Our Team

Attorneys

Ms. Bjorn is an attorney of-counsel with the firm who has over 27 years of practice in real estate transactions and land use matters. She has represented numerous private sector clients ranging from individuals to large corporations in a variety of matters, including buying and selling of property, land use entitlements, property development and finance, title issues, property leases, and mineral and surface accommodations. She also provides consulting to public agency clients on specialized real estate issues. Ms. Bjorn provides well-rounded and insightful legal, business and governmental relations counsel, having represented parties on all sides of real estate transactions and having maintained frequent and friendly ties with city and county staff and decision-makers. This unique practice approach gives her greater perspective on the core issues facing each party, helps her effectively bring parties to agreement, and leads to streamlined resolution on city and county projects.

Legal Experience

Ms. Bjorn has represented clients in nearly every facet of real estate and land use law. Her clients include farmers and private landowners, developers, builders and oil companies. She represents them in a diverse range of matters including:

• Property sales and acquisitions
• Land use entitlement process, including:
  • General plan amendments
  • Zone changes
  • Development maps
  • Permitting
• Property development, including:
  • Joint venture, development consulting, and similar development contracts and arrangements
  • Conditions, covenants and restrictions (CC&Rs)
• Real property financing, including institutional and private sources
• Tenant/landlord agreements for agricultural, industrial and commercial properties
• Representation at public hearings

Ms. Bjorn has practiced law in Bakersfield since 1982. Before joining KMTG, she was the first woman attorney, then partner, in the law firm of Clifford & Brown, where she practiced for nearly 18 years, handling commercial, industrial, residential, farming and oil and gas projects involving purchases, sales, financing, developing, leasing and land use public hearings. Prior to that, she was the first woman partner in a Kern County law firm, Kuhs & Parker, where she also handled real estate and land use matters, including service on the City of Bakersfield Planning Commission.

Practice Examples

Following are recent examples of legal matters Ms. Bjorn has handled on behalf of her clients:

• Over the years, she has represented many farmers, landowners and developers in the sale, acquisition, development and financing of property in the Kern County area. She has represented farmers and other landowners that are selling land for development, helping them understand entitlement matters and representing them in the sale to developers and development companies. She has also represented developers in the purchase of agricultural land and has helped them with land use entitlement processing and public hearings.
• In recent years, Ms. Bjorn has continued to develop her legal acumen in negotiations between oil companies, developers and landowners in matters involving drilling rights within industrial, commercial and residential developments. She has represented both sides of the transactions, helping the parties reach mutually agreeable resolutions.

Professional Activites & Affiliations

In addition to practicing law, Ms. Bjorn enjoys speaking and teaching. To fulfill these interests, she frequently speaks on real estate topics to realtor, paralegal and attorney groups, and has served as an associate professor at California State University Bakersfield and professor at the former California Pacific School of Law, where she taught real property law; real estate transfer, finance and development law; and legal ethics classes.

Ms. Bjorn’s current professional affiliations include:

• Admitted to practice in California and Oregon
• Member, American Bar Association, Section of the Real Property, Probate and Trust Law
• Member, California State Bar Association, Real Property Law Section
• Member, Kern County Bar Association
• Member, Kern County Women Lawyers Association
• Martindale-Hubbell BV Rated Attorney

She also maintains active involvement in her community. She is currently serving on the Joint City/County Oil Ordinance Task Force and is an almost 20-year member of the Bakersfield Rotary Club. In 2002, she was appointed as community member of the Bakersfield Californian Editorial Board. Past activities have included serving on the City of Bakersfield Planning Commission and the Kern County Charter Review Committee.

Academic Background

B.A. University of Iowa, 1974

M.A. University of Iowa, 1976

J.D. George Washington University, 1979