Greenberg Traurig of counsel Mark Tobin becomes visibly excited when the words “road widening”, “frontage” or “eminent domain” make its way into conversation. His eyes widen, and he is prone to tangents on constitutionality (“remember they can only take what they need”) and private property rights. At any moment, Tobin is liable to tearing off a page of a legal pad and quickly scribbling a rough outline of a tract of land to further drive home his point.

Real estate is in Tobin’s blood. His grandfather, Ben Tobin, emigrated from Ukraine in the early 20th century with little and built Tobin Properties, a real estate empire that has counted the Empire State Building and Hollywood Beach Hotel as holdings.