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Inside Shein Phanse Adkins, the Scottsdale firm founded by a real estate attorney who moonlights as a Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Pro Tem — bringing a judge’s eye to complex, multi-state commercial real estate deals.
David E. Shein — At a Glance
| ATTORNEY | David E. Shein |
| FIRM | Shein Phanse Adkins, P.C. (founding member) |
| ADMITTED | Arizona, 1987 (38 years) |
| EDUCATION | University of Arizona (B.S., Business Administration, with distinction, 1984 — double major accounting and corporate finance); Arizona State University College of Law (J.D., cum laude, 1987) |
| CERTIFICATION | State Bar of Arizona Board-Certified Real Estate Specialist |
| JUDICIAL ROLE | Judge Pro Tem, Maricopa County Superior Court |
| FOCUS | Commercial real estate acquisition, development, financing, and leasing; asset-based lending; complex multi-state transactions |
| OFFICE | Scottsdale, AZ |
| CONTACT | spa.law |
Origin: Business School Training Applied to Real Estate Law
David Shein earned his B.S. in Business Administration with distinction from the University of Arizona in 1984, double-majoring in accounting and corporate finance, before graduating cum laude from Arizona State University’s law school in 1987. That business-school foundation shows up directly in his practice, which centers on the financial and transactional side of commercial real estate rather than litigation. He is a founding member of Shein Phanse Adkins, P.C.
Practice Areas
Shein represents established and emerging companies and financial institutions across real estate acquisition, development, financing, and leasing, including asset-based lending, development planning and entitlement, venture formation, due diligence, capital acquisition and financing, complex contract negotiations, and mergers and acquisitions. His clients include both public and privately held companies and financial institutions in complex multi-state transactions throughout Arizona and the broader Southwest.
Track Record
Real estate transactional work rarely generates the kind of public litigation record a courtroom dispute would, so there’s no case table to cite here. Shein’s public professional record instead runs through nearly four decades of continuous practice, a genuine Board Certification, and sustained recognition across three independent rating bodies.
Note: Past results, where applicable, do not guarantee a similar outcome in any future matter.
Client Voice
One client described a “tough deal to get closed” — a very complex commercial loan restructure — and credited Shein with handling all the negotiations and documentation, getting the deal done correctly and on time in a way that preserved the client’s tenant relationships.
Community
Shein’s role as a Judge Pro Tem for the Maricopa County Superior Court is itself a form of public service — a part-time judicial role that draws on his decades of transactional and business litigation experience to help the court manage its caseload.
Recognition
Shein holds Arizona’s Board-Certified Real Estate Specialist designation — a genuine, examination-based credential — and is AV-rated by Martindale-Hubbell (peer review). He has been consistently named a top real estate lawyer by Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA, and Southwest Super Lawyers, where he’s been selected in 2008–2009 and every year from 2011 through 2026 — three independent, peer-reviewed rating bodies in agreement over an unusually long span.
The Arizona Legal Backdrop
What follows is general legal information, not legal advice.
Recording of real property instruments is governed by A.R.S. § 33-401. Commercial real estate financing frequently involves deeds of trust, with non-judicial foreclosure through a trustee’s sale governed by A.R.S. § 33-807. Business entity formation for real estate ventures runs through the Arizona Limited Liability Company Act, A.R.S. § 29-3101 et seq., or the Arizona Business Corporation Act, A.R.S. Title 10, depending on the structure chosen.
The Awesome Attorneys Assessment
Shein’s genuine strength is a rare combination for a transactional real estate attorney: a formal business/finance education applied directly to complex commercial deals, a genuine Board Certification, and a judicial role that reflects standing within the broader Maricopa County legal community.
The honest caveat: this is a transactional practice built for sophisticated commercial deals and institutional clients — individuals with a simple residential purchase or a small landlord-tenant dispute will likely find a better cost fit with a practice built around smaller, more routine matters.
Methodology & Sourcing
This profile was researched in August 2026 from spa.law (firm site, attorney bio), Super Lawyers, and Legal Wiki’s attorney profile. Shein Phanse Adkins, P.C. did not commission, review, or pay for this profile.
Publisher Disclosure & Independence Notice
This profile is an independent editorial article published by Awesome Attorneys. Awesome Attorneys does not endorse, recommend, or warrant any lawyer or law firm profiled on this site, and inclusion in this series is not paid placement.