Beheshta Kakar was promoted to managing attorney of Shegerian & Associates in Los Angeles. The promotion is effective May 22, 2026.

Kakar is a trial attorney with deep expertise across employment law, known for relentless preparation and a record that reflects it, including nearly 30 witness declarations secured on a single case. When called upon to represent a plaintiff in a demanding trial 500 miles from home, she stepped in without hesitation and won. She has consistently delivered multiple six-figure recoveries and seven-figure settlements across discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and wrongful termination matters, and is regarded as one of the most thorough and dependable attorneys at the firm. 

Melineh Jingozian was promoted to managing attorney of Shegerian & Associates in Los Angeles. The promotion is effective May 22, 2026.

Ms. Jingozian is a formidable plaintiff-side employment attorney believed to be undefeated in opposing motions for summary judgment at the firm, with a career record of multiple millions recovered for her clients, including numerous seven-figure settlement and multiple six-figure recoveries. She has built this record by taking on cases where little to nothing is being offered and working them up into substantial results. Her practice spans discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination, and wage and hour matters, and she is recognized for her aggressive motion practice and commanding legal writing. 

Lauren Friedman joined Reeves & Weiss LLP as a partner in Irvine. The move was May 4, 2026.

Friedman represents companies and executives in complex business and commercial litigation, corporate governance matters, and employment disputes, with a solutions-oriented approach positioning clients to achieve favorable outcomes both in and outside the courtroom. Friedman brings a uniquely strategic perspective to litigation shaped by nearly a decade of experience as General Counsel of Bio-Nutritional Research Group, Inc., the consumer products company behind the popular Power Crunch protein bars. In that role, she guided the company through a successful acquisition by the Ferrero Group. Friedman also served as the company's corporate secretary, managed complex co-manufacturing and commercial agreements, and handled a broad range of employment matters -- giving her the fluency in business operations that distinguishes her counsel.

Catherine Liu joined Frost LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

Liu is a versatile trial attorney and counselor who handles large-scale business litigation matters in state and federal court. Her commercial litigation practice focuses on complex business disputes, including real property, and torts. She has represented clients in finance and real estate transactions and disputes as well as matters involving consumer fraud, product liability, construction defect, and premises liability claims.

Daniel Wu joined Frost LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

Wu has spent much of his 25-year litigation career handling high-stakes and bet-the-company matters. He has represented clients including national and regional banks and other financial institutions, real estate interests, restaurant and hospitality companies, media and entertainment businesses, along with high-net-worth individuals including entrepreneurs.

Hon. David S. Cunningham III (Ret.) joined JAMS as a neutral in Los Angeles. The move was May 18, 2026.

Judge Cunningham served on the Los Angeles County Superior Court from 2009 to 2026. He has presided over a wide array of cases spanning family law, probate and complex civil litigation, including mass torts and class actions. His impressive career is marked by a focus on equity, constitutional rights, procedural fairness, business-related litigation and case management, including his role as supervising judge of the Los Angeles Superior Court's Complex Litigation Program.
Based in the Los Angeles Resolution Center, Judge Cunningham will serve as an arbitrator, mediator and neutral evaluator, handling business and commercial, cybersecurity and privacy, employment law, environmental law, family law, insurance, mass torts and personal injury matters.

Mhare O. Mouradian joined Seyfarth Shaw LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

Mouradian focuses his practice on complex commercial litigation, with a particular emphasis on real estate and commercial disputes. He handles a wide range of litigation matters, including leasing disputes, title and real estate fraud, easement issues, property management conflicts, and broker-related claims.

Marc D. Gross joined ADR Services, Inc. as a neutral in Los Angeles. The move was May 18, 2026.

Judge Gross is a highly effective dispute resolution professional with more than 40 years of legal experience, including over a decade on the bench and a distinguished career as a civil litigator. During his tenure as a Mandatory Settlement Conference (MSC) Judge in the West District of Los Angeles, Judge Gross handled over 500 settlement conferences, many involving complex, high-stakes disputes where parties were deeply entrenched.

Judge Gross brings a rare combination of judicial authority, litigation depth, and practical strategy. Before joining the bench, he spent more than 30 years representing clients in a wide range of civil matters, including business disputes, personal injury, real estate, probate, and complex tort litigation. His background includes extensive trial, motion, and appellate work, giving him a comprehensive understanding of how cases are evaluated, argued, and ultimately decided.

Melanie J. Ely joined theAgency as a senior counsel in Camarillo. The move was Jan. 2, 2026.

Ely represents employers in cases involving wrongful termination, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage-and-hour claims, breach of contract, defamation, protection of employer trade secrets and confidential information, and unfair business practices. She counsels employers on how to avoid employment-related legal mistakes that could lead to litigation.

Ely has spent her entire legal career in defense litigation. She is a member of the Board of Directors for the Women Lawyers of Ventura County.

Michele C. Kirrane joined Nossaman as a partner in San Francisco.

Kirrane represents employers in a range of workplace matters, including claims of discrimination, harassment, retaliation, whistleblower violations and wrongful termination. She also advises clients on real estate disputes and handles business litigation. Her clients include product manufacturers and suppliers, business owners, municipalities, schools, community organizations, retailers and individuals.

Fred Gaines joined Rand Paster & Nelson LLP as a partner in Los Angeles. The move was May 1, 2026.

Gaines is widely recognized for his work in land use, environmental law, and complex development matters throughout California. He focuses on land use entitlements, environmental review under CEQA and NEPA, and related litigation for clients including Vons/Pavilions Stores, Sherwood Country Club, Williams Homes, The Shops at Sportsmen's Lodge, and de Toledo High School. Gaines previously served on the Calabasas City Council, including two terms as mayor. He was a founding and managing partner of Gaines & Stacey LLP.

Sherman L Stacey joined Rand Paster & Nelson LLP as a partner in Los Angeles. The move was Jan. 5, 2026.

Stacey is a recognized authority in the governmental regulation of land use and navigating state and local agencies on complex development matters. He has conducted more than 1,500 hearings before the California Coastal Commission, including recent successful entitlement efforts for the Fairmont Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica and the Lido House Hotel in Newport Beach. He was a founding and managing partner of Gaines & Stacey LLP.

Kimberly A. Rible joined Rand Paster & Nelson LLP as a partner in Los Angeles. The move was Jan. 5, 2026.

Rible's practice includes land use entitlements, administrative approvals, and environmental matters. The California Coastal Act and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) are integral to her practice, and she regularly assists clients with environmental review during the entitlement process as well as in writ litigation involving Coastal Act and CEQA matters.

Alicia B. Bartley joined Rand Paster & Nelson LLP as a partner in Los Angeles. The move was Jan. 5, 2026.

Bartley advises clients on land use, real estate, and environmental matters across a broad range of development projects. She concentrates her practice on litigation involving property transactions, boundary disputes, and project development, as well as land use entitlements and real property purchase and sales transactions.

L. Kieran Kieckhefer joined Latham & Watkins LLP as a partner in San Francisco.

Kieckhefer leads on complex intellectual property disputes from inception through appeal, serving as first chair in high-profile patent, trade secrets, breach of employment contract, and Lanham Act cases in federal district courts across multiple jurisdictions. She is known for translating highly technical subject matter into compelling trial narratives and for developing litigation strategies that align closely with clients' broader commercial and competitive objectives. Her experience includes significant appellate advocacy, with a particular focus on the Federal Circuit.

Simone McCormick joined Clark Hill as a member in San Francisco. The move was May 14, 2026.

McCormick represents companies across a range of industries in high-stakes litigation, regulatory investigations, and incident response matters involving data privacy, cybersecurity, and emerging technology risks. Her practice includes defending clients in consumer class actions, privacy and technology litigation, managing responses to data breaches and cyber incidents, and counseling organizations on compliance with state, federal, and international privacy laws.

Ramez Krishnan joined Hahn & Hahn LLP as a partner in Pasadena. The move was April 27, 2026.

Krishnan advises private equity funds, family offices, venture and growth investors, founders, startups and operating companies on mergers and acquisitions, equity financings, buyouts, minority investments, joint ventures and other corporate matters. He also represents management teams and executives in buyouts and equity compensation matters. He previously practiced at AmLaw 50 firms in California and London, where he handled domestic and cross-border transactions.

Travis Jang-Busby joined Foley & Lardner as a partner in San Diego.

Jang‑Busby advises companies and management on a wide range of matters, including labor, employment, and commercial disputes. His practice covers emerging companies to Fortune 50 organizations in a host of industries, including health care, defense, manufacturing, and biotech. His practice centers on navigating complex employment and commercial challenges, combining strategic guidance with deep experience managing high‑stakes litigation.

Kim T. Le joined Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

Le advises clients on privacy, data security and cybersecurity matters, with a focus on healthcare and life sciences transactions. She counsels provider organizations, technology companies, sponsors and strategic buyers on regulatory compliance, data breach preparedness and privacy and security diligence involving HIPAA, CCPA/CPRA and HBNR. She is based in the firm's Los Angeles and Bay Area offices.

Andrew J. Sokolowski joined FordHarrison LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

Sokolowski's practice focuses on defending class actions and representative actions, including claims brought under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA) and the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). He advises clients on a wide range of employment issues, including employee classification, wage and hour compliance, overtime and compensation disputes, meal and rest period requirements, wage statement compliance, and expense reimbursement obligations.

Jamie L. Gross joined Duane Morris LLP as a partner in San Diego.

Gross represents employers in state and federal courts and before agencies including the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the California Civil Rights Department. Her practice includes wage-and-hour litigation involving unpaid wages, overtime, meal and rest breaks, reimbursement claims, wage statements and misclassification, as well as disputes involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wrongful termination and breach of contract. She also advises employers on workplace policies, wage-and-hour compliance, investigations, hiring and termination practices, leaves of absence and disability accommodations.

John Rockwell joined Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP as a partner in Silicon Valley.

Rockwell works closely with early-stage and late-stage companies on a wide range of corporate matters. He advises founders and companies on entity formation, venture capital, equity and debt financings and related transactions, as well as mergers and acquisitions and corporate governance matters. He also advises U.S. investors on a range of financing and investment transactions. He also works with international-based founders, companies and investors--most notably in Latin America--in connection with corporate restructurings and cross-border investments, financings and acquisitions.

Sarah Kern was promoted to partner of CunninghamLegal in San Rafael

Kern, a Certified Specialist in Estate, Trust and Probate Law, advises families, business owners and individuals on estate planning, wealth transfer and business succession matters. Her practice includes advising same-sex couples on estate and planning issues.

Seth B. Herring joined Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP as a partner in San Francisco.

Herring is a trial lawyer who handles intellectual property and commercial litigation, including patent, trademark, trade dress, copyright and related business disputes. He has represented plaintiffs and defendants in patent cases in federal courts nationwide and before the International Trade Commission, involving technologies such as software, hardware, wireless networks, cybersecurity and medical devices. He also represents clients in trademark and trade dress disputes involving industries including food and beverage, household goods, hospitality, apparel and engineering, in both federal court and proceedings before the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board.

Christine M. Morgan joined Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP as a partner in San Francisco.

Morgan is a first-chair intellectual property and commercial trial lawyer who defends companies in patent infringement cases involving computer hardware and software. Her clients include companies in video games, fintech, ride sharing, consumer electronics, Wi-Fi semiconductors, health care software and wireless security cameras. She has handled cases in the Eastern District of Texas, Northern District of California, Eastern District of Virginia, the International Trade Commission and the Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Her work includes Section 101 patent-invalidity defenses, including cases involving multifactor user verification and bedside-machine data displays.

Aron Estaver joined Arnold & Porter as a partner in San Francisco. The move was May 8, 2026.

Estaver advises U.S. and international fund sponsors on the formation and operation of private investment funds, including private equity, venture capital, credit, hedge, real estate and infrastructure funds. He also advises on secondary funds, funds of funds, co-investment vehicles, joint ventures, separately managed accounts and other fund structures. His practice includes sponsor-side fund formation and investor negotiations, as well as representing institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds, family offices and high-net-worth investors in private fund investments.

Joseph Balice joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

Balice focuses his practice exclusively on insurance recovery, representing policyholders when insurance companies deny, delay, or underpay claims. With nearly two decades of experience spanning virtually all lines of commercial and professional insurance, he has helped clients recover on their insurance policies in a wide range of industries. His practice spans the full spectrum of insurance recovery work -- from assisting individual policyholders and homeowners secure coverage after a loss to representing publicly traded corporations in billion-dollar catastrophic exposure cases.

Sarah Tauman joined Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP as a partner in Sacramento.

Tauman counsels clients through employment issues at each stage of the corporate lifecycle, including structuring executive employment arrangements, addressing performance management and terminations, ensuring proper worker classification, managing wage-and-hour compliance, and navigating leave and ADA accommodation obligations. She also advises on reductions-in-force, employee mobility, and the development of personnel policies. Her work often intersects with complex corporate transactions, including private equity investments, capital markets activity, and mergers and acquisitions. Tauman's guidance balances legal requirements with practical business considerations, helping clients manage risk while supporting their operational goals.

Christina S. Chang joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

Chang is a go-to advisor for creators, talent, brands, and platforms building and monetizing brands and intellectual property across the creator economy, entertainment, and sports. She structures high-impact commercial deals--including advertising and endorsement partnerships, licensing, and multi-platform ventures--and advises across media, technology, consumer products, fashion, e-commerce, wellness and beauty, art, and data privacy. Drawing on deep creator economy experience and a background in licensing and intellectual property valuation, Chang helps clients turn ideas and influence into scalable, durable businesses across evolving platforms.

Carron Joan Mitchell joined Barnes & Thornburg LLP as a partner in Los Angeles.

A significant focus of Mitchell's practice involves business development and strategy for talent, athletes, and founders. She works with talent to build and launch new business enterprises, including record labels, distribution companies, publishing companies, creative and marketing agencies, consumer brands, and athlete-led enterprises. She advises clients at every stage and across a range of career verticals to build a durable foundation for long-term growth, not only as creative professionals, but as brands and businesses.

Bryan Ikegami joined Reed Smith as a partner in Los Angeles.

Ikegami represents numerous private equity funds and their broad range of portfolio companies, as well as other public and private companies, in complex domestic and cross-border transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, financing transactions, restructurings, and recapitalizations. Additionally, he advises sponsors and their portfolio companies on corporate governance, executive compensation and equity incentive arrangements, and general corporate matters.

Richard Shamos joined Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP as a partner in Los Angeles. The move was May 6, 2026.

Shamos has joined the firm as a partner in its investment management practice and funds group in Los Angeles, deepening its integrated platform for sponsors raising, structuring and deploying private credit and alternative capital at a time when evergreen vehicles and insurance capital are reshaping the market.

Shamos advises sponsors building credit‑focused fund platforms, including private credit and direct lending vehicles, evergreen and hybrid structures, and insurance‑rated note feeders. He also brings significant experience advising buyout and growth capital sponsors, extending Akin's bench in an increasingly integrated market.

Zeeshan Ahmedani joined Proskauer as a partner in Los Angekes. The move was May 5, 2026.

Ahmedani is a highly regarded private funds lawyer with nearly 30 years of experience advising sponsors across private equity, venture capital, and real assets. His arrival expands and strengthens Proskauer's private funds capabilities and bolsters the Firm's private capital platform, including its Private Equity Transactions, Fund Finance, and Real Assets practices.

Stephen P. Pfahler joined ADR Services, Inc. as a neutral in Los Angeles. The move was May 4, 2026.

Pfahler was a judge for more than 20 years and was a litigator for more than 35 years. During his judicial tenure, he presided over hundreds of trials and successfully resolved more than 500 civil cases, most recently serving for 15 years in a Civil Independent Calendar court. Widely regarded as one of the court's most effective settlement judges, his colleagues frequently referred their most difficult, impasse-bound cases to him. He is known for his thoughtful, facilitative approach, strong people skills, and ability to guide parties through challenging disputes toward resolution.