Oct. 16, 2014
Miller Barondess LLP
See more on Miller Barondess LLPLos Angeles (Century City) | Litigation
"We can handle any litigation there is," said managing partner Louis R. "Skip" Miller. "None of our lawyers is a specialist or niche litigator."
The Century City firm, launched in 2006 after Miller's departure from what was then known as Christensen, Miller, Fink, Jacobs, Glaser, Weil & Shapiro, eschews top-heavy management for youth and acumen.
Miller, now 67, stands at the helm, while a team of five partners and about 20 associates - all in their 30s and 40s - fill the firm's ranks.
"It's very lean and mean," Miller said. "The only thing that matters is winning the cases and taking good care of the clients."
This summer, Miller, along with his son Dan S. Miller and associate Gene F. Williams, reached a confidential settlement for a technology and entertainment executive who accused investors of circumventing a contract to acquire Fox Mobile from News Corp, according to court documents. Miller Barondess attorneys wouldn't discuss the case, but court filings show the executive had sought more than $100 million in damages .
And in May, the firm reached a confidential settlement midway through trial with Patron Tequila on behalf of a former executive who was owed $70 million in unpaid bonuses. It was a dramatic victory: a trial court had earlier granted Patron summary judg ment in the case and disqualified Miller. But the partner heading up Miller Barondess's appellate practice, Mira Hashmall, secured a reversal before an appellate panel on both Miller's disqualification and the summary judgment, clearing the way for a trial.
Having an in-house appellate unit has become a selling point for the firm, and Hashmall, who was named partner in January, has scored key rulings including a victory in September for the L.A. County Board of Supervisors.
The five-member board faced a taxpayer lawsuit alleging violation of the Brown Act and conflict of interest. The state's 2nd appellate district affirmed a summary judgment decision Miller Barondess won earlier that favored the county.
The string of victories is the result of a collegial environment, where working hard and having fun aren't mutually exclusive, said Dan Miller.
"People get along and genuinely like each other," he said. His younger brother Jim, also an attorney, now heads up Miller Barondess's business development.
Family and friendship are at the firm's root. Dan Miller left Latham & Watkins LLP when his dad struck out on his own, then recruited two classmates from UC Berkeley School of Law - Sasha Frid and Brian Procel.
Both have taken on high profile cases: In July, Frid persuaded a federal judge in Illinois to dismiss a copyright suit against the band Motley Crue.
Meanwhile, Procel is representing alumni of the Thomas Jefferson School of Law who in July refiled a lawsuit against the school, claiming graduates suffer from crushing debt with no prospects for building a legal career.
Frid came from Jones Day, and Procel, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP, and that pattern of luring talented associates from larger shops has continued. Another partner, Amnon Siegel, joined from Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP.
The firm's success has earned it plenty of suitors, but Skip Miller says he has no plans for a merger.
"I'm having the best time of my life," Miller said. "To me, it's somewhat of a dream come true."
- Matt Hamilton
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