Aaron H. Jacoby, 48

Litigation, corporate, regulatory

A partner and chairman of the firm's auto industry practice, Jacoby leads a multidisciplinary group of attorneys who represent the dealers in the Chrysler Group and General Motors Co. bankruptcy filings. The dealers, forced to close their businesses, are pleading their cases to Congress and filing claims in bankruptcy proceedings for money still owed them. The challenge at first, he said, was convincing clients to accept responsibility and do the things necessary to prepare for the manufacturer's bankruptcy and attend to the sorting and selection process of who would remain in business and who would not. Jacoby also led the defense in a major class action by consumers who claimed dealers cheated them when collecting balances owed to prior lenders on trade-ins. The consumers sought millions of dollars in restitution and damages. The court dismissed all but two of the defendants. The case is pending at Central Civil West in Los Angeles