California Pulse


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    Freshfields Reelects Senior Partner For Second Term

    Freshfields said Thursday that it has reelected litigator Georgia Dawson as its senior partner for a second term amid strong backing for her leadership from the firm's partners.

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    Seyfarth Shaw Employment Atty Jumps To Akerman In LA

    Akerman LLP is boosting its employment team, bringing in a Seyfarth Shaw LLP class action litigator as a partner in its Los Angeles office.

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    Clients Name Top Firms For Service Amid Shifting Needs

    The set of client service-related behaviors corporate clients demand from their law firms has dramatically shifted, creating a shakeup at the top of this year's BTI Client Service A-Team ranking released Thursday.

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    Nonequity Partners Unsure How They Can Make Equity Partner

    The ranks of nonequity partners may be growing, but a recent report found many partners stating confusion about how attorneys can advance to the next level and ambiguity about whether the tier should be expanded.

  • Bird Marella And Bioscience Client Accused Of $87M Fraud

    An investment group that includes a "Toy Story" screenwriter is suing a Culver City, California-headquartered bioscience company and its Bird Marella attorneys in California state court, accusing them of manipulating the valuation of a company whose acquisition they funded, in order to defraud investors of $87 million.

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    DLA Piper Employment Atty Jumps To Davis Wright In LA

    Davis Wright Tremaine LLP is expanding its employment law team, announcing this week that it has brought in a DLA Piper litigator as a partner in its Los Angeles office.

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    As AI Use Grows, Attys' Misgivings Remain, Survey Says

    While adoption of artificial intelligence tools by legal professionals have surged this year, users remain concerned about overreliance, reputational risk and challenges adapting to the technology, according to a report Wednesday commissioned by insurance company Embroker.

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    New Zum General Counsel Embraces Tech Law Innovation

    Loving to act dynamically, solve problems and think creatively, JoAnn Covington found herself drawn to the martial arts as well as technology law. They helped shape who she is.

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    Ex-Seyfarth Partner Joins Legal AI Developer

    An attorney with nearly 20 years of experience with technology law and cybersecurity matters announced Wednesday he has joined the leadership team at Eudia, an artificial intelligence platform for in-house legal teams.

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    Stubbs Alderton Corporate Atty Joins Pryor Cashman In LA

    Pryor Cashman LLP announced that a Los Angeles-based attorney has joined the firm's corporate group as a partner after nearly a decade with Stubbs Alderton & Markiles LLP.

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    Former US Atty Talks Working With 'Integrity' At Perkins Coie

    Tara McGrath, who recently joined Perkins Coie LLP after serving as U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California, spoke with Law360 Pulse about what drew her to the firm, her time as a federal prosecutor and Marine Corps officer and her thoughts about today's legal landscape.

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    Thompson Hine Adds Venable Product Liability Atty In LA

    Thompson Hine LLP is expanding its litigation team, announcing Wednesday it has brought in a Venable LLP product liability expert as a partner in its year-old Los Angeles office.

  • Fubo Streamers Get Own Attys In Disney Suit

    DiCello Levitt and Lite DePalma have won out over Bathaee Dunne in a battle to represent FuboTV subscribers suing Disney over ESPN streaming rates, with a judge saying he had "grave doubts" that Yavar Bathaee could adequately represent the plaintiffs after Bathaee undercut their case in a status conference.

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    Ex-Airbnb GC To Tackle Climate Change At Watershed

    The former general counsel at Airbnb and Chegg Inc. announced Monday that he has accepted a job as general counsel and global head of policy at Watershed, a six-year-old sustainability measurement platform.

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    Survey Finds AI May Reshape Billable Hour's Reign In Law

    The legal industry's billing practices may soon undergo a seismic shift, as a survey of nearly 300 professionals highlights the growing influence of generative artificial intelligence, with many predicting the end of the billable hour's dominance.

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    Eversheds Sutherland Launches Silicon Valley Office

    Eversheds Sutherland is expanding its West Coast operations, announcing Tuesday it is opening a Silicon Valley office with Bradford Newman, a litigator from Baker McKenzie specializing in trade secrets and artificial intelligence, as its head.

  • Revived Effort To Break Up 9th Circ. Makes Its Way To Senate

    Idaho Republicans have reintroduced a U.S. Senate bill that looks to split up the Ninth Circuit and create a new Twelfth Circuit, according to an announcement made Monday, roughly nearly seven months after a similar bill was introduced in the House.

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    Davis Wright Adds Ex-Charles Schwab Associate GC In SF

    Davis Wright Tremaine LLP is expanding its litigation team with the addition of a former associate general counsel from Charles Schwab who has also worked at Morgan Stanley and was general counsel at a cryptocurrency exchange, the firm announced Monday.

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    Pillsbury Lands WilmerHale Startup Duo In Silicon Valley

    Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP announced Monday that it has landed a pair of partners from WilmerHale to enhance its capacity to advise startups, emerging technology companies and other clients.

  • Uber Sues LA Law Firms Over Alleged Crash Fraud Scheme

    Uber Technologies Inc. filed a lawsuit Monday against two Los Angeles personal injury firms, two of their attorneys and others, alleging the ride-sharing company is being targeted by a scheme involving fraudulent personal injury claims arising from motor vehicle accidents.

  • Judge Won't Recuse Over Past Work With DraftKings Counsel

    A California federal judge presiding over a proposed class action against DraftKings regarding its fantasy sports games offerings rejected a request from the plaintiffs to recuse himself over concerns that an attorney for the defense has ties to the court.

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    Billables AI Hires Ex-Clio, Consolio Executives

    Professional services software company Billables AI, which has an AI platform for timekeeping, announced Monday the hiring of two former leaders at Clio and Consilio LLC to serve as its director of customer success and head of sales.

  • Pot Drink Co.'s Case Belongs In Arbitration, Stoel Rives Says

    Stoel Rives LLP and a group of its clients are urging a California federal court to send a fraud suit brought by a maker of nonalcoholic cannabis drinks back to arbitration, arguing all the claims are subject to a valid arbitration agreement.

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    Judges' AI Orders Keep Trickling In As Fake Citations Persist

    A handful of federal judges have issued orders or guidelines this year on the use of generative artificial intelligence in court filings as attorneys continue to get in trouble for submitting legal documents with fake case citations, according to a Law360 Pulse analysis.

  • Law360 Names 2025's Top Attorneys Under 40

    Law360 is pleased to announce the Rising Stars of 2025, our list of more than 150 attorneys under 40 whose legal accomplishments belie their age.

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Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can I Use Social Media Responsibly? Author Photo

    Leah Kelman at Herrick Feinstein discusses the importance of reasoned judgment and thoughtful process when it comes to newly admitted attorneys' social media use.

  • Yada, Yada, Yada: The Magic Of 3 In Legal Writing Author Photo

    Attorneys should take a cue from U.S. Supreme Court justices and boil their arguments down to three points in their legal briefs and oral advocacy, as the number three is significant in the way we process information, says Diana Simon at University of Arizona.

  • How Firms Can Stop Playing Whack-A-Mole With Data Security Author Photo

    In order to achieve a robust client data protection posture, law firms should focus on adopting a risk-based approach to security, which can be done by assessing gaps, using that data to gain leadership buy-in for the needed changes, and adopting a dynamic and layered approach, says John Smith at Conversant Group.

  • 5 Life Lessons From Making Partner As A Solo Parent Author Photo

    Laranda Walker at Susman Godfrey, who was raising two small children and working her way to partner when she suddenly lost her husband, shares what fighting to keep her career on track taught her about accepting help, balancing work and family, and discovering new reserves of inner strength.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can I Turn Deferral To My Advantage? Author Photo

    Diana Leiden at Winston & Strawn discusses how first-year associates whose law firm start dates have been deferred can use the downtime to hone their skills, help their communities, and focus on returning to BigLaw with valuable contacts and out-of-the-box insights.

  • Resume Gaps Are No Longer Kryptonite To Your Legal Career Author Photo

    Female attorneys and others who pause their careers for a few years will find that gaps in work history are increasingly acceptable among legal employers, meaning with some networking, retraining and a few other strategies, lawyers can successfully reenter the workforce, says Jill Backer at Ave Maria School of Law.

  • Law Firm Guardrails For Responsible Generative AI Use Author Photo

    ChatGPT and other generative artificial intelligence tools pose significant risks to the integrity of legal work, but the key for law firms is not to ban these tools, but to implement them responsibly and with appropriate safeguards, say Natalie Pierce and Stephanie Goutos at Gunderson Dettmer.

  • Opinion

    We Must Continue DEI Efforts Despite High Court Headwinds Author Photo

    Though the U.S. Supreme Court recently struck down affirmative action in higher education, law firms and their clients must keep up the legal industry’s recent momentum advancing diversity, equity and inclusion in the profession in order to help achieve a just and prosperous society for all, says Angela Winfield at the Law School Admission Council.

  • Law Firms Cannot Ignore Attorneys' Personal Cybersecurity Author Photo

    Law firms that fail to consider their attorneys' online habits away from work are not using their best efforts to protect client information and are simplifying the job of plaintiffs attorneys in the case of a breach, say Mark Hurley and Carmine Cicalese at Digital Privacy and Protection.

  • Why Writing CLE Should Be Mandatory For Lawyers Author Photo

    Though effective writing is foundational to law, no state requires attorneys to take continuing legal education in this skill — something that must change if today's attorneys are to have the communication abilities they need to fulfill their professional and ethical duties to their clients, colleagues and courts, says Diana Simon at the University of Arizona.

  • How To Find Your Inner Calm When Client Obligations Pile Up Author Photo

    In the most stressful times for attorneys, when several transactions for different partners and clients peak at the same time and the phone won’t stop buzzing, incremental lifestyle changes can truly make a difference, says Lindsey Hughes at Haynes Boone.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can I Support Gen Z Attorneys? Author Photo

    Meredith Beuchaw at Lowenstein Sandler discusses how senior attorneys can assist the newest generation of attorneys by championing their pursuit of a healthy work-life balance and providing the hands-on mentorship opportunities they missed out on during the pandemic.

  • Law Firm Cybersecurity Should Not Get Lost In The Cloud Author Photo

    A recent data leak at Proskauer via a cloud data storage platform demonstrates key reasons why law firms must pay attention to data safeguarding, including the increasing frequency of cloud-based data breaches and the consequences of breaking client confidentiality, says Robert Kraczek at One Identity.

  • Advice For Summer Associates Uneasy About Offer Prospects Author Photo

    There are a few communication tips that law students in summer associate programs should consider to put themselves in the best possible position to receive an offer, and firms can also take steps to support those to whom they are unable to make an offer, says Amy Mattock at Georgetown University Law Center.

  • How Law Firms Can Cautiously Wield AI To Streamline Tasks Author Photo

    Many attorneys are going to use artificial intelligence tools whether law firms like it or not, so firms should educate them on AI's benefits, limits and practical uses, such as drafting legal documents, to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving legal market, say Thomas Schultz and Eden Bernstein at Kellogg Hansen.

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