California Pulse


  • Ex-Kirkland IP Atty Asks To Fire Her Bias Suit Atty 'For Cause'

    A former Kirkland & Ellis LLP intellectual property associate suing Kirkland over bias claims has urged a California federal judge to fire her counsel at Filippatos PLLC and force Filippatos to hand over her client file, disputing Filippatos' assertion that her professional misconduct allegations are a contrived attempt to avoid paying fees.

  • US Atty Pick In DC Probes Dem Lawmakers Over 'Threats'

    President Donald Trump's nominee for U.S. attorney in the District of Columbia, who is already serving on an interim basis, has sent letters to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and at least one other Democratic lawmaker as part of a larger probe into supposed "threats" to Elon Musk and other federal government employees.

  • 4_up_weil.png

    Weil Says Executive Partner To Retire, Adds Global Committee

    Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP announced Thursday that it will be restructuring its leadership team in anticipation of its executive partner Barry Wolf's retirement in a few years.

  • worden_brandy-bw_800x600.jpg

    Ex-Meta Counsel Joins Kasowitz As Data Security Leader

    Kasowitz Benson Torres LLP announced that a former associate general counsel at social media giant Meta Platforms Inc. has joined the firm's Los Angeles office as a partner and chair of the data security, privacy and security team.

  • 4_up_Troutman Pepper .png

    Troutman Pepper Launches Tariff Task Force

    Troutman Pepper Locke LLP said it has formed a tariff task force aimed at helping clients navigate the Trump administration's tariffs.

  • IMG_0762.jpeg

    Office Snapshot: Reed Smith Feels Downtown LA Energy

    When Reed Smith LLP's lease in the Wells Fargo Tower in downtown Los Angeles was up for renewal, it opted to move to new offices about two blocks away at the City National Plaza complex. The firm wasn't looking for more space, just a change of scenery.

  • Calif. Judge Disciplined For Calling Victim 'Manipulative'

    A former California Superior Court judge has been publicly admonished for repeatedly calling a domestic violence victim "manipulative" and saying she "liked being beat up" while telling her partner at a restraining order hearing in May 2023 that he had fallen into the victim's "trap."

  • iStock-2164842735.jpg

    AI Adoption Nearly Doubled In Legal Sector After 1 Year

    Nearly 40% of surveyed legal professionals said in 2024 that their company has implemented an enterprise artificial intelligence solution like Microsoft Copilot, an increase from 20% of respondents in 2023, according to a new report.

  • promotion.jpg

    Law360 Names Attys Who Moved Up The Firm Ranks In Q4

    A promotion to partner or election to practice group chair means a slew of new responsibilities and also lots of well-deserved recognition. Law360 reveals the list of attorneys whose commitment to legal excellence earned them highly coveted spots in the law firm leadership ranks. Find out if your old legal friends — or rivals — moved up in the fourth quarter of the year.

  • Thurlow_Matthew_101347_4x5 (1).jpg

    BakerHostetler Environmental Pro Jumps To Morgan Lewis

    Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP has hired the former national co-chair of BakerHostetler's environmental team as a partner in its environmental litigation practice, the firm said Thursday.

  • mark-thierfelder.jpg

    Dechert Co-Chair On Managing A Firm And His Own Practice

    Dechert LLP co-chair Mark Thierfelder talks about balancing his practice with managing a multinational law firm, the importance of meditation, and why change is good for attorneys.

  • Grace Winters.png

    Holland & Knight Adds Manatt Real Estate Pro In California

    Holland & Knight LLP continues expanding its West Coast team, bringing in a Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP real estate expert as a partner in its Orange County, California, office.

  • Netflix Wants IP Atty Sanctioned Over Alleged Doc Sharing

    Netflix urged a California judge Tuesday to require a prolific patent plaintiff's former counsel to explain why they shouldn't be held in civil contempt and sanctioned for allegedly giving Netflix's confidential financial information to nonparty AiPi LLC, arguing discovery in another patent case has revealed AiPi is "shadow lead counsel."

  • iStock-578276256.jpg

    Lessons From A Landmark Year For Women Law Firm Leaders

    In 2021, the legal industry saw a major wave of first-time women leaders. Law360 Pulse revisits that class and what experts say about the number of women in leadership positions across the legal profession.

  • iStock-924554832.png

    Landlords, Judiciary Brace For Federal Leasing Slimdown

    As the General Services Administration pores over the federal real estate portfolio, lenders, landlords and institutional investors are scrambling to understand their exposure to federal leases, while the potential canceling of judiciary office leases is setting up a showdown between branches of government.

  • heather-burke.jpg

    Faegre Drinker Adds White & Case Antitrust Pro In SF

    Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP has brought on a former Silicon Valley office executive partner from White & Case LLP to its office in San Francisco, strengthening the firm's litigation practice with an attorney who said she has helped represent clients in multiple high-profile trials including matters involving antitrust issues.

  • Paul Watford.png

    Ex-9th Circ. Judge Joins King & Spalding From Wilson Sonsini

    King & Spalding LLP has brought on a former Ninth Circuit judge most recently with Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati PC as a partner in its Los Angeles office, the firm announced Wednesday.

  • Laurie Selkowitz.jpg

    Greenberg Glusker Lands IP Ace In LA From Wargo French

    Greenberg Glusker LLP announced Wednesday that it has bulked up its intellectual property and technology group in Los Angeles with a partner who came aboard from Wargo French Singer LLP.

  • 3_up_orr.png

    Orrick Brings On 3-Atty A&O Shearman Energy Team

    Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP announced Wednesday that the firm has bulked up its energy platform with three former Allen Overy Shearman Sterling attorneys who have come aboard as partners in California, Washington state and Texas.

  • iStock-2150990376.jpg

    Knobbe Martens To Give Special Spring Bonuses Up To $25K

    Knobbe Martens will be paying special spring bonuses to all associates and counsel based on the year of partnership consideration, the intellectual property and technology law firm said Wednesday.

  • will-thompson.png

    DLA Piper Adds Litigator And Ex-Baseball Pro From Quinn Emanuel

    DLA Piper continues expanding its West Coast team, bringing in a Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP commercial litigator, who previously was a professional baseball player, as a partner in its San Francisco office.

  • Jury Won't Tour Living Room Where Calif. Judge Shot Wife

    A California state judge facing trial this week on charges of murdering his wife lost his bid to have jurors tour the living room of the house where she was shot to death, after a Los Angeles County judge ruled Tuesday that there's sufficient photographic evidence of the scene.

  • alfexe .jpg

    State Judges See Uneven Gains In Post-Lockdown Pay Hikes

    State judges received an average 5% raise last year — a "significant" improvement over the 1% to 2% raises on offer during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic — but those pay increases were spread unequally across the country, with some state judges earning much higher salaries while the pay for others stagnated, according to a recent survey.

  • 3_up_BA.png

    Weakened CFPB Prompts Ballard Spahr To Form State Team

    Ballard Spahr LLP announced Tuesday that it has formed a new state attorneys general consumer finance response team in response to the Trump administration's efforts to effectively shut down the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

  • 2_up_Sidley.png

    Sidley Expands In Calif. With Latham Emerging Cos. Atty

    Sidley Austin LLP is expanding its West Coast team, bringing in a Latham & Watkins LLP emerging companies specialist as a partner in its San Francisco Bay Area offices.

Can't find the article you're looking for? Click here to search the California Pulse archive.

Expert Analysis

  • For The Future Of Legal Practice, Let's Learn From The Past Author Photo

    At some level, every practicing lawyer is experiencing the ever-increasing speed of change — and while some practice management processes have gotten more efficient, other things about the legal profession were better before supposed improvements were made, says Jay Silberblatt, president of the Pennsylvania Bar Association.

  • Why All Law Firms Should Foster Psychological Capital Author Photo

    Law firms will be able to reap great long-term benefits if they adopt strategies to nurture four critical components of their employees' psychological wellness and performance — hope, efficacy, resilience and optimism, says Dennis Stolle at the American Psychological Association.

  • A GC's Guide To Litigation, Inspired By Sun Tzu's 'Art Of War' Author Photo

    With caseloads and spending increasing, in-house counsel might find themselves called to opine on the risks and benefits of litigation more often, and they should look at five Sun Tzu maxims from the ancient Chinese classic "The Art of War" to inform their approach to any suit, says Jeff Golimowski at Womble Bond.

  • Mentorship Is Key To Diversity In The Legal Industry Author Photo

    Not only can effective mentorship have a profound impact on women and people of color entering the legal field, but it also benefits mentors and the legal profession as a whole, creating a true win-win situation for all involved, says Natasha Cortes at Grossman Roth.

  • ChatGPT Is A Cool Trick, But AI Won't Replace Lawyers Author Photo

    Generative AI applications like ChatGPT are unlikely to ever replace attorneys for a variety of practical reasons — but given their practice-enhancing capabilities, lawyers who fail to leverage these tools may be rendered obsolete, says Eran Kahana at Maslon.

  • Pro Bono Work Is Valuable In IP And Continued Learning Author Photo

    The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's recent elimination of a rule that partially counted pro bono work toward continuing legal education highlights the importance of volunteer work in intellectual property practice and its ties to CLE, and puts a valuable tool for hands-on attorney education in the hands of the states, say Lisa Holubar and Ariel Katz at Irwin.

  • Increasing Public Access To Legal Services: A Practical Plan Author Photo

    Recommendations recently issued by a special committee of the Florida Bar represent a realistic, pragmatic approach to increasing the accessibility and affordability of legal services, at a time when the disconnect between the legal profession and the public at large has widened considerably, says Gary Lesser, president of the Florida Bar.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Do I Relay Shortcomings To Associates? Author Photo

    Michael Cohen at Duane Morris discusses the best ways to articulate how an associate is not meeting expectations, and why documentation of performance management is crucial for their growth and protecting the firm from discrimination suits.

  • 10 Principles For Effective Partner Reward Systems Author Photo

    Several forces are reshaping partners’ expectations about profit-sharing, and as compensation structures evolve in response, firms should keep certain fundamentals in mind to build a successful partner reward system, say Michael Roch at MHPR Advisors and Ray D'Cruz at Performance Leader.

  • Why Interdisciplinarity Is Key To Designing The Future Of Law Author Photo

    The legal profession faces challenges that urgently demand new solutions, and lawyers and firms can address this by leaning on other industries that have more experience practicing, teaching and incorporating innovation into their core business and service models, says Jennifer Leonard at the University of Pennsylvania.

  • Incorporating ADA Guidance Into Lawyer Wellness Movement Author Photo

    The Americans with Disabilities Act and rules of professional conduct may help the legal profession promote lawyer well-being by focusing on mental conditions' actual impact, rather than on associated stereotypes, says Alex Long at the University of Tennessee College of Law.

  • Series

    Ask A Mentor: How Can New Partners Generate Business? Author Photo

    Christine Wong at MoFo discusses how newly elected partners can prioritize business development by creating a strategic plan with the firm's marketing team and strengthening relationships with professional and personal networks.

  • 9 Writing Tips From The Justices' Opinions Last Term Author Photo

    Hidden in the U.S. Supreme Court’s opinions from the last term are each justice’s talents for crafting choice turns of phrase, highlighting best practices for attorneys to jump-start their own writing, says Ross Guberman at BriefCatch.

  • What Web3 Means For Lawyers' Ethical Duties Author Photo

    As law firms embrace Web3 technologies by accepting cryptocurrency as payment for legal fees, investing in metaverse departments and more, lawyers should remember their ethical duties to warn clients of the benefits and risks of technology in a murky regulatory environment, says Heidi Frostestad Kuehl at Northern Illinois University College of Law.

  • NY's Cybersecurity CLE Rule Is A Sign Of Changing Times Author Photo

    New York's recently announced requirement that lawyers complete cybersecurity training as part of their continuing legal education is a reminder that securing client information is more complicated in an increasingly digital world, and that expectations around attorneys' technology competence are changing, says Jason Schwent at Clark Hill.

×

Law360

Law360 Law360 UK Law360 Tax Authority Law360 Employment Authority Law360 Insurance Authority Law360 Real Estate Authority Law360 Healthcare Authority Law360 Bankruptcy Authority

Rankings

NEWLeaderboard Analytics Social Impact Leaders Prestige Leaders Pulse Leaderboard Women in Law Report Law360 400 Diversity Snapshot Rising Stars Summer Associates

National Sections

Modern Lawyer Courts Daily Litigation In-House Mid-Law Legal Tech Small Law Insights

Regional Sections

California Pulse Connecticut Pulse DC Pulse Delaware Pulse Florida Pulse Georgia Pulse New Jersey Pulse New York Pulse Pennsylvania Pulse Texas Pulse

Site Menu

Subscribe Advanced Search About Contact