomson Reuters has included Jim on New Jersey's "Super Lawyers" list in the area of municipal law in 2008, 2009, and 2012 to 2022.
He received his J.D. at Seton Hall University School of Law, his M.P.A. from Seton Hall University Center for Public Service, and his B.A. from St. Peter's College. |
