Bruce Tester, who retired from the partnership in December 2004, had a practice that focused in the area of real estate law for more than thirty years. His major clients during his career included The Irvine Company, Irvine Apartment Communities, Kilroy Realty, Playa Capital Company, Santa Margarita Company, Rancho Santa Margarita Joint Venture, Rancho Mission Viejo, the Campbell Estate, KSL Realty, Bentall and other landowners, builders and investors. Bruce was the lead counsel for the entitlement and development of the town of Rancho Santa Margarita, a 5,000-acre town in southeast Orange County.
At the time of his retirement, he was a member of the American Bar Association and California and Orange County Bar Associations. Prior to attending law school, Bruce served five years as an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps from 1963 to 1968 and led a platoon of Marines in Vietnam.