Robin Munro Madaffer

President / General Counsel

Robin Munro Madaffer is both the President of Madaffer Enterprises, Inc. and the President of San Diego Land Lawyers, Inc., a law firm specializing in real estate, land use, policy and environmental regulatory matters.  She counsels clients who develop mixed-use, residential (including affordable), commercial, industrial, office, retail and resort projects.  Robin advises on all aspects of public policy, including land use entitlements, due diligence, CEQA compliance, Subdivision Map Act, Coastal Act, development feasibility, community outreach, processing, permitting and implementation.  Robin appears regularly on behalf of clients before Planning Commissions, City Councils, Board of Supervisors, Coastal Commission and other public agencies.

Robin is former Vice Chair of the Downtown San Diego Partnership.  She received the Chairman’s Alonzo Award for her work chairing a partnership between business, government and social service providers dedicated to ending homelessness in San Diego.  Robin is a member of Lambda Alpha International, a national real estate economics society, and past District Council Chair of Urban Land Institute San Diego/ Tijuana.  Robin has served as a professor at the University of San Diego, Real Estate Certification Program, and a former law professor at California Western School of Law, teaching Land Use Entitlements and Environmental Regulation.  She has also served as a Judge for the Moot Court Competitions for both University of San Diego and California Western Schools or Law.  Robin routinely speaks to professional industry organizations and the media about emerging trends in land use.

Robin attended Arizona State University, obtained her Bachelor of Science Degree in English from the University of Nevada Las Vegas and her Juris Doctorate from California Western School of Law. 

Robin enjoys cooking, traveling and spending time with the Madaffer’s English Bulldogs, Ruby and Red.

Farah Mahzari joined San Diego Land Lawyers as Director of Government Affairs after retiring from the City of San Diego. She was at the City for over 30 years where she worked as a Senior Development Project Manager in Development Services Department and an Associate Engineer-Traffic in both Development Services and Transportation & Storm Water departments.

Farah has a wealth of engineering and project management experience. She is a hybrid expert – an engineer who is comfortable working alongside planners to shepherd projects through the maze of development process.

She provides services to property buyers, owners, and developers on due diligence and site assessment matters. In addition, Farah is fully versed in the permitting and processing of discretionary and administrative permits, subdivisions, approvals and property development entitlements, as well as neighborhood code compliance and zoning violation matters.

Farah has a proven track record of excellent customer service, problem-solving, negotiating, and the ability to balance the competing interests in regulatory and political environments.

Farah earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from United States International University and has benefitted from numerous leadership academies at the City. She worked at the County of San Diego, City of El Cajon, and a private engineering firm prior to joining the City of San Diego.