California Pulse


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    Chattah Can't Serve As Acting Nevada US Atty, 9th Circ. Says

    The Ninth Circuit on Monday upheld a lower court ruling that Nevada's top prosecutor was not put in place lawfully and was barred from overseeing the criminal cases giving rise to the appeal, the latest state where courts have shut down attempts by the Trump administration to fill U.S. attorney vacancies without Senate confirmation.

  • Littler Names Firm's First Pro Bono Counsel

    Littler Mendelson PC announced Monday that it had appointed its first pro bono counsel to enhance the firm's efforts supporting access to justice.

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    ArentFox Launches Internal Industry-Specific AI Tool

    ArentFox Schiff LLP announced Monday that it has launched its own artificial intelligence software for use by its attorneys, joining other law firms in simultaneously adopting third-party tools and introducing proprietary models.

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    Law Firms See Revenue, Demand Grow In First Half Of 2026

    Despite rising expenses driven by artificial intelligence and return to office mandates, the legal industry is performing well in 2026, with U.S. law firms recording a double-digit jump in revenue and strong growth in demand so far this year, according to new survey results from Citi Global Wealth at Work's Law Firm Group.

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    Saul Ewing Adds McGuireWoods Real Estate Duo In LA

    Saul Ewing LLP has added two McGuireWoods LLP partners to its real estate services group in Los Angeles.

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    Reddit Hires Ex-Time Warner GC As Top Attorney

    Reddit has appointed a new lead attorney with years of big-media experience, saying its current chief legal officer, who guided the social media platform through its initial public offering two years ago, plans to leave next month.

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    Atty Rageposting Draws Bar Scrutiny Amid Threats To Judges

    Over the past five years, at least half a dozen attorneys across the country have either been disbarred or faced serious discipline for their incendiary online posts targeting judges or public legal officers.

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    Law360's Legal Lions Of The Week

    Baker Botts LLP and King & Spalding LLP lead this week's edition of Law360 Legal Lions, after the Ninth Circuit enforced an over $2 billion arbitral award issued to a satellite communications company, ruling that the legal concept of an optimal venue for a case doesn't apply in matters concerning the enforcement of international arbitral awards.

  • Law360 Pulse Spotlight On Mid-Law Work

    Kellogg Hansen's work on an antitrust suit targetting Google and Wiley Rein helping to secure a $150 million conditional loan commitment from the U.S. Department of Defense lead this edition of Law360 Pulse's Spotlight on Mid-Law Work, recapping the top matters for Mid-Law firms from July 31 to Aug. 14.

  • Orrick Hires New Global Capital Markets Head From Kirkland

    Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP has hired a new global head of capital markets from Kirkland & Ellis LLP and is bringing on another capital markets partner from the firm later this month.

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    Okta Taps Ex-Splunk Legal Leader As Top Atty

    Okta Inc., a software company focused on identity and access management, has announced it found its new chief legal officer in the former legal leader of California-based technology firm Splunk Inc.

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    Goodwin Launches New Internal AI Platform

    Goodwin Procter LLP told Law360 Pulse on Friday that it has developed a new proprietary artificial intelligence platform designed to build and scale specific AI tools across the firm, starting with venture financing.

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    FBT Gibbons Adds Wells Fargo Senior Litigator In Calif.

    FBT Gibbons LLP has grown its financial services and litigation capabilities in California with the addition of a litigator who previously worked in-house at Wells Fargo and Charles Schwab.

  • Voir Dire: Law360 Pulse's Weekly Quiz

    Law firms deployed associate bonuses and expanded operations during another busy summer week for the legal industry. Test your legal news savvy here with Law360 Pulse's weekly quiz.

  • Customers Can't Depose Google, Apple CEOs, 9th Circ. Says

    The Ninth Circuit has denied a group of consumers' petition for writ of mandamus challenging a lower court's order rejecting their repeated requests to depose Google's and Apple's CEOs and several other executives in antitrust litigation alleging the search engine giant shut out competitors.

  • State Farm Attys Admit Filing Motions Full Of AI Hallucinations

    A law firm representing State Farm has admitted that its pretrial motions contained citations to nonexistent cases and legal quotes, errors that were seemingly "hallucinations" generated by AI software designed for lawyers and caught by the plaintiff's attorneys as they prepared for trial in a California state court case about fire damage coverage.

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    University Of California Head Atty To Retire After 2 Decades

    The University of California announced that the institution's top lawyer will retire in June after spending the past 20 years serving as its chief legal officer.

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    AI Drives Spike In Pro Se Filings But Not Courtroom Success

    Artificial intelligence appears to have led to a drastic spike in federal pro se litigation, according to scholars, but the technology isn't necessarily helping these self-represented litigants find success in court.

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    Latham Leads List Of Client Service 'All-Stars,' Report Says

    Latham & Watkins LLP, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher LLP and Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP all delivered exceptional client service in a fast-changing, high-pressure era where "the business decision is also the legal decision," a new report by BTI Consulting Group says.

  • Women Sue Couple Over 'Rent-A-Womb' Surrogacy Scheme

    Five women have sued an Arcadia, California, couple and their attorneys in state court stemming from an alleged "rent-a-womb" scheme where the women were tricked into becoming surrogates.

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    AALS Task Force to Examine Accreditation, Bar Admission

    The Association of American Law Schools has announced the formation of a national task force that will examine issues related to the accreditation of law schools and the viability of alternative ways to earn admission to the bar.

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    Trial Firm Reid Collins To Award 3rd Set Of Associate Bonuses

    Texas-based trial boutique Reid Collins & Tsai LLP is planning to dole out a third round of bonuses for the year to associates, raising their total bonus pay to between $130,000 and $170,000 on the year so far, with another round expected later in 2026.

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    Kahana Feld Grows In California With Sacramento Launch

    Kahana Feld LLP announced that the firm has opened its seventh California office in the state capital of Sacramento, where it added an experienced litigation partner from Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP.

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    Synopsys GC To Step Down To Study Theology

    California-based electronic design automation company Synopsys said Wednesday its general counsel will leave that post by the end of 2026, or earlier if a successor is named.

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    Deal Reached In Class Action Over Botched Calif. Bar Exam

    A settlement has been reached in a proposed nationwide class action brought by bar applicants against the proctor of the botched February 2025 California bar exam, one month after the California State Bar settled its claims against the proctor.

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Expert Analysis

  • Talking Mental Health: Fostering Cultures Where Women Excel Author Photo

    Sylvie Rodrigue at Torys discusses why authenticity is essential to women's career growth, why burnout is not the result of a lack of resilience, how the legal industry can better support women's mental health needs, and how firms can address gender gaps in senior roles.

  • How Clients Can Make The Most Of Law Firm Partner Moves Author Photo

    Outside counsel’s lateral career moves can create uncertainty and disruption for companies, but if managed strategically, in-house legal teams can leverage partner mobility for more complete service, better pricing and stronger relationships with their law firms, says Theodore Edelman at GCE Advisors.

  • The Augmented Lawyer: Countering 4 AI Efficiency Myths Author Photo

    Perceived efficiency gains from artificial intelligence can create unsustainable workload expectations for in-house legal departments, so general counsel must proactively educate executives, reframe assumptions and tie legal judgment to business outcomes, say Karineh Khachatourian at KXT Law and Catie Cambridge at Docsum.

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    Notes From A Partner-In-Charge On Lateral Hiring Strategy Author Photo

    In regional recruiting, firms that stand out to laterals can articulate a clear vision that connects local insight with global opportunity, demonstrate a culture that is lived rather than stated, and offer genuine room for growth, says Jason Novak, leader of Norton Rose's San Francisco office.

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    Biz Development Tip Of The Month: Team Up With Marketing Author Photo

    There are several ways attorneys can engage with resources already at their fingertips in the form of their in-house law firm marketing departments, which can help you gain some visibility, earn kudos and build a solid book of business, say Ada Kase and Liz Lindley at Jaffe PR.

  • Biz Dev Impostor Syndrome May Actually Be Good Judgment Author Photo

    Attributing lawyers’ sense of unease with business development to self-doubt or weakness may misidentify an important source of discomfort — a keen intuition that an ask isn’t yet appropriate for the relationship — and lead to advice that ultimately backfires, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • Ask A Mentor: How Can I Handle Unproductive Feedback? Author Photo

    Maggie Potter at Segal McCambridge offers advice for associates who receive unproductive criticism from superiors and tips for gently pushing back with an eye to growth and efficiency.

  • How To Prep As Private Equity Starts Investing In Law Firms Author Photo

    Law firms eyeing legal services organization models, which allow outside capital to support nonlegal business functions while preserving lawyer ownership, can prepare for the expansion of private equity investment in the area by balancing commercial objectives and compliance imperatives, say attorneys at Rivkin Radler.

  • What Legal Leaders Can Learn From Marine Corps Principles Author Photo

    The small-unit leadership principles that are foundational to the U.S. Marine Corps experience — from tight feedback loops to top-down tactfulness — offer a blueprint for addressing leadership gaps that persist in the legal profession, says Edet Nsemo at Tucker Ellis.

  • Venture Capital Practices Can Improve Law Firm Lateral Hiring Author Photo

    As law firms pursue increasingly ambitious growth goals in a competitive market for talent, they should consider supplementing traditional lateral hiring due diligence with practices inspired by the venture capitalist framework, says Henry O’Connor at Jones Walker.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2026 Author Photo

    After a pivotal year for the legal industry, lawyers and their clients face an evolving litigation finance landscape in 2026 that will be shaped by developments ranging from new policies governing patent lawsuits to the reemergence of appellate monetization funding, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

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    Biz Development Tip Of The Month: Think Like A Waiter Author Photo

    To convert casually interested restaurant patrons into satisfied, repeat customers, a good waiter relies on four service-oriented habits that proactive attorneys can borrow to cultivate lasting client relationships, say attorneys at Maynard Nexsen.

  • 6 Strategies To Set Up New CCOs For Success Author Photo

    As demand for chief compliance officers rises among a growing range of complex issues, organizations looking to hire and retain top-notch CCOs can adopt a series of strategies including defining success metrics and allowing the CCO to build a team, says Cara Bain at Major Lindsey.

  • Making Legal Cents: How Firms Can Navigate 2026 Trends Author Photo

    From the adoption of artificial intelligence infrastructure to increasing client attrition, a number of trends will likely define the legal industry in 2026, and law firms will need to strategically lean into these shifts to gain a competitive advantage, says Shireen Hilal at Maior Strategic Consulting.

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    Notes From A Partner-In-Charge On Integrating Lateral Talent Author Photo

    When done thoughtfully through three strategies, bringing laterals into the fold can propel growth and create significant business opportunities that enhance the law firm's cultural fabric, says James Sullivan, leader of Alston & Bird's New York office.

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