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California Pulse


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    Retired San Mateo County Judge Joins Signature Resolution

    Alternative dispute resolution service Signature Resolution is bringing in a recently retired San Mateo County judge to join its panel of neutrals.

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    Snapshot: Ex-Prindle Goetz Attys Say Firm Had No Contract

    A dispute over the departure of two former Prindle Goetz Barnes & Reinholtz LLP nonequity partners playing out in California state court is putting a spotlight on the validity of partner contracts when a law firm reorganizes and changes its name.

  • Jeffer Mangels Moves To New Offices In San Francisco

    The San Francisco office of Jeffer Mangels Butler & Mitchell LLP has moved to a new location in the city's Financial District.

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    In Their Words: Will AI Kill The Billable Hour?

    The rising use of generative artificial intelligence tools that allow attorneys to get work done faster is creating tension with the traditional model of billable hours. Here, six legal leaders give their take on whether AI will eliminate the billable hour.

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    MoFo Hires Chief Information Officer From Boston Consulting

    Morrison Foerster LLP has hired a longtime Boston Consulting Group executive, who the firm said in a Thursday announcement will implement its digital and artificial intelligence strategies and will be responsible for its digital transformation initiatives.

  • Tucker Ellis Names 2 Cleveland Attorneys As Practice Leaders

    Tucker Ellis LLP announced Thursday that a pair of experienced Cleveland-based attorneys have been named the firm's newest practice leaders.

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    Law Firm Real Estate Report

    Several law firms in the Mid-Atlantic region experienced a busy month of office moves in August, with New Jersey in particular seeing a number of relocations.

  • Clark Hill Adds Tafapolsky & Smith Immigration Team In SF

    Clark Hill PLC is growing its immigration team, bringing in three Tafapolsky & Smith LLP immigration attorneys in its San Francisco office — two as members, one as a senior attorney — and adding a completely new immigration practice area in the process.

  • IP Atty Beats Temu's Claims He Lied To Bag Settlements

    A Massachusetts federal judge has dismissed Chinese e-commerce platform Temu's lawsuit accusing a California intellectual property attorney of lying to secure settlements for his clients, but the judge refused Wednesday to sanction Temu and its counsel at WilmerHale and Keker Van Nest & Peters LLP for filing a frivolous suit.

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    DOJ To Probe Calif. EPA For Hiring Bias Over Equity Plan

    The U.S. Department of Justice said Wednesday that it has begun investigating whether discrimination has plagued hiring practices in California's Environmental Protection Agency, after raising concerns that the agency's racial equity initiatives could be violating Title VII.

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    In-House Counsel Group Names GE Appliances GC As CEO

    The Association of Corporate Counsel, the largest in-house counsel advocacy association, has named the vice president and general counsel of GE Appliances as its next president and CEO, effective in November, according to a Tuesday announcement.

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    Why This Small-Firm Lawyer Charges $3,000 Per Hour

    As a solo or small firm attorney, would you charge $3,000 per hour? Meet one attorney who does — and learn how his story of ultra-high prices could help you set your own rates.

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    V&E Is Training Associates To Think Like Business People

    Vinson & Elkins LLP has amped up its business development investment with the launch of BD Lab, which encourages associates firmwide to think outside the box with their clients.

  • Norm Ai Teams Up With Stanford University's CodeX

    Legal and compliance platform Norm Ai announced Wednesday that it's joined Stanford University's legal technology hub CodeX as a corporate affiliate member, allowing the startup to exchange research with the lab.

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    Law Firms Saw Strong First Half Of 2025, Wells Fargo Says

    The legal industry saw strong performance during the first six months of 2025, according to a report released Tuesday from the Wells Fargo Legal Specialty Group, with strong growth in revenue largely driven by rising billing rates.

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    Beyond Pay: How To Retain Your Rainmakers

    U.S. law firms are working overtime to keep their top-billing attorneys, as growing profits and higher compensation increase lateral movement.

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    With More Rainmakers On The Go, Firms Pay Them Millions

    Amid a growing gap between the most profitable BigLaw shops and everyone else, top law firms can afford to pay a lot more to lure rainmakers and their practices.

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    Sheppard Mullin Adds Trial Pros From Venable, Kasowitz

    Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP announced Tuesday that it has bolstered its business trial practice group with a partner in Houston who arrived from Kasowitz LLP and a partner in Los Angeles who came aboard from Venable LLP.

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    Buchalter Adds Ex-Carlton Fields Attys To LA Office

    Buchalter has hired two former Carlton Fields attorneys as shareholders for its corporate team in Los Angeles, and one of the announced hires is returning to the firm after almost 30 years.

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    Perkins Coie Grows Litigation Group With Ex-Calif. Deputy SG

    Perkins Coie LLP has continued expanding its litigation team with former state and federal prosecutors, announcing Monday it is bringing in the former deputy solicitor general of California as a partner in its San Diego office.

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    AI Startup Anthropic Picks Legal Legend As GC

    Anthropic, a multibillion-dollar AI startup and public benefit corporation focused on safety, has hired a much-honored California attorney who was special counsel to former President Barack Obama, a corporate chief legal officer and a law clerk to late Supreme Court Chief Justice William Rehnquist.

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    PierFerd Co-Founder Talks Hitting 250-Atty Milestone

    A little over a year and a half after launching the firm with commitments from 130 attorneys leaving FisherBroyles, Pierson Ferdinand LLP has reached 250 attorneys, with the founders saying the firm plans to keep growing.

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    Davis Polk Picks Up White & Case Finance Atty In Calif.

    Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP announced Monday that it has added a former White & Case LLP debt finance partner to its Northern California office.

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    Ballooning BigLaw Rates Create Opportunities For Mid-Law

    Some midsize, regional and boutique firms are using their lower rates to attract both clients and lateral attorneys against the backdrop of spiraling BigLaw rates, though there are definite limits to the strategy.

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    Elite Deal Partners Command Rates That Soar Above Peers

    Lawyers who orchestrate massive transactions make up the lion's share of attorneys charging top-tier rates that have broken far away from average billing rates for law firm partners in recent years, experts say.  

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Expert Analysis

  • 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.

  • Opinion

    Law Firms Stressing Work-Life Balance Are Missing The Mark Author Photo

    Law firms struggling to attract and retain lawyers are institutionalizing work-life balance through hybrid work models, but such balance is elusive in a client services and tech-dependent world, underscoring the need for firms to instead aim for attorney empowerment and true balance within — not outside — the workplace, says Joe Pack at Pack Law.

  • A Law Student's Guide To Thriving As A Summer Associate Author Photo

    Summer associates are expected to establish a favorable reputation and develop genuine relationships in a few short weeks, but several time management, attitude and communication principles can help them make the most of their time and secure an offer for a full-time position, says Joseph Marciano, who was a 2022 summer associate at Reed Smith.

  • Burnout Prevention Requires Effort From Attys And Firms Author Photo

    To avoid physical and emotional exhaustion, attorneys must respect their own and their colleagues' personal and professional boundaries, but law firms must also play a role in discouraging burnout culture — especially if they are struggling with attorney retention, say attorneys at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • How I Owned My Power As An Asian American Woman In Law Author Photo

    Gibson Dunn's Debra Yang shares the bumps in her journey to becoming the first female Asian American U.S. attorney, a state judge and a senior partner in BigLaw, and how other women can face their self-doubts and blaze their own trails to success amid systemic obstacles.

  • Successful In-House Alt Legal Services Start With 4 Questions Author Photo

    Law firms that are considering creating an in-house alternative legal service provider should focus not on recapturing revenue otherwise lost to outside vendors, but instead consider how a captive ALSP will better fulfill the needs of their clients and partners, say Beatrice Seravello and Brad Blickstein at Baretz & Brunelle.

  • 3 Reasons To Embrace Jargon In Legal Marketing Content Author Photo

    Ignore what you've been told about jargon — adding insider industry terms to your firm's marketing and business development content can persuade potential clients that you have the specialized knowledge they can trust, says Wayne Pollock at Law Firm Editorial Service.

  • Future Lawyers Expect DEI Commitments Beyond Recruiting Author Photo

    To attract future lawyers from diverse backgrounds, firms must think beyond recruiting efforts, because law students are looking for diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives that invest in employee professional development and engage with students year-round, says Lauren Jackson at Howard University School of Law.

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