Mourning the Loss of Phillip R. Nicholson

LOS ANGELES—Phillip R. Nicholson, one of the founding partners of law firm Cox, Castle & Nicholson, has passed away. He has been with the firm since its inception in 1968, and has left a lasting impression on the industry. He leaves behind his wife of 55 years, Joan; his four daughters, Jill Nicholson Samuel, Lauren Nicholson, Jennifer Nicholson Salke and Amy Nicholson Zimmerman; his seven grandchildren, Niccolo, Charlie, Maisie, Henry, Kate, Georgia and Katherine; and his sister Lois Nicholson McCullough.

“Phil's legacy at Cox, Castle & Nicholson lives on in the way that we do things and treat each other,” Mario Camara, a partner at Cox, Castle & Nicholson and Nicholson's dear friend, tells GloebSt.com. “He was an amazing example to us all. He made us all better at what we do, and so many of us attribute our success to working with him. The incredible thing about Phil was that he was always so busy, but he always made time for people and relationships. This meant so much to us, because he always gave the best advice, and he was always so positive. I worked with him for 42 years, and I never heard him say a negative thing about anybody. This has had a tremendous effect on how we work with each other and our clients.” Camera will give Nicholson's eulogy.

Nicholson was a leader in the legal community. He specialized in representing developers and investors in entity structures and formation, project development, land use, equity and debt financing, participation and profit sharing arrangements, restructures, disputes, and strategic planning, and was active in the California Continuing Education of the Bar and a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles County Economic Development. “Phil served as strategic counsel to many of the prominent developers in Los Angeles that have transformed the city, including Rob McGuire, David Murdoch and Ray Watt,” says Camera. “Examples of the iconic projects that Phil worked on with Ray Watt include Watt Towers in Century City and the Century Hill project that was a live-work project long before we called them live-work projects. Phil was excellent at his job and is really an 'icon of the bar.'”

He was regularly awarded for his work in the industry, earning honors on Legal 500's real estate list in 2015 and Chambers USA's round-up of California's top attorneys in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Before growing his own law firm, Nicholson began his career at Dillavou & Cox, where he quickly rose to senior partner. He earned his JD from the University of Southern California.

While real estate law was his passion, Nicholson was also a cycling enthusiast, riding nearly every day for 40 years. He played the saxophone, flute and clarinet, and, of course, remained a fervent Trojan fan throughout his life.

His legacy in the industry will not be forgotten, and his esteemed presence at the company and among his colleagues will be deeply missed.