Moscone Emblidge & Sater LLP

Rachel Sater  Practice Areas: Land Use, Governmental and Municipal Law, Business Litigation, Appellate Law Phone: (415) 992-4348 Fax: (415) 362-2006 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Rachel Sater is a skilled advocate with a record of success in court and before regulatory agencies.  She represents public entities, businesses, citizen groups and individuals in cases involving complex land use issues, public agency law, business disputes, and appeals.

Rachel’s practice features the following areas:

• Land Use and Environmental Law. Rachel represents individuals and citizen groups in land use decision-making processes before local agencies and advise businesses on land use compliance and permitting issues. Her practice includes zoning and general plan issues, initiative law, land use entitlements, medical marijuana issues, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and other environmental laws and regulations. Rachel served as the legal consultant on a report to the California Ocean Science Trust that evaluated a range of decommissioning options for offshore oil and gas platforms in southern California.
• Governmental and Municipal Law.  Rachel provides advice and litigation services to governmental agencies regarding numerous municipal law issues, including open meeting laws, affirmative action, public works projects, domestic partner legislation, civil rights claims, public contracting and breach of contract matters.
• Retiree Benefits. Rachel helps associations of retired city and county employees fight assaults on benefits such as vested cost of living increases and health insurance.
• Physician/Hospital Disputes. Rachel represents doctors in peer review proceedings at hospitals and advises doctors during contract negotiations with hospitals and medical groups. Rachel also represents physicians in court challenges to hospital peer review actions. 
• Business Litigation.   Recently, Rachel has obtained over $25 million in judgments for business clients -- without going to trial. 
• Appellate Law. Rachel is an accomplished appellate lawyer, with victories in federal and state courts of appeal in the areas of environmental law, land use law, local government law, affirmative action, business disputes, and retiree benefits.

Rachel also serves as hearing officer for code enforcement matters for the City of Santa Rosa and the County of Sonoma.

Rachel earned a degree in Biology with Highest Honors in the Major and College Honors from the University of California at Santa Cruz.  She received her law degree from Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley, where she served as the Managing Editor of the Ecology Law Quarterly.  Rachel clerked for the Honorable John P. Wiese on the United States Court of Federal Claims in Washington D.C.

Significant Decisions

Retired Employees Ass'n of Orange County, Inc. v. County of Orange, 52 Cal.4th 1171 (2011)

Associated General Contractors of America v. California Dept. of Transp., U.S. Dist. Court, Eastern District of Calif., Case No. 2:09-VC-1622-JAM-GGH (2011)

Series AGI Minden of Appian Group Investors DE, LLC v. Diane Keith, California Court of Appeal, First Appelate District, CIV 085634 (2011)

Coral Const., Inc. v. City and County of San Francisco, 50 Cal.4th 315 (2010)

Retired Employees Ass'n of Orange County, Inc. v. County of Orange, 610 F.3d 1099 (9th Cir. 2010)

Ennix v. Stanten, 556 F.Supp.2d 1073 (N.D. Cal. 2008)

Marlo v. United Parcel Service, Inc., 254 Fed.Appx. 568 (9th Cir. 2007)

Wolfe v. City of Fremont, 144 Cal.App.4th 533 (2006)

City of Goleta v. Superior Court, 40 Cal.4th 270 (2006)

Vedanta Soc. of Southern California, et al. v. California Quartet, 84 Cal.App.4th 517 (2000)