Cox Castle Mourns the Passing of Partner Michael Zischke

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan 9, 2025--

It is with profound sadness that Cox Castle announces Michael Zischke, a partner and leading land use and environmental attorney, passed away on Thursday, January 2 nd. Mike was a partner in Cox Castle’s San Francisco office for nearly 18 years.

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Survived by his wife Nadine and daughters Julie and Jessica, Mike will be fondly remembered by his colleagues as someone for whom the profession was always personal and who cared deeply about his work.

Mike was a talented and award-winning land use and environmental lawyer. He was recognized for his extensive knowledge in California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) litigation and compliance. He co-authored the two-volume treatise Practice Under the California Environmental Quality Act, the CEQA treatise most often cited by California courts, which was first published in 1993 and is now in its second edition.

Over his 40+ year career, his commitment and passion for his work resulted in numerous professional accolades and countless published articles. For 22 consecutive years, Mike was ranked as one of California’s leading attorneys in both environmental law and real estate/land use by Chambers USA, one of the most prestigious awards in the legal industry. According to Chambers USA, Mike’s clients touted him as “one of the leading land use attorneys in the US" and “an excellent environmental attorney."

“Mike embodied so many of the characteristics we value here at Cox Castle,” observed Mathew Wyman, Chair of Cox Castle. “He possessed a deep commitment in service to the real estate industry, our clients, and the firm. He gave generously of his time, always willing to collaborate with his colleagues and mentor our young lawyers.But even more than that, what I think we will really miss at the firm, is Mike’s presence in the office. He genuinely cared deeply for his friends and colleagues, and he always took time to listen to and ask about the welfare of those around him. It goes without saying that he will be remembered as a preeminent lawyer whose impact will be long lasting, But for those of us lucky enough to have been able to spend time with Mike, he will always serve as an inspiration as we strive to move forward while honoring his legacy.”

“Mike had a true passion for the law, and he brought that to his practice as a leading partner at Cox Castle, ever since joining us in 2007,” observed Dwayne McKenzie, Managing Partner of Cox Castle. ”Mike was a mentor to many of us – partners and associates alike. His was always a voice of wisdom, reason, and wit. He was both a scholar and a lawyer’s lawyer, in every sense of the word. He was an extraordinary person and an outstanding lawyer. He will be sorely missed by all of us.”

Mike, a mentor and friend to many in the legal profession, was involved in numerous professional organizations. He was a founding member of the advisory board for the Center for Law, Energy & Environment at Berkeley Law, and was involved with Lambda Alpha (honorary land economics society), the American College of Real Estate Lawyers and the California Building Industry Association, among many others. He received a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley School of Law in 1982 and a B.A. from Dartmouth College in 1977.

Cox, Castle & Nicholson LLP

Cox, Castle & Nicholson LLP was founded in Los Angeles in 1968, with the goal of providing superior and comprehensive legal services to businesses, institutions, and individuals in all aspects of the real estate, finance, and construction industries. Cox Castle is now one of the largest full-service law firms specializing in real estate in the United States with more than 140 transactional and litigation attorneys in its Los Angeles, Orange County, and San Francisco offices.

The firm has substantial expertise in matters involving land and improved property acquisitions and dispositions; joint ventures; single and multifamily residential development; land use, entitlement and regulatory compliance (including coastal commission and condemnation); office, industrial, retail and mixed-use development, leasing and management; commercial lending and institutional investment; loan workouts and financial restructuring; construction; resort and hospitality; labor and employment; risk management and insurance; environmental compliance; renewable energy and natural resources; and tax and estate planning. For more information, please visit www.coxcastle.com.

Mike Zischke (Photo: Business Wire)

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Nicaragua’s Interior Ministry said Saturday the country would release dozens of prisoners, as the United States ramped up pressure on leftist President Daniel Ortegaa week after it ousted former Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

On Friday, the U.S. Embassy in Nicaragua said Venezuela had taken an important step toward peace by releasing what it described as “political prisoners.” But it lamented that in Nicaragua, “more than 60 people remain unjustly detained or disappeared, including pastors, religious workers, the sick, and the elderly.”

On Saturday, the Interior Ministry said in a statement that “dozens of people who were in the National Penitentiary System are returning to their homes and families.”

It wasn’t immediately clear who was freed and under what conditions. Nicaragua’s government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The government has been carrying out an ongoing crackdown since mass social protests in 2018, that were violently repressed.

Nicaragua’s government has imprisoned adversaries, religious leaders, journalists and more, then exiled them, stripping hundreds of their Nicaraguan citizenship and possessions. Since 2018, it has shuttered more than 5,000 organizations, largely religious, and forced thousands to flee the country. Nicaragua’s government often accused critics and opponents of plotting against the government.

In recent years, the government has released hundreds of imprisoned political opponents, critics and activists. It stripped them of Nicaraguan citizenship and sent them to other countries like the U.S. and Guatemala. Observers have called it an effort to wash its hands of its opposition and offset international human rights criticism. Many of those Nicaraguans were forced into a situation of "statelessness."

Saturday on X, the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs again slammed Nicaragua’s government. “Nicaraguans voted for a president in 2006, not for an illegitimate lifelong dynasty,” it said. “Rewriting the Constitution and crushing dissent will not erase the Nicaraguans’ aspirations to live free from tyranny.”

Danny Ramírez-Ayérdiz, executive-secretary of the Nicaraguan human rights organization CADILH, said he had mixed feelings about the releases announced Saturday.

“On the one hand, I’m glad. All political prisoners suffer some form of torture. But on the other hand, I know these people will continue to be harassed, surveilled and monitored by the police, and so will their families.”

Ramírez-Ayérdiz said the liberation of the prisoners is a response to pressure exerted by the United States. “There is surely a great deal of fear within the regime that the U.S. might completely dismantle it,” he said.

FILE - Nicaragua's President Daniel Ortega waves after attending the swearing-in ceremony of Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro for a third term at the National Assembly in Caracas, Friday, Jan. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix, File)