John David Loy joined First Amendment Coalition as legal director in San Diego.

Loy is a veteran civil liberties litigator who has defended the First Amendment rights of reporters, photographers, bloggers, students, teachers, activists, protesters, musicians, Marines, and motorcycle club members and has fought for public disclosure and governmental transparency for over 20 years.

Henry W. Root joined Smith Entertainment Law Group as partner in Los Angeles.

Root serves as counsel to major and independent entertainment, media companies, recording artists, songwriters, composers, producers, consumer product companies, and large purchasers of music catalogs and name imagine and likeness rights.

Ron S. Grace joined Greenberg Traurig LLP as shareholder in Los Angeles.

Grace serves as general corporate counsel and transactional counsel with respect to a wide variety of business transactions. He represents emerging and established companies, including those in the healthcare industry, on mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, strategic partnerships, private placements of equity securities, and general contract, securities, and health care law.

Robert Blamires was promoted to partner of Latham & watkins in San Francisco.

Robert Blamires is a member of the Data & Technology Transactions Practice in the Corporate Department who advises clients on data privacy practices, risks, and compliance, particularly in the context of M&A, capital markets, and other corporate transactions, as well as on proactive compliance, the use of data assets, and contracts governing data sharing and processing. He also has substantial experience with the firm's Data Privacy & Security Practice.

Andrew J. Demko as partner in Los Angeles

Demko joins the firm as a partner in the Commercial Litigation and Consumer Litigation & Class Actions practices. He has represented companies in a variety of industries, including financial services, media, entertainment, technology and securities. He also has experience with environmental and employment litigation, including ERISA lawsuits and wage and hour class actions.

Nikki Buffa was promoted to partner of Latham & Watkins in Costa Mesa.

Buffa is a member of the Environment, Land & Resources Practice in the Corporate Department. She provides environmental counseling in all areas of environmental law, with a particular focus on the siting of major infrastructure projects, energy transition and renewable energy, stakeholder engagement, and crisis management. She counsels clients on a wide range of relevant state and federal regulatory regimes and has previously served in senior positions in the Obama Administration at the Department of the Interior and the White House, and on the Biden-Harris transition team.

Heather B. Deixler was promoted to partner of Latham & Watkins in Bay Area.

Deixler is a member of the Healthcare & Life Sciences Practice in the Corporate Department. who counsels public and private companies operating in the healthcare industry and digital health sector on regulatory compliance, transactional matters, and data privacy and security. With a practice at the intersection of healthcare and technology, she advises a range of cutting-edge clients on emerging regulatory regimes, including innovative healthcare delivery systems, value-based payment programs, and the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning in healthcare.

Kristin N. Murphy was promoted to partner of Latham & Watkins in Costa Mesa.

Murphy is a member of the Securities Litigation & Professional Liability Practice in the Litigation & Trial Department. She advises clients on complex business litigation, with an emphasis on M&A, securities fraud, and class action litigation. Her recent representations include special committee engagements in controlling stockholder transactions, multi-jurisdictional litigation arising out of solicited and hostile takeover attempts, and lawsuits related to special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs).

Kevin C. Reyes was promoted to partner of Latham & Watkins in San Diego.

Reyes is a member of the mergers & acquisitions practice in the Corporate Department. He represents public and private companies on a range of corporate matters, including M&A transactions, debt and equity capital markets offerings, venture capital financings, corporate governance, and securities law compliance, particularly in the life sciences, technology, consumer products, and real estate sectors.

Allison Mallick was promoted to partner of Baker Botts L.L.P. in San Francisco.

Mallick advises clients facing complex environmental challenges, focusing on litigation, regulatory advocacy, and compliance counseling. She represents companies and industry coalitions across multiple sectors, including energy, cement, manufacturing, chemical processing, and agricultural processing.

Nicholas J Hoffman was promoted to partner of McGuireWoods in Los Angeles.

Hoffman Joins International Association of Defense Counsel. He is a trial attorney who handles a wide range of matters, including product liability, mass tort, intellectual property, unfair competition, business tort and other complex commercial disputes. He represents clients in the technology, biotechnology, medical devices, consumer products and entertainment industries.

Elinor Eizdi was promoted to partner of Nossaman.

Eizdi specializes in real estate transactional law. She represents real estate developers, government agencies and independent oil and gas companies in all phases of real estate acquisitions and dispositions.

Willis Hon was promoted to partner of Nossaman in San Francisco.

Hon focuses on serving water industry clients across California on a broad range of administrative and regulatory matters.

Frank Liu was promoted to partner of Nossaman in Los Angeles.

Liu helps public agencies use innovative procurement methods to deliver highly complex and large-scale airport, highway, bridge, tunnel, transit and social infrastructure projects. His work spans every step of the procurement process.

Emily Stephens joined Greenberg Traurig, LLP as shareholder in Los Angeles.

Emily Stephens concentrates her practice on fund formation and investment management and has a deep institutional knowledge of virtually all aspects of the investment management business.

Maxwell A. Blum was promoted to partner of Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP in Oakland CA.

Max Blum is a member of the firm's Litigation and Public Law practices.

Eli Jacob Flushman was promoted to partner of Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP in San Rafael.

Eli Flushman is a member of the firm's Public Law practice.

Kristin E. Charbonnier was promoted to partner of Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP in San Francisco.

Kristin Charbonnier is a member of the firm's Litigation and Real Estate practices.

Temitayo Opeoluwa Peters was promoted to partner of Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP in Oakland.

Temitayo ("Ope") Peters is a member of the firm's Constitutional Law, Employment Law & Litigation, Litigation, and Public Law practices.

Martin S. McMahan was promoted to partner of Yoka & Smith LLP in Los Angeles.

McMahan worked in business for several years before getting a law degree from Loyola Law School. His practice includes catastrophic injury/wrongful death defense, class-action and complex tort actions, commercial litigation, premises liability and product liability.

Karen Ahearn was promoted to partner of Glaser Weil Fink Howard Avchen & Shapiro LLP - Los Angeles, CA in Century City.

Karen Ahearn, a partner in Glaser Weil's Real Estate Department, provides clients with a full range of real estate and development services. She assists clients with financing acquisitions, developments, leasing and land use. Her diversity of experience includes shopping centers, mixed-use projects and residential developments.

Before joining the Firm, Ms. Ahearn specialized in insurance coverage matters. Thus, Ms. Ahearn is in a unique position to advise clients on an entire range of ancillary issues that arise in real estate transactions, including insurance needs and indemnification agreements.

John D. Cooke was promoted to partner of Bergeson LLP in Silicon Valley.

Cooke represents clients in civil litigation, criminal and regulatory matters, and corporate investigations. Prior to joining the Bergeson firm, Cooke was an assistant U.S. attorney for 12 years in the Northern District of Illinois as well as in the Northern Districts of California and New York. He led complex investigations, prosecutions, and trials in a range of matters, including fraud, money laundering, cybercrime, public corruption, violent crime, and violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. As a result of his prosecution and trial of leaders of a violent street gang for RICO violations, John was tapped to coordinate the U.S. Attorney's Office's racketeering investigations amid an upswell in violent crime in Chicago. In addition to his experience in federal criminal litigation, Cooke represented the United States in civil litigation, including fraud matters under the False Claims Act and employment disputes.

Charles Edward Slyngstad was promoted to partner of Burke, Williams & Sorensen, LLP in Los Angeles.

Charles E. Slyngstad, partner and Chair of Burke's Litigation practice, has been appointed General Counsel for the firm. Slyngstad has served as lead trial counsel in a number of high profile cases involving Burke's public sector and private sector clients. He is a certified specialist in Legal Malpractice Law by the Board of Legal Specialization for the State Bar of California. In his expanded role as Burke's General Counsel, Slyngstad will help guide decisions on all legal, risk, and compliance issues affecting the firm.

Alla Shabun Policastro was promoted to partner of Tyson & Mendes LLP in Los Angeles.

Policastro's practice focuses on defense of general liability and personal injury matters on behalf of individuals and businesses. Over the course of the past thirteen years, her litigation experience has included high exposure and catastrophic personal injury cases in the insurance and hospitality industries. Policastro also has significant experience in risk assessment and mitigation for her clients and handling all aspects of litigation to trial. She has an exceptional track record for resolving high exposure cases through negotiations and mediation even in the most adverse of circumstances

Elias Dabaie was promoted to partner of Glaser Weil Fink Howard Avchen & Shapiro LLP - Los Angeles, CA in Century City.

Elias Dabaie focuses on complex commercial litigation and advises clients in a wide range of high-stakes disputes, with particular emphasis on claims involving breach of contract, business torts, consumer fraud and products liability. His clients span a diverse array of industries, including real estate finance, professional sports and multinational retail.

With expertise in all aspects of litigation-including serving as lead counsel in several trials and obtaining lucrative settlements-Mr. Dabaie's commitment to his clients' success has earned him a reputation for fierce advocacy and imaginative litigation strategies.

Justin A. Santarosa was promoted to partner of Duane Morris LLP in Los Angeles.

Justin A. Santarosa, of Duane Morris' Los Angeles office, has been promoted to the firm partnership.

Kenneth Tze was promoted to partner of Duane Morris LLP in San Francisco.

Kenneth Tze, of Duane Morris' San Francisco office, has been promoted to the firm partnership.

Norma Ramirez-Marin was promoted to senior counsel of Buckley LLP in Los Angeles.

Ramirez-Marin represents a variety of financial services clients on licensing, regulatory, compliance, and transactional matters.

Jesse Levin was promoted to partner of Glaser Weil Fink Howard Avchen & Shapiro LLP - Los Angeles, CA in Century City.

Jesse Levin is a problem solver. For clients that face high-stakes disputes in corporate, entertainment, employment, real estate, and general commercial litigation, he is an aggressive advocate and a dedicated advisor. Mr. Levin takes pride in being responsive to his clients' unique concerns, and understanding the impacts litigation can have on his clients' attention and bottom lines. With that understanding, he helps each of his clients identify and pursue their objectives in litigation efficiently, and when necessary, relentlessly.

Mr. Levin's maintains a diverse practice built upon his extensive experience in both defending and prosecuting claims for breaches of contract and fiduciary duties; profit participation and royalty disputes; employment claims and wage & hour violations; class actions; intellectual property infringement and trade secret violations. Mr. Levin also routinely represents and advises partners and corporate officers and directors in matters of business divorce, internal investigations, and professional liability.

Recently, Mr. Levin prevailed on behalf of a management company suing for seven figures in unpaid royalties and defeated counter-claims for alleged violations of the Talent Agencies Act after a two-week arbitration. In a recent real estate matter before the Los Angeles Superior Court, Mr. Levin won a motion for summary judgment of contract claims that alleged over $150,000,000 in damages.


A life-long Angeleno, Mr. Levin received his bachelor's degree from the University of Southern California, and his law degree from UCLA Law. Year after year, he is repeatedly selected as a "Rising Star" by Southern California Super Lawyers.

Michael Scott Eisenbaum was promoted to managing partner of Gray•Duffy, LLP in Encino.

Michael Eisenbaum Elected as New Managing Partner of Gray•Duffy, LLP effective January 1, 2022.

Eisenbaum will oversee the firm's two offices, including Redwood City, California. Eisenbaum has a diversified practice which includes extensive litigation experience. He has successfully represented hundreds of individuals and businesses in the areas of premises liability, contract liability and enforcement, construction defect, product liability, professional liability, personal injury, and property damage litigation. Eisenbaum obtained his Juris Doctorate from Pepperdine University School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts from Colorado State University.

Judge Judy H. Hersher joined Judicate West as neutral in Sacramento.

Judicate West welcomes retired Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Judy H. Hersher to its exclusive roster of neutrals. She is based in the Sacramento office and is available for mediations, arbitrations and private judging and Special Master assignments statewide.