Robert A. Thompson
February 11, 1943 - July 29, 2017
Robert A. Thompson, 74, of Berkeley, CA, died on July 29. Bob was born February 11, 1943, in Chicago, IL, to the late Dr. Kenneth R.M. and Helen Hevron Thompson. He graduated from Morgan Park High School, received his BA from Stanford University in 1965, was a Fulbright Scholar in Vienna, Austria 1965-66, and received his JD from Harvard Law School in 1969. Bob joined the San Francisco law firm of Pettit & Martin, where he specialized in commercial real estate law. After Pettit & Martin closed in 1995, Bob joined Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP, where he continued to practice real estate law as a partner until his death.
Along with many other projects, Bob worked on the development of UC San Francisco’s Mission Bay campus in San Francisco, the redevelopment of San Francisco’s Pier One and Ferry Building, the redevelopment of Hunters Point Shipyard, Treasure Island Naval Station, and Presidio National Park. He served as a Governor of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers (ACREL), Chair of both the American Bar Association and ACREL legal opinion committees, and Chair of the San Francisco Urban Land Institute District Council.
Bob had a longstanding commitment to pro bono work. He served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the San Francisco Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, and also on the boards of One Justice, the San Francisco Legal Aid Society/ Employment Law Center, and the Youth Law Center.
He loved his work, discussing politics and philosophy, and his second home and close friends in Big Sur, CA.
He will be missed by many, including his partner, Sharon O’Grady; his brothers Kenneth Thompson of Chicago, IL; Bruce Thompson of Pine Mountain, GA; and John Thompson of North Chelmsford, MA; and their families.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Bob’s name to San Francisco Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, 131 Steuart Street, Suite 400, San Francisco, CA 94105; Big Sur Volunteer Fire Brigade, P.O. Box 520, Big Sur, CA 93920; or Big Sur Health Center, 46896 Hwy. 1, Big Sur, CA 93920.