Robert F. Kramer joined Feinberg Day Alberti Lim & Belloli LLP as partner in Menlo Park.

Kramer specializes in representing owners and companies accused of patent infringement in district courts throughout the country. He represents well-established companies as well as startups and has extensive experience litigating and advising clients in patent licensing negotiations.

Russell S. Tonkovich joined Feinberg Day Alberti Lim & Belloli LLP as partner in Menlo Park.

Tonkovich focuses on patent infringement, trade secret litigation, patent licensing negotiation, licensing disputes and counseling clients to resolve complex business disputes involving intellectual property. He also has experience representing biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies.

Michael C. Flynn joined Buchalter PC as of counsel in Los Angeles.

Flynn's practice focuses on consumer financial services, banking, mortgage lending and servicing, mergers and acquisitions regarding regulatory requirements, transaction due diligence and regulatory enforcement.

Anthony Arnold joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP as partner in San Diego.

Arnold's practice focuses on corporate and finance, mergers and acquisitions, venture capital and private equity. He also regularly advises fund managers, company executives and boards of directors on corporate governance matters and compliance issues.

Sam A. Newman joined Sidley Austin LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Newman joins Sidley Austin's global restructuring group. He advises debtors, buyers, sellers, lenders and borrowers in transactions involving distressed assets.

Greg A. Christianson joined Alston & Bird LLP as partner in San Francisco.

Christianson's practice focuses on allocation matters, natural resource damage actions, federal and state citizen suits and multiparty toxic tort actions. He also handles complex environmental litigation matters including class actions and mass joinder lawsuits.

Steven M. Goldberg joined Pearl Cohen Zedek Latzer Baratz LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Goldberg has extensive litigation experience. Some of his clients include brokerage firms, banks, stockbrokers and their customers. Goldberg has also done work in copyright and trademark infringement, class actions and Securities and Exchange Commission investigations.

Matthew J. Meyer joined Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati as chief client corporate development advisor in San Francisco.

Meyer will lead the firm's life science business advisory practice. He is an experienced executive who has held diverse roles of increasing responsibility across a wide range of private and public biopharmaceutical, medical technology and precision medicine companies in the U.S. and Europe.

Noelle M. Natoli joined Clark Hill PLC as member in Los Angeles.

Natoli's principal areas of practice are transportation and elder abuse, with extensive experience from pre-litigation investigation and emergency response to post-trial law and motion in both areas. Some of Natoli's clients include long-term care facilities, nursing homes, adult family homes, doctors, nurses, independent contractors, trucking companies and more.

Brian M. McDaniel joined Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati as partner in Palo Alto.

Brian McDaniel focuses on corporate and securities law, specializing in the formation and operation of venture capital and other private investment funds. His practice is oriented around finding commercial solutions across multiple areas of law, including partnership, tax and regulatory.

Dr. Nicole Ballew Chang joined Umberg Zipser LLP as patent agent in Irvine.

Ballew Chang's practice revolves around patent prosecution in biotechnology, life sciences and chemical arts. She has experience in molecular and cellular biology that provides her with insight into intellectual property challenges, so she can provide her clients with strategic solutions. Ballew Chang also provides support for due diligence and licensing matters.

Vikki L. Vander Woude joined Umberg Zipser LLP as partner in Irvine.

Vander Woude focuses her practice on commercial litigation, litigation consulting and neutral services. She assists smaller and mid-sized businesses as an “outside in-house” counsel with management and oversight of litigation, legal expenses, discovery, proactive risk management and alternative dispute resolution.

Patrick J. Wingfield was promoted to shareholder of Murphy Pearson Bradley & Feeney PC in San Francisco.

Wingfield's primary practice is business, corporate, employment and real estate law with an emphasis in the hospitality industry. His litigation practice includes business-related disputes, sexual harassment, discrimination, retaliation claims, violations of wage and hour laws, trademark infringement, real estate disputes and food mislabeling disputes.

Peter L. Weber was promoted to shareholder of Murphy Pearson Bradley & Feeney PC in San Francisco.

Weber maintains an active practice in employment law, real estate and homeowner association matters and personal injury defense. His clients include lawyers, directors and officers, insurance brokers, design professionals and small businesses.

A. Jeanne Grove joined Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck LLP as partner in Sonoma.

Grove's focuses on real estate and business litigation including Homeowners Association and co-ownership issues, purchase and sale disputes and nondisclosure claims as well as development and construction matters. She has experience advising clients such as homeowner associations, real estate brokers or agents, developers, lenders, property owners and business owners.

Ashley E. Klein joined Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck LLP as partner in San Francisco.

Klein is experienced with residential and commercial real estate litigation, including landlord-tenants matters, property management, purchase and sale and co-ownership disputes. She represents clients in matters involving breach of contract, quiet title actions, unlawful detainer, fraud and misrepresentation and professional negligence, among other matters.

David P. Simonds joined Hogan Lovells US LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Simonds represents debtors, official and informal creditors' committees, secured and unsecured creditors, asset purchasers and other parties involved in out-of-court restructurings, cross-border insolvencies and transactions.

Daniel J. Kanter joined Fisher Phillips LLP as of counsel in San Diego.

Kanter represents employers in employment litigation matters, such as wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, misclassification and wage and hour violations. He also handles traditional labor matters including collective bargaining, arbitrations and unfair practice charges.

Karen Michail Shah joined FisherBroyles LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Michail Shah's practice involves representing commercial lenders and institutional investors in multifamily affordable housing and mixed-use developments. She advises clients on originating and structuring construction and permanent loans and equity investments involving low income housing tax credits, tax-exempt bonds and taxable bonds, among other entities.

Christina A. Morkner Brown joined California Environmental Protection Agency as deputy secretary for law enforcement and general counsel in Sacramento.

Morkner Brown advises state agencies in cases involving state-owned and managed lands and environmental resource regulations. She focuses on land use issues and the California Environmental Quality Act.

Eric J. Beste joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP as partner in San Diego.

Beste handles white-collar matters that involve securities fraud, corporate malfeasance, domestic and foreign corruption, government contracting offenses, health care fraud and financial institution crimes.

Charles G. La Bella joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP as of counsel in San Diego.

La Bella focuses on white collar defense, complex business litigation and internal corporate investigations. He has also worked on cases involving enforcement and privacy work.

Jennifer A. Neill joined California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation as assistant secretary for legal affairs and chief counsel in Sacramento.

Neill focuses on constitutional, correctional and appellate legal matters. She has experience as an attorney general for the California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General and in the Correctional Writs and Appeals Section.

Ken Krug joined FisherBroyles LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Krug centers his practice around debt and equity financing of multifamily housing. He specializes in residential rental housing with governmental subsidies and limitations on the income earned and rentals payable by residents. Krug has represented clients in the preparation and negotiation of loan documents, tax exempt and taxable bond transactions and partnership.

John C. Opgenorth joined FisherBroyles LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Opgenorth represents banks and other institutional lenders and investors in real estate transactions. He focuses on the origination and structuring of loans and equity investments in multifamily housing developments financed with low income housing tax credits and tax-exempt bonds.

Erin E. Schneider was promoted to director of The Securities and Exchange Commission in San Francisco.

Schneider has investigated or supervised dozens of enforcement matters involving a variety of securities law violations. In her new role, Schneider will lead more than 125 enforcement attorneys, accountants, investigators and compliance examiners to handle investigation and prosecution of enforcement actions as well as compliance inspections with registrants across the region.

Liseanne R. Kelly joined Littler Mendelson PC as shareholder in San Diego.

Kelly has extensive experience with multi-state compliance issues and assists clients in navigating state and local employment laws. Her practice also includes an emphasis on multi-state incentive compensation plan design and advising national employers on paid time off policies, leave administration and disability accommodation and wage and hour issues.

Mitchell S. Kim joined Fox Rothschild LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Kim focuses his practice on resolving commercial disputes involving labor and employment, copyright, trademark and product liability matters such as clothing, retail and complex commercial liability defense. Being fluent in Korean, Kim also provide pro bono legal advice to fledgling businesses through the Korean American Apparel Manufacturers Association.

Anthony A. DiMonte joined Clark Hill PLC as member in Los Angeles.

DiMonte focuses on mergers and acquisitions, complex business transactions, regulatory compliance and general business matters. He has experience counseling businesses and individuals in sales and acquisitions, commercial transactions, corporate governance and compliance matters. DiMonte has also advised clients on vendor contracts, licensing agreements, real property, executive employment agreements and loss mitigation issues.

Paul W. Pitts was promoted to office managing partner of Reed Smith LLP in San Francisco.

Pitts focuses his practice on advising health care providers and life science companies on a wide range of business transactions and regulatory compliance matters. He often provides clients with guidance on fraud and abuse laws, payment and coverage rules, privacy and security laws, payment and coverage rules, privacy and security laws and participation in Medicare and Medicaid programs.

Zeeshan A. Ahmedani was promoted to partner of Morrison & Foerster LLP in Los Angeles.

Ahmedani works to maintain an international practice focused on the organization and establishment of private investment funds in both onshore and offshore jurisdictions. This includes private equity funds, real estate funds, venture capital funds, hedge funds, distressed debt funds and hybrid funds.

Gabriel R. Ravel joined California Health and Human Services Agency as general counsel in Sacramento.

Ravel, in his new role, will advise the director and chief deputy director on general legal matters, coordinate legal counsel and act as a liaison to other stakeholder groups and the governor's office. He has an understanding of health care reform and federal and state health insurance regulation.

Wynter L. Deagle was promoted to managing partner of Troutman Sanders LLP in San Diego.

Deagle's practice covers a multitude of business disputes including commercial litigation, corporate governance, fiduciary duties, class actions, internal investigations and First Amendment claims. She also advises companies to manage risks associated with their privacy, cybersecurity and information management practices.