Rachael Aguirre joined Nukk-Freeman & Cerra, PC as counsel in San Diego.

Aguirre has a long history of successfully serving as General Counsel and in various in-house legal roles for prominent companies and organizations in Southern California. More specifically, her experience includes representing the management of private sector businesses in employment law and employee relations matters. Astute at advising her clients on all aspects of labor and employment matters, her practice encompasses expertise relating to laws such as under Title VII, EEO, FMLA, ADA, FLSA, FEHA, EDD, DOL, and other state and federal laws. She also advises and judiciously counsels on all types of employment-related matters, including discrimination claims, handbook provisions, workplace policies, accommodation issues, CDC guidelines, and COVID-related compliance issues.

Agustin Ceballos joined Buchalter as shareholder in San Diego.

Ceballos counsels clients in a wide range of complex tax and estate planning matters. His representative work includes advising on multi-generation succession planning for foreign nationals, cross-border estate and tax planning, compliance with FATCA and CRS regulations, structuring U.S. and Mexican investments, tax implications of business operations for foreign investors, and more. He received the Fulbright Garcia-Robles Scholarship. He actively participates in professional organizations such as the State Bar of California's International & Taxation Law Sections and the San Diego County Bar Association, where he serves on the executive committee for the International Law and Immigration Section of the California Lawyers Association

Daniel C. Silva joined Buchalter as shareholder in San Diego.

Silva is a former financial crimes prosecutor and in-house global risk counsel at an international financial technology company with extensive trial, investigation, and risk assessment experience. As an assistant U.S. attorney in San Diego, he led hundreds of investigations into financial crimes, anti-money laundering ("AML") violations, fraud, and forfeiture, often involving cooperating witnesses and whistleblowers. Many of his cases worked conducted in parallel with federal law enforcement agencies and financial regulators like the SEC, FinCEN, federal and state tax authorities, OFAC, and banking regulators. He has received some of the highest awards these agencies could bestow. After leading many of the most influential AML prosecutions in the U.S., Silva has been retained as an expert witness, taught at law schools in the United States and Mexico, and trained prosecutors, financial professionals, investigators, and foreign law enforcement.

Josh Escovedo joined Buchalter as shareholder in Sacramento.

Escovedo handles cases involving breaches of contracts, fraud, shareholder and partnership disputes, and other business-related actions. His also handles defamation and free-speech actions, and litigation and transactional intellectual property matters.

Wendy S. Dowse joined Carlton Fields as of counsel in Los Angeles.

Dowse concentrates on legal research and writing and appellate practice, with a focus on product liability and mass tort matters. She has handled appellate matters and motion practice in state and federal courts across the country and has more than a decade of experience defending pharmaceutical companies in product liability litigation. Dowse's litigation practice encompasses a wide variety of matters and issues, including real estate, product liability, class actions, business law and contracts, personal injury, consumer law, punitive damages, admissibility of expert testimony, and FDA compliance.

Sylvia Torres-Guillén joined The Disability Rights Legal Center as director of litigation in Los Angeles.

Torres-Guillén spent decades fighting for civil rights and social, racial, and economic justice. As a federal public defender for nearly 20 years, the State of California's first Latina general counsel of the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board, and ACLU of Southern California's Statewide director of education equity, she fought for the most marginalized and oppressed communities.

Zachary A. Sarnoff joined Miller Barondess, LLP as associate in Los Angeles.

Sarnoff is a business litigator with experience advising clients in state and federal courts throughout the country on a variety of complex litigation matters, including intellectual property, contract, antitrust and unfair competition, mergers and acquisitions, fraud, breach of fiduciary duty, product liability, corporate governance, and general commercial.

Cesie C. Alvarez joined Miller Barondess, LLP as associate in Los Angeles.

Alvarez is a litigator who concentrates her practice on intellectual property and commercial litigation issues affecting the media, entertainment, and new technology sectors. She has represented clients in copyright, DMCA, trademark, trade dress, right of publicity, and defamation disputes. Her clients have included artists and creators, internet service providers, media and toy corporations, and art collectors.

Rana Ayazi joined Miller Barondess, LLP as associate in Los Angeles.

Ayazi is a litigator that represents employers in state and federal courts in a wide range of labor and employment law matters, including claims for discrimination, harassment, retaliation, trade secret misappropriation, wrongful termination, and wage-and-hour violations. Her experience includes representing and advising employers in single-plaintiff, class action, and Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) lawsuits.

Shawn R. Loring joined Spaulding McCullough & Tansil LLP as associate in Santa Rosa.

Loring's practice focuses on the intersection between estate planning, business development and succession, and real estate transactions. He draws upon his 25+ year career as a financial planner to augment his law practice to help families create, grow, protect, and pass wealth through instruments such as wills, trusts, and powers of attorney. His experience as the CEO and attorney of a national organization with 36,000+ active member families inform how he counsels owners of family businesses.

Robert I. Lockwood joined Littler Mendelson P.C. as shareholder in San Francisco.

Lockwood counsels clients on various aspects of employment law and related litigation. He has defended both California and national employers against complex class action and collective action cases, as well as in single plaintiff litigation matters, involving claims of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, breach of contract, unfair competition, and misappropriation of trade secrets. Lockwood's clients span numerous industries, including financial services, technology and software, sports, pharmaceutical, transportation, manufacturing, agriculture, hospitality, wine and construction. In addition to his litigation practice, Lockwood provides workplace training, conducts investigations, and counsels employers on workplace policies, practices and agreements. He also focuses on labor management relations, including defending against union campaigns and representation petitions, handling grievance arbitration and administrative hearings, responding to unfair labor practice charges and advising on collective bargaining issues.

Karen Deschaine joined Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati as partner in San Diego.

Deschaine is a corporate and represents clients in the life sciences sector, primarily in the biotechnology and therapeutics space. She has successfully represented clients -- which range from start-ups to public companies -- throughout their life cycles, from formation to exit.

Alison Pappas joined Crosbie Gliner Schiffman Southard & Swanson LLP (CGS3) as partner in Los Angeles.

With over two decades of experience handling a variety of commercial real estate transactions, including leasing, acquisitions, dispositions and financings, Pappas specializes in complex leasing of office, life science, retail and mixed-use projects. In her prior role as managing director/general counsel of The EMMES Group of Companies, Pappas supervised all legal and compliance functions and also led the company's leasing efforts for its national portfolio of office properties.

Adam Fee joined Paul Hastings LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

A former assistant U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York's Criminal Division who played leading roles in a variety of high-profile prosecutions, Fee represents major international banks, multinational corporations, financial technology companies, boards of directors, CEOs, and others facing government investigations and complex civil litigation, primarily in matters involving the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Anton (Tony) Handal joined Munck Wllson Mandala LLP as partner in Century City (Los Angeles).

Handal brings more than 40 years of litigation experience serving as first-chair in cases held in federal and state courts throughout the U.S. Handal has tried more than 100 matters and served as lead counsel in more than 170 patent litigation cases.

Landon R. Schwob joined Fisher & Phillips LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Schwob defends employers in a wide range of workplace disputes, from single-party harassment and discrimination claims to large wage and hour class action and California PAGA matters. Landon has mediated and resolved hundreds of cases and has tried cases before judges, juries, arbitrators, and administrative agencies. He also has briefed and argued matters before the California Courts of Appeal.

Halim Dhanidina joined Signature Resolution as mediatior/neutral in Los Angeles.

Dhanidina reviewed nearly 1,000 appeals spanning various disciplines, including family, employment, business litigation, and probate. Before his Court of Appeal appointment, Dhanidina served as a judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court and presided over multiple notable cases that significantly impacted both his career and those affected by the verdict.

Julia B. Strickland joined Steptoe & Johnson LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Strickland is a market-leading lawyer who leads a substantial team on the defense of class actions and other complex actions for some of the biggest consumer financial services companies. In addition to her decades of experience representing clients through dispositive motion practice, trial and/or appeal, she has a well-deserved reputation for negotiating and structuring settlements of complex disputes and class actions. She is versatile and creative in developing settlement structure options tailored to the client's unique needs. She also routinely represents companies in compliance counseling, regulatory proceedings, and responding to claims by federal and state regulators and enforcement authorities. Julia's client list is a "Who's Who" of financial services companies, including American Express, JPMorgan Chase, Early Warning Services/Zelle, Discover, Citigroup, and Synchrony Bank, among others.

Stephen J. Newman joined Steptoe & Johnson LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Newman handles class action defense and other representative litigation, including multidistrict cases, as well as proceedings launched by government officials on behalf of the general public. He has extensive experience representing companies including internet businesses, retailers, banks, insurers, and manufacturers under California’s Unfair Competition Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act. Stephen’s extensive experience extends to data security, consumer privacy, securities fraud, insurance and accountancy, and actuarial malpractice.

Christopher R. Fredrich joined Steptoe & Johnson LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Fredrich focuses his practice on complex civil litigation, with an emphasis on defending financial institutions and other commercial clients in class actions, arbitration, and enforcement matters. He represents banks, digital payment companies, credit card issuers, loan servicers, investors, and technology companies in state and federal court proceedings, at both the trial and appellate levels. He has significant experience litigating claims arising under banking and consumer protection laws, including the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, Truth in Lending Act, Fair Credit Reporting Act, Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and Telephone Consumer Protection Act, as well as California’s Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, and Consumers Legal Remedies Act.

Brian L. Johnsrud was promoted to office managing partner of Duane Morris LLP in Silicon Valley.

Johnsrud has represented companies in their most challenging employment law matters for more than 25 years. When anticipatory and strategic work does not prevent a dispute, he defends companies in multiple forums, from agency proceedings and hearings to arbitration and litigation. Johnsrud defends a wide variety of claims, from whistleblower/retaliation claims to gender, age and race discrimination cases as well as executive contract and compensation matters. He has defended many PAGA actions as well as other wage-and-hour claims. Johnsrud is a frequent adviser on sensitive investigations and executive separations.

Brett Pletcher as of counsel in Silicon Valley

Pletcher has rejoined Gunderson Dettmer as of counsel in the firm's Corporate and Securities practice. Pletcher most recently served as executive vice president, corporate affairs, general counsel, and corporate secretary of Gilead Sciences, Inc. Prior to his 17-plus year tenure at Gilead, Pletcher was a partner at Gunderson Dettmer.

Javkhlan Enkhbayar joined Murphy, Pearson, Bradley & Feeney P.C. as associate in San Francisco.

Javkhlan represents clients in business and intellectual property matters, as well as civil litigation and professional liability. As a law student, Javkhlan received the Intellectual Property and Technology Law Certificate and participated in the USPTO Trademark Program as a certified student, providing legal services to parties needing assistance with the registration of trademarks and copyrights. She also participated in the 2019 Saul Lefkowitz Moot Court Competition. During her third year of law school, Javkhlan served as a board member for USF Law Review and USF Moot Court Program.

John E. Roesenthal joined Gordon Rees Scully Mansukhani LLP as partner in San Francisco.

Rosenthal has represented defendants and plaintiffs in matters involving business disputes, catastrophic personal injury or death, construction defects, and intellectual property as a litigator. He advises clients on regulatory compliance, including international agreements, federal regulations, and state law. He specializes in effectively communicating technical, scientific, and medical issues, often at the core of the defense of his clients. He has extensive experience in every aspect of complex litigation, from discovery to trial and appeal, including settlement negotiations, arbitration, mediation, and administrative hearings, and he has a strong track record for achieving favorable results for his clients.