California Pulse


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    ArentFox Schiff Launches Longevity Industry Group

    ArentFox Schiff LLP on Wednesday announced the launch of a group geared toward advising companies focused on advancing wellness, preventive health care and the longevity of life.

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    Firm Revenue Up 12.6% As Billing Rates, Demand Grew In '25

    Increased billing rates and strong demand helped drive another financially successful year for the U.S. legal industry in 2025, according to survey results released Wednesday.

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    Smith Currie Taps Construction Law Vet As New Leader

    Smith Currie Oles LLP announced a new managing partner this week, with a Seattle-based partner who joined as part of a 2023 merger stepping into the role.

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    Law Firms Merged At Record Rates In 2025 Amid Talent War

    A record 59 law firm combinations were completed in 2025, 21 of which involved the largest 200 firms by revenue, according to statistics released by SurePoint Legal Insights, formerly Leopard Solutions, on Tuesday.

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    How Associates Can Financially Prep For Equity Partnership

    The transition from steady pay as an associate to dealing with the financial nuances of being an equity partner calls for great diligence in how young attorneys manage their finances.

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    Gibson Dunn Mentor Program Sets Up Attys For Success

    January is National Mentoring Month. Law360 heard from attorneys who are in Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP’s firmwide mentorship program about its top benefits.

  • SEC Blunts Some Shareholder Activists With Policy Reversal

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has reversed course on allowing shareholders with less than $5 million in holdings to publicize information about their proxy ballot proposals through the agency, saying it will object to such voluntary submissions going forward.

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    Kelley Drye Adds Ex-23andMe, Facebook Privacy Pros

    Kelley Drye & Warren LLP said Monday it is boosting its privacy and information security practice with the addition of a former 23andMe attorney in California and a former Facebook attorney in Texas.

  • Law360 Seeks Members For Its 2026 Editorial Boards

    Law360 is looking for avid readers of our publications to serve as members of our 2026 editorial advisory boards.

  • Marilyn Monroe Homeowners Sue LA Again Over Landmarking

    Owners of a home where Marilyn Monroe died sued Los Angeles officials for the second time Friday, alleging in California federal court that designating the property a historic cultural monument prevented them from demolishing the decaying building they still must pay taxes on, which amounts to an unconstitutional government taking without just compensation.

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    Vedder Price Shortens Name In Rebranding Effort

    Chicago-based law firm Vedder Price PC will now go by the name Vedder and has debuted a new website in an effort to better serve clients and employees.

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    Fox Rothschild Updates Leadership Team With Eye On Future

    Both the managing partner and chair of Fox Rothschild LLP will start new terms in those positions in the spring, when a firm co-chair will join the leadership team to prepare for a possible transition to serving the role independently.

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    Willkie Adds Private Equity Pro From Sidley Austin In LA

    Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP has added a partner from Sidley Austin LLP to strengthen its capacity to advise private equity funds, asset managers and other clients about corporate transactions.

  • O'Melveny Brings On Proskauer M&A Pro In California

    O'Melveny & Myers LLP announced Monday that it added a corporate dealmaker to its Newport Beach, California, office from the Los Angeles office of Proskauer Rose LLP.

  • Ex-Calif. Judge Takes Aim At Sex Assault Charge

    A former California judge said a count of a federal indictment accusing him of sexual assault should be tossed since the alleged victim viewed him as a friend.

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    Law Student Recruiting Moves Further Off Campus

    About four-fifths of law school summer associate recruiting in 2025 happened through employer-sponsored channels, as opposed to more traditional law school-sponsored channels, with recruiting also happening increasingly early, according to research unveiled Monday by the National Association for Law Placement.

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    AI Fuels Surge In Corp. Data Privacy And Governance Changes

    With the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence, a striking shift is occurring in how corporations handle data privacy and governance as some 90% of organizations say they have expanded their privacy programs, according to a new study from tech giant Cisco Systems Inc.

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    Ogletree Elects New Managing Director, Names 2 Attys To Board

    Management-side labor and employment firm Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC has elected one of its San Francisco shareholders as one of the firm's two managing directors and selected another two to join its board of directors.

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    Dechert Lands 20-Partner Group From McDermott

    Dechert LLP announced Friday it is bringing aboard 20 partners from McDermott Will & Schulte spanning litigation, intellectual property and other practice areas in six cities across the country, including for upcoming firm offices in Chicago and Dallas.

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    Qualcomm GC's Comp Up $2M For Fiscal 2025

    Qualcomm Inc.'s general counsel saw her compensation jump to roughly $9 million for fiscal year 2025, up from just under $7 million the year prior, mostly due to a spike in stock awards, according to a public filing.

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    How Attorneys Can Balance Careers With Caring For Parents

    As baby boomers get older and develop more intense healthcare needs, attorneys in the prime of their careers are increasingly pressed to also provide care to their elderly parents.

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    Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

    Williams & Connolly LLP leads this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the U.S. Supreme Court held in a unanimous opinion that restitution is a criminal punishment subject to the Constitution's ban on increasing punishment retroactively.

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    Disney's Top Atty's Pay Continues To Climb, Surpassing $16M

    The Walt Disney Co.'s top attorney saw his compensation package rise yet again in 2025, nearing almost $16.3 million.

  • Voir Dire: Law360 Pulse's Weekly Quiz

    This was another action-packed week for the legal industry as law firms launched new practices, hired attorneys and reported record-breaking lobbying figures. Test your legal news savvy here with Law360 Pulse's weekly quiz.

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    Kilpatrick's New SF Head Enjoys Thrill Of Patent Work 'Puzzle'

    With experiences as both a patent engineer and a lawyer, Kilpatrick's new San Francisco leader, Neslihan "Nesli" Doran-Civan, is thrilled to bridge the gap between both backgrounds in her work at the firm.

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Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can Law Students Build Real-World Skills? Author Photo

    Allison Coffin at Akin Gump discusses how summer associates going back to school can continue to develop real-world lawyering skills by leveraging the numerous law school resources that support professional development both inside and outside the classroom.

  • How Firm Leaders Can Build And Sustain Culture Author Photo

    In uncertain and challenging times, law firm leaders can build and sustain culture by focusing attention on mission, values and leadership development, and applying a growth mindset across their firms, says Scott Westfahl at Harvard Law.

  • The Case That Showed Me The Value Of E-Discovery Plans Author Photo

    Robert Keeling at Sidley reflects on leading discovery in the litigation that followed the historic $85 billion AT&T-Time Warner merger and how the case highlighted the importance of having a strategic e-discovery plan in place.

  • Opinion

    CLE Accreditation Should Be Tied To Learning Outcomes Author Photo

    Given the substantial time and money lawyers put toward mandatory continuing legal education, CLE regulators and providers should be held to accreditation standards that assess learning outcomes, similar to those imposed on law schools and continuing medical education providers, says Rima Sirota at Georgetown Law.

  • Why You Should Leverage AI For Privilege Review Author Photo

    While many lawyers still believe that a manual, document-by-document review is the best approach to privilege logging, certain artificial intelligence tools can bolster the traditional review process and make this aspect of electronic document review more efficient, more accurate and less costly, say Laura Riff and Michelle Six at Kirkland.

  • Persuading The Court With Visual Aids In Written Argument Author Photo

    Robert Dubose at Alexander Dubose describes several categories of visuals attorneys can use to make written arguments easier to understand or more persuasive, and provides tips for lawyers unused to working with anything but text.

  • BigLaw Vs. Mid-Law Summer Programs: The Pros And Cons Author Photo

    There are major differences between BigLaw and Mid-Law summer associate programs, and each approach can learn something from the other in terms of structure and scheduling, the on-the-job learning opportunities provided, and the social experiences offered, says Anna Tison at Brooks Pierce.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Do I Take Time Off? Author Photo

    David Kouba at Arnold & Porter discusses how attorneys can prioritize mental health leave and vacation despite work-related barriers to taking time off.

  • Law Firms Must Prioritize Mental Health In Internal Comms Author Photo

    The traditional structure of law firms, with their compartmentalization into silos, is an inherent challenge to mental wellness, so partners and senior lawyers should take steps to construct and disseminate internal action plans and encourage open dialogue, says Elizabeth Ortega at ECO Strategic Communications.

  • Our Current Approach To Trial Advocacy Training Is Lacking Author Photo

    The key to trial advocacy is persuasion, but current training programs focus almost entirely on technique, making it imperative that lawyers are taught to be effective storytellers and to connect with their audiences, says Chris Arledge at Ellis George.

  • How Women In Law Can Advance Toward Leadership Roles Author Photo

    Female attorneys in leadership roles inspire other women to pursue similar opportunities in a male-dominated field, and for those who aspire to lead, prioritizing collaboration, inclusivity and integrity is key, says Kim Yelkin at Foley & Lardner.

  • The Case That Took Me From Prosecutor To Defense Attorney Author Photo

    Former Assistant U.S. Attorney Moira Penza, now at Wilkinson Stekloff, recalls the challenges of her first case as a civil defense attorney — a multibillion-dollar multidistrict class action against Allergan — and the lessons she learned about building rapport in the courtroom and with co-counsel.

  • The Importance Of Legal Macroeconomics Education For Attys Author Photo

    Most legal professionals lack understanding of the macroeconomic trends unique to the legal industry, like the rising cost of law school and legal services, which contributes to an unfair and inaccessible justice system, so law school courses and continuing legal education requirements in this area are essential, says Bob Glaves at the Chicago Bar Foundation.

  • What ABA Student Well-Being Standards Mean For Law Firms Author Photo

    While the American Bar Association's recent amendments to its law school accreditation standards around student well-being could have gone further, legal industry employers have much to learn from the ABA's move and the well-being movement that continues to gain traction in law schools, says David Jaffe at the American University Washington College of Law.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Do I Build Rapport In New In-House Role? Author Photo

    Tim Parilla at LinkSquares explains how new in-house lawyers can start developing relationships with colleagues both within and outside their legal departments in order to expand their networks, build their brands and carve their paths to leadership positions.

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