Our firm represents clients in land use and environmental cases in administrative agencies in Maryland and Washington, D.C., Maryland’s trial and appellate courts, the federal trial courts in Maryland, the federal appellate court in Richmond, and appellate courts in Washington, D.C. The founding partner G. Macy Nelson has been recognized as a Maryland “Super Lawyer” in the area of Environmental Litigation since 2015. Grant Amadeus Giel graduated from Cornell Law School in 2018 and joined the firm in June 2019, and is a Maryland “Rising Star” in the area of Land Use/Zoning. Alex Votaw graduated from Georgetown University Law Center in 2021 and joined the firm in November 2021, and is a Maryland "Rising Star" in the area of Environmental Litigation.
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We are happy to announce that Grant and Alex have been made Partners of the firm as of January 2026, and in coming months we will be amending the firm name to Nelson, Giel, and Votaw. We look forward to continued representation for many years to come!
RECENT MAJOR VICTORIES
January 28, 2026 – The Appellate Court of Maryland, in In the Matter of Imani Chiusano, ruled that appellants were not estopped from their administrative challenge, on the basis that a privately shared county letter to the developer did not constitute a final agency action and would deprive appellants of due process.
January 27, 2026 – The Prince George's County Circuit Court overturned the development approval of a building in a historic neighborhood on the basis that newly drafted county zoning law prohibited requested area variances on parcels that did not meet certain size requirements.
November 6, 2025 – The Howard County Hearing Examiner ruled in favor of a group of citizens who alleged that a local brewery repeatedly violated the zoning ordinance and that the Howard County Department of Planning and Zoning failed to adequately investigate the alleged violations.
November 3, 2025 – The Howard County Hearing Examiner overturned a DPZ permit for a riding academy and farm stand, on the grounds that the developer was shown to be engaging in a prohibited summer camp/agritourism use, in violation of the permit and the county zoning regulations for minimum acreage.
October 28, 2025 – The Prince George’s County District Council ruled in favor of citizens challenging a proposed apartment development in a rural area, holding that the Prince George’s County Planning Board failed to address important issues like forest preservation and compatibility with the neighborhood.
September 2, 2025 – The Howard County Circuit Court ruled in favor of a group of citizens challenging the approval of the expansion of a private school, holding that the Howard County Board of Appeals failed to adequately evaluate the applicable setback requirements for accessory structures.
May 21, 2025 – The Prince George's County Circuit Court ruled in favor of citizens challenging components of CB-15-2024 that would have permitted unsustainable urban sprawl and industrial development on agricultural land via illegal special law, and struck the offending portions from the omnibus bill.
April 24, 2025 – The Appellate Court of Maryland, in Matter of HRVC Limited Partnership, ruled in favor of homeowners and the County Council in its decision to deny redevelopment of a town center, holding that the developer's ethical challenges against a Council member were legally unsound.
October 23, 2024 – The Cecil County Planning Commission ruled in the firm's favor in a challenge to a high-density redevelopment on recreational property with a history of flooding issues, holding that the proposal failed to address future flooding or adequately replace lost recreational space for the community.