California Pulse


  • Ford Says Quill & Arrow Can't Escape Lemon Law Fee Fight

    Ford Motor Co. has told a California federal judge that Quill & Arrow LLP must face claims that it saddled Ford with high-priced legal bills for work purportedly handled by virtual assistants overseas or nonlawyers, saying the personal injury firm's "fraud factory" tactics cannot continue unchecked.

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    Brownstein Hyatt Grows In LA With Litigation Hire

    Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP announced it has hired a California litigation attorney who most recently served as of counsel at Salisian LLP in Los Angeles.

  • Apple Backs Its $132K Fee Ask Over 'Bad Faith' Subpoenas

    Apple has urged a California federal magistrate judge to grant its $132,700 attorney fee request as a sanction against plaintiff consumers' lead lawyer in consumer antitrust litigation claiming Google muscles out rival search engines, but said Apple's counsel doesn't want to disclose their "highly and competitively sensitive" negotiated legal rates.

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    Weil Names New Corporate Leaders After Dept. Chair's Exit

    Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP has named two longtime private equity and mergers and acquisitions partners as the next corporate department co-chairs, promising to expand the headcount and breadth of the practice group after the former head left for Cravath Swaine & Moore LLP last week. 

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    AI Could Help State Courts Run More Efficiently, Panelists Say

    Artificial intelligence can help state courts operate more efficiently and ease workload strains by automating repetitive tasks, according to participants in a Wednesday panel discussion organized by the National Center for State Courts.

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    Getting To Court Can Pose Barrier To Justice In Rural America

    In rural areas of the U.S., many people live great distances from courthouses and other legal services, creating major barriers to accessing justice and taking a toll on residents, lawyers and legal personnel.

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    Ogletree Continues West Coast Hires With Jackson Lewis Atty

    Labor and employment law firm Ogletree Deakins Nash Smoak & Stewart PC has landed a seasoned litigator from Jackson Lewis P.C. with extensive experience in ERISA and employment law matters, the firm announced Monday.

  • Calif. Judge Charged Over Fatal Crash With Bicyclist

    California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced Tuesday that his office charged Kings County Superior Court Judge Kendra Weber with a misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter, alleging she struck and killed a bicyclist.

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    Orrick Hires CFO From Paul Hastings, Tech Leader From KKR

    Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP announced Tuesday that the firm has two new C-suite executives, both of whom will be based in New York.

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    Legal Ops Pay Stagnates As Big Company GCs See Increases

    A company's size has always influenced pay for in-house lawyers, but a new study shows a significant difference for general counsel and chief legal officers, with their median base salaries running 90% higher than their counterparts at smaller organizations. Meanwhile, compensation for directors of legal operations was flat.

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    Legal Deserts: Millions Across America Struggle To Access Lawyers

    Tens of millions of Americans live in towns and counties across the nation with limited or no access to legal services. By one estimate, at least a third of the nation's counties qualify as a 'legal desert,' having only 0.5 to 1 attorney per 1,000 residents. Roughly 24 million Americans reside in these counties.

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    California Wildfire Litigator Joins Sterlington From Buchalter

    Sterlington PLLC announced Monday that an experienced litigation attorney with a niche practice focusing on matters related to wildfires has joined the New York-based firm from Buchalter PC and will work remotely from Sacramento, California.

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    What Happens When The Only Lawyer In Town Retires?

    Many rural attorneys, often the only lawyer in town, work until they die or simply close their practices when they retire. But small to mid-sized firms looking to expand into rural markets could help to make succession planning a real possibility for these solo practitioners.

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    First-Gen Students Pressured By Earlier BigLaw Recruiting

    Students who are the first in their families to attend law school have been thrown a new challenge at the beginning of their legal journeys, as BigLaw accelerates their recruitment timelines.

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    What Summer Associates Learned From Working At Firms

    From learning how to come back from mistakes to cross-team collaboration, this year's summer associates came away with lessons that will help them succeed in their future careers. Here's what they want law students to know as they begin their own journeys.

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    The 2026 Summer Associate Experience: AI Led The Way

    Summer associate programs give law students an up-close look at changes unfolding in the legal industry, and a new Law360 Pulse survey found artificial intelligence use and pay have reached new heights.

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    Sullivan & Cromwell Adding Kirkland Private Equity M&A Attys

    Sullivan & Cromwell LLP announced Tuesday that four private equity mergers and acquisitions attorneys are moving to the firm from Kirkland & Ellis LLP.

  • Man Cops To Bombing Calif. Courthouse Over Gun Seizure

    A California man pled guilty on Monday to setting off a bomb at a Santa Barbara County courthouse in 2024 as retaliation for law enforcement officers taking away his firearms.

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    Disney Taps Warner Bros. Atty As Corp. Transactions Lead

    Disney has expanded its corporate transactions legal team with the addition of Warner Bros. Discovery's senior vice president of business and legal affairs, according to an internal memo.

  • State Farm Attorney Sanctioned $999.99 For AI Hallucinations

    An attorney for State Farm who filed several motions citing nonexistent cases and fabricated quotes generated by AI software must pay a $999.99 sanction, a Los Angeles judge ruled, an amount one cent below the threshold that would have triggered a mandatory notice to the State Bar of California under state law.

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    One County, One Lawyer: Legal Deserts Take A Human Toll

    Divorce is often hard, but it is harder still when there’s just one lawyer in town. The story of one divorcing couple in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula illustrates the financial costs and emotional pain of living in a legal desert, and it helps explain why lawyer shortages are spreading throughout rural America. This story introduces Law360 Pulse’s special series on legal deserts.

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    Morgan & Morgan Plans $1B In AI Spending, Unveils Platform

    Personal injury firm Morgan & Morgan formally announced Monday that it has been running a proprietary artificial intelligence platform over the past few years while also committing to spend at least $1 billion on AI and technology improvements over the next decade.

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    K&L Gates Hires 6-Atty Pillsbury Team In California, Texas

    K&L Gates LLP announced Monday that it recently added six attorneys from Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP to bolster its corporate, intellectual property, litigation, and labor and employment practices.

  • Jackson Lewis Removes Ex-Atty's Bias Suit To Federal Court

    Jackson Lewis PC has moved a former associate's suit accusing the firm of refusing to accommodate her temporary work restrictions following her medical leave to California federal court, saying state court wasn't the right venue for dispute.

  • Attys Must Arbitrate $8 Oil To Fight $625K Sanction: 9th Circ.

    Class action lawyers slapped with six-figure sanctions for suing Walmart Inc. based on erroneous purchase information can't yet challenge the discipline, the Ninth Circuit ruled, suggesting they may first need to arbitrate grievances over an $8 bottle of avocado oil.

Expert Analysis

  • Tech Plays An Indispensable Role In Addressing Legal Deserts Author Photo

    While building the Free Legal Answers platform, we have seen how technology can overcome barriers of time and space to make it easier for lawyers to help in legal deserts, meaning we must turn to big, bold measures, or the justice gap will continue to grow, says Buck Lewis at Baker Donelson.

  • How Firms Can Develop The Next Generation Of Lawyers Author Photo

    As law school graduates enter the industry after experiencing significant educational disruption due to COVID-19, firms can adapt to the new generation's unique circumstances by rethinking how they onboard and develop incoming attorneys — starting with summer associates, say attorneys at Taft.

  • How In-House Lawyers Can Help Fill The Legal Aid Gap Author Photo

    Corporate legal departments can expand access to justice in legal deserts in ways that don't require court appearances, as many client needs can be met through advice, brief service or pro se support, say Todd Stillerman at Wells Fargo and Allison Constance at Legal Aid North Carolina.

  • How Law Firms Can Advance Gender Parity Without Exclusion Author Photo

    Law firms can work toward eliminating workplace disparities while reducing discrimination risk by opening events to all employees, expanding caregiver support, and using mentorship, coaching and pay equity data to guide durable inclusion efforts, says Lori Mihalich-Levin at Mindful Return.

  • Closing The Gender Gap In AI Adoption: A Lawyer's Guide Author Photo

    Amid a reported gender gap in artificial intelligence use, female lawyers should think about AI ownership as beginning with adoption, expanding into career agency and influence, and culminating in collective leadership directed toward the profession and the public good, says Tamara Kraljic at Hughes Hubbard.

  • How Firms Adopting AI Can Learn From CRM Rollout Mistakes Author Photo

    Law firms should learn from the challenges that have plagued client relationship management system adoption for over 30 years as they evaluate whether and how to implement artificial intelligence tools, says consultant Paul Manuele.

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    RFP Reset: Start With Client Service Author Photo

    As clients increasingly expect the sophistication that artificial intelligence makes possible, law firms can use the proposal to adopt a client service mindset that delivers practical guidance the in-house legal team can use without translation, say attorneys at Stinson.

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    Legal Tech Talks: Notorio Co-Founder On Measuring Value Author Photo

    Leonardo Lupiano, co-founder at Notorio, discusses the importance of establishing performance metrics, analyzing product usage and calculating the return on investment when considering whether to adopt a new technology.

  • How BigLaw Can Build Infrastructure For Plaintiff-Side Work Author Photo

    Traditionally defense-oriented Am Law 100 firms are increasingly expanding their plaintiff-side dockets through a mix of contingency arrangements and litigation finance, but firms must consider how on-risk work interacts with their existing capital structure and business practices, says Brendan Dyer at Rocade Capital.

  • Teaching Associates To Write Well With Responsible AI Aid Author Photo

    Firms can help their new associates become strong writers and responsible AI users by employing a framework that ensures that use of artificial intelligence tools strengthens, rather than replaces, associates' thinking processes, say Julie Schrager at Faegre Drinker and Dawn Anderson at the University of Iowa.

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    Biz Development Tip Of The Month: Play The Long Game Author Photo

    Lawyers who consistently maintain early-career and personal relationships, track contacts, and make thoughtful outreach over time will be better positioned to generate future client work, referrals and leadership opportunities, says Deborah Farone at Farone Advisors.

  • 5 Due Diligence Steps For A Successful Succession Plan Author Photo

    Instead of relying on abstract policies, firm leadership should develop concrete succession plans before rainmakers announce retirement that track which tasks intended successors are assuming, how the outgoing member is transferring their knowledge and whether clients are yet relying on the replacement, says Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein.

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    The GC's 1st 90 Days: How To Build A Strong GC Network Author Photo

    Taking time to build a network of general counsel thought partners is useful in the early days of the role because the value of relationships compounds over time, and approaching the process with a spirit of curiosity and generosity can be especially helpful, says Heather Stevenson, general counsel at Red Cell.

  • 5 Ways Law Firms Can Build Lasting AI Visibility Author Photo

    As generative artificial intelligence tools become embedded across the entire digital ecosystem, law firm leaders can build an enduring footprint with five factors that ensure their firms remain visible no matter how underlying models evolve, says Melanie Trudeau at Reputation Ink.

  • Nonequity Partner Boom Forces Lawyers To Pick A Lane Author Photo

    With firms increasingly offering the nonequity partnership tier, the position can become either a parking spot to help build a book of business or a permanent landing zone, and for those who want to become equity partners, business development matters more than ever, says Kate Reder Sheikh at Major Lindsey.

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