Dr. Jing Liu joined Sheppard Mullin Richter & Hampton LLP as partner in San Diego.

Liu is well-versed in the life sciences, including diagnostics, industrial biotechnology and cancer research. She has interdisciplinary technical capabilities and experience in management of patents and other intellectual property assets. Patent validity and non-infringement opinions, IP due diligence and analysis and licensing are some of the services she provides along with other transactions.

Dennis M. Childs joined Koning Zollar LLP as partner in Encinitas.

Childs has more than 30 years of experience representing employers and management with an emphasis on civil litigation in federal and state courts involving wrongful termination, discrimination and harassment, disability claims, trade secrets and unfair competition, union-management issues, defamation, privacy and class action wage-and-hour claims.

David T. Van Pelt joined Akerman LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Van Pelt represents clients in labor and employment matters, including wage and hour issues, employment termination, employee leave, accommodation of disabilities and employee relations. He also advises clients regarding employment matters related to mergers and acquisitions and acts as special counsel for employment matters in corporate bankruptcies.

Michael L. Gallion joined Akerman LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Gallion’s practice focuses on labor and employment law. He specializes in defending California wage and hour class actions and high-stakes discrimination, harassment and retaliation cases. Gallion also has experience serving clients in a wide range of industries, including financial services, retail, entertainment, advertising, healthcare and real estate.

Emmett E. Seltzer joined Kahana & Feld LLP as partner in Santa Ana.

Seltzer spent his career defending contractors, developers, manufacturers, product suppliers and design professionals in complex disputes involving construction projects. He has experience with cases that involve high-end custom houses, mixed use developments, commercial and tract homes as well as products liability and personal injury matters.

Vivian C Grigorians joined Polsinelli LLP as principal in Los Angeles.

Grigorians brings extensive experience counseling institutional lenders, real estate funds, opportunity funds and other real estate investors to her new firm. She focuses on a broad range of transactions including mortgage and mezzanine financing, single family home rental financing, purchase and sale transactions, mortgage origination for commercial mortgage-backed securitization programs, real estate workouts and restructurings, joint ventures and leasing.

JR Lanis joined Polsinelli LLP as principal/chair in Los Angeles.

Lanis negotiates and structures high dollar value transactions, including public stock and debt offerings, tender offers, distressed company acquisitions and sales. He works with businesses in the technology, financial services, blockchain, hospitality, life sciences and energy sectors. He joined Polsinelli as the firm’s chair of the West Coast corporate and securities practice.

Terry W. Ahearn joined Duane Morris LLP as partner in Palo Alto.

Ahearn represents clients in intellectual property and other complex commercial litigation matters related to high technology. He also advises clients in data protection and cybersecurity. Ahearn has experience in cases before the United State International Trade Commission or the American Arbitration Association.

Jennifer A. Kung Gelini joined Bennett, Samuelsen, Reynolds, Allard, Cowperthwaite & Gelini APC as shareholder/managing partner in Alameda.

Kung Gelini's practice focuses on handling defense of litigation matters such as personal injury, products liability, insurance coverage, premises liability. Defense for municipality construction and landlords are other areas she has worked with.

Christopher Cox joined Hogan Lovells US LLP as partner.

Cox has more than 25 years of experience advising domestic and international companies on intellectual property, employment and litigation matters that include commercial disputes, trade secrets, patents and internal investigations.

Mehdi Khodadad joined Sidley Austin LLP as partner in Century City.

Khodadad's practice focuses on the representation of private equity and other institutional investors and their portfolio companies. He is an advisor to clients in the technology and life sciences industries about matters such as public financings, corporate restructurings, mergers and acquisitions, leveraged buy-outs and related private equity transactions.

Josh G DuClos joined Sidley Austin LLP as partner in Century City.

DuClos concentrates his practice on representing equity sponsors, public and privately held companies and their respective stakeholders and advisors in buyouts, investments and divestitures. He also has experience in advising buyers and sellers in the technology, software, internet and social media, media and entertainment, retail, consumer products and life sciences industries.

Lauren O Youngman joined Beverly Hills Bar Association as co-chair in Beverly Hills.

Youngman handles family law matters and has represented litigation clients in divorces, parentage actions and Department of Child Support Services cases. She also acts as a mediator or third-party neutral to facilitate global resolution between parties without litigation.

Jean Y Yu joined Jackson Lewis PC as principal.

Yu focuses on employee benefits, ERISA and corporate transactional matters. She has experience assisting employers with challenges that range from multiemployer plans, assisting in negotiations with regulatory bodies, investigations on compliance issues, partial termination, withdrawal liability, equity compensation arrangements and correction of plan qualification errors.

Stuart Alderoty joined The Minority Corporate Counsel Association as board chair in San Francisco.

Alderoty serves as the general counsel of Ripple Labs, where he oversees all legal services and manages the company's global legal, policy and Bank Secrecy Act compliance teams. He has more than 30 years of legal experience, specializing in financial services and regulatory affairs.

Michael Y Kao joined Cox Castle & Nicholson LLP as general counsel in Los Angeles.

Kao has more than 14 years of experience as a complex commercial litigator and in-house counsel of professional services. He has experience providing strategic advice to senior professionals on a wide range of legal matters including contractual risk management and regulatory compliance issues. He represents clients in a variety of legal matters such as antitrust, healthcare, internet, retail and intellectual property laws.

Jason E Grinnell joined Thompson Coburn LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Grinnell's practice focuses on acquisitions, dispositions and leasing across multiple asset classes, specializing in retail space. He also advises financial institutions in construction, permanent and mezzanine debt financing while representing clients in loan workouts, forbearances and other distressed debt transactions.

Goodarz T. Agahi joined K&L Gates LLP as partner in Irvinw.

Agahi's practice focuses on land use matters and commercial real estate transactions. He has represented clients on a variety of real estate transactions, including acquisitions and dispositions, financing, commercial leasing, joint venture transactions and entity formation and structuring.

Tom F. Hanley joined Glaser Weil LLP as partner.

Hanley's transactional real estate practice includes advising investors, lenders, property owners and developers in all aspects of purchase, sales, financings, lease agreements and joint ventures. He also regularly advises on restructuring loan agreements, real estate workouts, negotiating prebankrupcty settlements and coordinating regulatory compliance.

Nicholas P. Roxborough joined The California Organized Investment Network Advisory Board as board member in Woodland Hills.

Co-managing partner at Roxborough, Pomerance, Nye & Adreani, Roxborough has more than three decades of experience in trials and appellate decisions regarding the insurance industry. He was first appointed to the COIN Advisory Board in 2013 and has been reappointed.

Patricia H. Ring joined Loeb & Loeb LLP as partner.

Ring counsels clients on wealth transfer planning, trust and estate administration and charitable giving. Her focus is on creating and implementing tax-efficient wealth transfer plans. She also advises fiduciaries in connection with the administration of large and complex estates and trusts.

Mishell Parreno Taylor was promoted to office managing shareholder of Littler Mendelson PC in San Diego.

Parreno Taylor previously served as the firm's board member for its Mexico offices and as co-chair of the Reunión affinity group. Parreno Taylor's practice focuses on representing employers of all sizes on many employment law issues. She also has experience in handling employment litigation in federal and state courts and administrative agencies.

Marc D. Hauser joined Reed Smith LLP as co-vice chair in San Francisco.

Hauser focuses his practice on representing business and investor interests in all aspects of the international cannabis and hemp industries. He has experience advising clients and colleagues on billions of dollars of business transactions and has covered a broad range of industries and asset classes, such as private equity and venture financings, acquisitions and dispositions, governance, debt financings and complex tax structuring.

Katherine S. Catlos was promoted to partner of Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck LLP in San Francisco.

Catlos is Kaufman Dolowich & Voluck's first chief diversity and inclusion officer. She is a labor and employment partner and focuses on Equal Pay Act claims, advising and assisting with audits, class actions and collective Private Attorneys General Act actions. She also has experience with education law and housing discrimination matters.

Emily J. Atherton joined Klinedinst PC as counsel in Los Angeles.

Atherton's practice includes business, commercial and employment litigation. She has experience practicing in areas such as toxic tort, product liability, premises liability, business litigation and employment litigation.

Eric C. Lee joined Loeb & Loeb LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Lee focuses his practice on mergers and acquisitions, private equity and general corporate matters. He has represented clients on a variety of U.S. and cross-border acquisitions and divestitures, joint ventures, restructurings, spin-offs and complex real estate investment trust transactions.

James E. Sell was promoted to equity partner of Tyson & Mendes LLP in San Francisco.

Sell has extensive experience in construction, public works, products liability, catastrophic injury, wrongful death and professional liability litigation. He serves as general counsel to many Bay Area contractors, subcontractors and suppliers.

Jennifer M. Millier as founder in Culver City

Santa Monica Bar Association President Jennifer Millier has launched a boutique litigation practice focused on product safety, business, employment and intellectual property litigation.
Her firm, Millier Law Inc., strives to achieve environmental and social sustainability throughout its business practices, according to a statement.
An experienced litigator, Millier guides clients, including very large companies as well as solo shops, through all aspects of civil litigation. She has experience with mediation, arbitration and trials. She has collaborated with startups, nonprofits and corporations in Silicon Beach to develop successful legal strategies that support and drive business objectives.

Kalama M. Lui-Kwan joined Troutman Sanders LLP as partner in San Francisco.

Lui-Kwan's practice focuses on complex commercial disputes, financial services class actions, compliance matters and regulatory investigations. He is also experienced in defense and prosecution of complex commercial matters involving contract actions, business torts and post-closing disputes arising from matters and acquisitions.

Scott N. Weston joined Fox Rothschild LLP as co-chair in Los Angeles.

Weston is a certified family law specialist and has more than 30 years of experience representing celebrities and high net worth clients in family law matters, including the enforcement of premarital agreements, child support, spousal support, custody and complex property division and business valuation.

A. Marisa Chun joined Crowell & Moring LLP as partner in San Francisco.

Chun is an experienced trial and appellate lawyer who focuses on commercial litigation, consumer class actions and internal and government investigations. Her significant emphasis resides on the technology, energy and health care sectors.

German A Marcucci was promoted to partner of Ropers Majeski Kohn Bentley PC in Los Angeles.

Marcucci practices business and commercial litigation, employment law and insurance services. He handles litigation involving personal injury and property damage claims occurring in commercial settings. He also advises clients on liability, damages and insurance coverage and insurance bad faith matters.

Spiros E. Fousekis was promoted to partner of Ropers Majeski Kohn Bentley PC in Redwood City.

Fousekis’ practice includes business and commercial litigation, employment and corporate law. He has experience handling matters of harassment, discrimination and retaliation under the Fair Employment and Housing Act, wrongful termination, wage and hour matters, meal and rest period disputes and whistleblower retaliation claims.

Alan J. Hart was promoted to partner of Ropers Majeski Kohn Bentley PC in Los Angeles.

Hart practices business and commercial litigation as well as in intellectual property law. He advises clients in matters such as defense of business torts, contract disputes, false advertising, defamation, construction, products liability, trademark and patent litigation, labor disputes and insurance.

Elizabeth R. Glasglow joined McDermott Will & Emery LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

Glasgow's practice includes multi-generational wealth preservation and tax minimization, including the creation and implementation of dynasty trusts, business succession plans, asset protection strategies and charitable giving structures. She also has experience with high net worth individuals, the nonprofit community and tax-exempt entities.