Stephen A. McEwen

Pronouns: he, him, his

Stephen A. McEwen is a partner in Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP’s Orange County office and a senior member of the firm’s Public Law Practice Group. He joined Burke in 2003 and represents cities and public agencies throughout California in both advisory and litigation matters. Mr. McEwen currently serves as Assistant City Attorney for the Cities of Rolling Hills Estates and San Marino and previously served as City Attorney for Buellton and Laguna Woods, as well as Assistant City Attorney for Atascadero, Hemet, and Stanton. In these roles, he has worked closely with elected officials, city managers, and department leadership on the full spectrum of municipal governance and operational issues.

Stephen maintains a substantial advisory practice focused on public governance, land use, and regulatory compliance. He regularly advises city councils, planning commissions, and other public bodies during meetings; drafts and reviews ordinances, resolutions, contracts, and policy documents; and advises public agencies on compliance with the Brown Act, Public Records Act, conflicts of interest laws, and constitutional requirements. His practice also includes advising cities on homelessness-related issues, state housing law, zoning and land use regulation, and local cannabis regulations, with an emphasis on practical, legally defensible solutions that reduce litigation risk and support effective local governance.

In addition to his advisory work, Stephen has extensive litigation experience representing municipal and governmental clients in state and federal courts. His litigation practice has included land use and zoning disputes, eminent domain and inverse condemnation, constitutional and civil rights claims, public contracts, construction disputes, and municipal tort liability. He has also served as a city prosecutor, handling misdemeanor municipal code enforcement matters involving public nuisance conditions, building and safety violations, and zoning compliance. This litigation background informs his day-to-day counseling, allowing him to provide strategic advice grounded in an understanding of how municipal decisions are challenged and defended.

Stephen’s public service experience includes a federal appellate clerkship with Judge Arthur L. Alarcón of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and service as a Deputy Attorney General in the Criminal Division of the California Department of Justice. As a Deputy Attorney General, he represented the State of California in trial-level prosecutions, felony criminal appeals in the California Court of Appeal, and habeas corpus proceedings in federal district court and the Ninth Circuit. This background provides Stephen with a strong foundation in constitutional law, appellate advocacy, and public-sector litigation that continues to inform his municipal law practice.