DLA Piper represented the Shammas Group in the sale of Downtown Los Angeles Auto Group to Lithia Motors, Inc. Downtown Los Angeles Auto Group includes Audi, Chevrolet, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Porsche, Scion, Toyota and Volkswagen dealerships in Los Angeles, as well as a Nissan dealership in Carson, California. The group, also known as Shammas Automotive Group, ranks No. 55 on Automotive News' list of the top 150 dealership groups based in the US, with annual new-vehicle retail sales of 17,683 in 2016. Lithia, of Medford, Oregon, ranks No. 4, with annual new-vehicle retail sales of 145,772 in 2016.

The deal is expected to generate about US$1 billion in annual revenue for Lithia. Lithia wanted a presence in Los Angeles to have a front-row seat to changes that autonomous vehicles and other technology bring to retail.

The DLA Piper team representing the Shammas Group included Ann Lawrence, global co-chair of the Retail sector, Timothy Evans, Scott Layfield and Shauneen Militello (all of Los Angeles).