Joe E. von Meier
California
CGS3 LLP
12750 High Bluff Drive
Suite 250
San Diego, CA 92130
Tel: 858.779.1724
Email:
jvonmeier@cgs3.com
Web:
www.cgs3.com
Joe E. von Meier is a Partner at CGS3 in San Diego whose practice focuses on construction, development, and commercial real estate. With nearly two decades of experience, he advises developers, investment groups, construction firms, and other real estate businesses on matters spanning the full development lifecycle, including entity formation, financing, design and construction, stabilization, and disposition.
Joe has particularly strong experience in the construction and development aspects of complex real estate projects. He drafts and negotiates design and consulting agreements and construction contracts for developers and end users across commercial, industrial, and residential developments. His practice includes mixed-use projects, multifamily properties, office developments, warehouse and industrial assets, and research and development facilities in major urban markets.
His perspective is informed by extensive experience working closely with a real estate development company early in his career, where he became deeply involved in its legal and business operations. As the company expanded from high-value single-family developments into adaptive-reuse condominiums, multifamily towers, and nationally recognized student housing communities, Joe gained practical exposure to the commercial and operational issues that arise throughout the development process.
Beyond construction and development, Joe advises clients on real estate investment structures and financing arrangements, including traditional and non-traditional debt. He also assists entrepreneurs and investment groups with private capital raises, preparing Private Placement Memoranda, limited liability company operating agreements, and related formation and regulatory documents.
His work has earned recognition from several legal and business publications, including Best Lawyers in America for both Construction Law and Real Estate Law in San Diego, the San Diego Business Journal as a Leader of Influence in Law and Leader in Law, and SD Metro among its Top Attorneys. He was also named “Construction Law Lawyer of the Year” in the 2026 RankWell Legal Awards and was previously recognized as a Chicago Super Lawyers Rising Star from 2009 through 2012.
Before joining CGS3, Joe spent nearly 15 years with Burke, Warren, MacKay & Serritella PC in Chicago, where he rose to partner. During his tenure there, he also served as Chair of the firm’s Summer Associate Committee. He remains active in legal and real estate industry organizations and has developed a strong presence within San Diego’s business community.
Joe is admitted to practice in California, Illinois, and Wisconsin.
CGS3 advises clients on the construction and development aspects of commercial real estate projects, with a particular focus on contract structuring, risk allocation, and the coordination of agreements among project participants. The team helps clients evaluate potential exposure and develop strategies tailored to the property, project objectives, timing, and anticipated exit strategy.
The firm regularly reviews and negotiates agreements involving architects, contractors, consultants, and other members of development teams. Its attorneys identify and address issues that may be inadequately covered by standard industry forms, including indemnification, concealed conditions, responsibility for project risks, and other contractual protections.
Drawing on extensive commercial real estate and market knowledge, CGS3 considers how individual project agreements interact and how risk should be allocated among the various parties. This integrated approach helps clients anticipate potential problems, protect their interests, and establish a stronger contractual framework for complex development projects.
Crosbie Gliner Schiffman Southard & Swanson LLP (CGS3) is a California commercial real estate law firm founded in 2013 and focused on the legal, financial, and operational issues surrounding real estate ownership, development, investment, and management. With offices in San Diego and Pacific Palisades, the firm represents developers, investors, owners, lenders, tenants, and other real estate stakeholders in transactions and disputes involving projects and properties throughout California and across the United States.
The firm’s practice encompasses acquisitions and dispositions, commercial leasing, construction and development, financing, workouts, entity formation and tax, land use and environmental matters, sustainability and renewable energy, property management, and dispute resolution and litigation. Its attorneys advise clients on commercial, residential, industrial, retail, and mixed-use projects, including matters involving project structuring, construction agreements, financing arrangements, development risk, contractual disputes, and claims arising during or after the development process.
CGS3 combines transactional real estate experience with litigation and dispute-resolution capabilities, allowing the firm to assist clients from the planning and documentation of a project through disagreements that may require negotiation, mediation, arbitration, or court proceedings. The firm was established with a lean, client-focused model intended to provide the depth of experience associated with larger real estate practices while maintaining direct attorney involvement and a practical understanding of clients’ commercial objectives.
“Joe is particularly effective on sophisticated commercial, industrial, and multifamily projects where construction and real estate considerations overlap. His practical understanding of development operations allows him to draft and negotiate agreements with a clear sense of how they will function in practice.”