David M. Huff is an Equity Partner at Orbach Huff & Henderson and is a trial and appellate lawyer as well as transactional advisor in all aspects of public works and private development projects. David has successfully defended over $500M in claims for one public agency alone and represented others in jury and bench trials as well as private arbitration involving substantially complex issues of law and fact. In addition to his public agency practice, David also represents several select private entity developers, REITs and lenders on construction projects, including drafting of the design and construction contracts, assisting with environmental and regulatory matters, and litigating cost, scope, impact, delay and lien claims. David has assisted these private developers and lenders with implementing several high-rise hotels, adaptive re-use properties, commercial developments, multi-family residential projects, and large-scale resorts throughout California, the United States and internationally. His transactional documents have been used to implement billions of dollars of private and public works.
For public agencies, including school districts, universities and municipalities, David also provides litigation and counseling services related to labor and employment claims, governance matters, real property, charter schools and procurement transactions.
David is a leading appellate lawyer in the state, having prevailed in fourteen appellate matters related to construction law, charter law or governmental law matters, including having successfully represented a school district before the California Supreme Court on a matter of first impression.
David was literally born and raised in the construction industry as his father and grandfathers ran small general contracting businesses in Illinois. Moving west with his family, he attended the University of California at Santa Barbara on a Regents Scholarship. David has actively coached in youth sports leagues, is an avid golfer, and continues to work hard at photography, sometimes with success.
B.A., Philosophy and Religious Studies (double major), University of California, Santa Barbara, 1989
J.D., Loyola Law School, 1992