LOS ANGELES-Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis has elected David Osias as the firm's new managing partner. Osias will succeed Brian Leck, who has served as managing partner since the law firm's founding in 1977.

Osias, who will step into his new role on July 1, will be based in San Diego but will spend a significant amount of his time in the firm's Los Angeles and San Francisco offices. He joined the San Diego office of Allen Matkins on July 1, 1991, and has been actively involved in firm management during his 20-year tenure. He is the chair of both the bankruptcy and creditors' rights and the water resources practice groups. He is also a long-time member of the management committee, a frequent member of the compensation committee, and a member of the firm's strategic planning committee.

Osias notes that Leck has positioned the law firm to grow its market share in litigation, labor and employment, environmental, finance and restructuring practices during the economic downturn. He also cited the firm's traditional strength in real estate.

Osias is an authority on creditor and debtor rights in out-of-court workouts and restructurings, federal and state-court receiverships, and bankruptcy proceedings. His bankruptcy practice includes representation of debtors, creditors, trustees, examiners, and official committees. He has served as a court-appointed examiner and expert witness in a variety of cases. He also represents federal equity receivers in cases filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission throughout California, Washington and Oregon involving billions of dollars in investor losses.

Osias is a fellow of the American College of Bankruptcy, a past president of the California Bankruptcy Forum, a member of the American Bankruptcy Institute, the Association of Insolvency and Restructuring Advisors, the Section of Business Law of the American Bar Association, and the mediation panel of the Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of California.

Osias is also an acknowledged expert in water rights and water resource issues. He has represented clients before state and federal courts, the California State Water Resources Control Board, and numerous other public agencies. He is a co-author of a 2008 law review article on certain water right aspects of the Colorado River, a member of the editorial board and frequent contributor to the California Water Law & Policy Reporter, and a past adjunct professor of water law at the University of San Diego Law School.