Law

Fred Nicholas was admitted to practice law in the State of California in 1952 and was assigned Bar No. 23451

He joined the law firm of Loeb and Loeb as an associate and was employed for 5 years as a specialist in motion picture anti-trust law under the aegis of Herman F. Selvin and Harry B. Swerdlow. Nicholas also worked in the contract law department under Julian Isen.

In 1957, Nicholas left Loeb & Loeb joining Harry Swerdlow and William Glikbarg to form the Swerdlow, Glikbarg and Nicholas law firm which focused on business law, real estate and anti-trust litigation.

Nicholas became a general litigator and a specialist in shopping centers. He left the firm in 1962 and opened his own office in association with Leonard Hirsch and Preston Kline. Later, Roland Ginsburg joined the office.

During Nicholas employment at Loeb & Loeb, he met and became friendly with a real estate broker, Maurice O. Smith, known as Hap Smith. Their friendship lasted for the remainder of Hap Smith’s life (more than 25 years) and was the most important element in Nicholas’ business and professional life.

Nicholas had a distinguished legal career for more than 50 years, specializing in real estate law. He represented major developers throughout the United States and became an expert in real estate syndication. He has written numerous articles on real estate and is the author of “Setting up a Shopping Center” and co-author of “Commercial Real Property Lease Practice” for the “Continuing Education of the Bar” published by the California Bar Association.

Nicholas negotiated and authored the first lease at Marina del Rey for Lionel Neufeld, a veteran developer who built the first Marina at Marina del Rey. Nicholas also authored the first lease for the Pacific Design Center.

In addition, he authored the original ground lease for the Louis B. Mayer Estate at the corners of Beverly Drive and Canon Drive in Beverly Hills.