DLA Piper has boosted both its New York and Los Angeles offices with the hire of Ray Brown and Paul Burns.  Brown joins as a principle economist and Paul Burns joins as of counsel.   Burns received his JD from the University of Southern California.

Source:  www.legalpad.com

Jenner & Block is launching its very own Los Angeles office. Two Kirkland & Ellis partners are making the jump over to Jenner to help open the office.  Rick Richmond takes the role of managing partner and Brent Caslin joins as a partner and practices intellectual property law.  This LA office makes Jenner & Block’s fourth office.  

Source:  www.nylj.com

Blank Rome has announced plans to launch an office in Los Angeles. The firm will be birthed with the aid of five new partners: Lawrence C. Hinkle, Andrew F. Kim, Warren A. Koshofer, Glen A. Rothstein and William S. Small. Together, these five bring much litigation and real estate experience.  They bring experience in the following: corporate and commercial litigation, entertainment law, insurance coverage, labor and employment law, environmental, and toxic tort defense.

Source:  www.earthtimes.org

Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo, P.C. has boosted its Los Angeles office with a new partner hire.  Donald Urrabazo will join the litigation practice as a partner. He was formerly with Fox Rothschild LLP.

Source:  www.pr-inside.com

Dana Levitt has taken a position with Foley & Lardner in the firm’s commercial litigation practice group.  Levitt was formerly a partner with McDermott Will & Emery.  She is to join the Los Angeles office.

Source:  www.metnews.com

Seyfarth Shaw has added a patent litigation team, all former Thelen people. The team is led by partner Breton A. Bocchieri, who brings along attorneys Brien B. Kirk and Nguyen Huu Nguyen.  All join the Los Angeles office.

Source:  www.marketwatch.com

Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps spent half a year creating a plan to improve reputation and increase numbers in their California offices – Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Orange County. This may seem like a typical aim for most law firms, and yet the intended magnitude will require that the firm’s managing partner concentrate solely on leading and no longer on practicing law. As of January 1^st, partner Kurt Kicklighter will lead the firm through the next five years. Currently, Luce, Forward focuses mainly on real estate, trusts and estates, and insurance. But, by 2011, the firm plans to makes its presence known in other practice areas, such as labor and employment and intellectual property litigation.

Source:  www.law.com

Winston & Strawn has added Maria Rodriguez to its Los Angeles office. Rodriguez, an labor and employment litigaiton, will join as partner. She joins from Seyfarth Shaw, where she was also partner.

Source:  www.losangeles.dbusinessnews.com

Renowned trusts and estates lawyer, Andrew Katenstein, has joined the law firm of Proskauer Rose LLP. Katenstein is now as Partner and member of the firm’s newly developed fiduciary Litigation practice group. He will work with the Personal Development Planning Department, which has been ranked as one of the nation’s best by Chambers USA. Katenstein was previously with Katten, Muchin, Rosenman LLP in their Los Angeles office.

Source: www.businesswire.com

Finally a L.A. Law firm is given first place of American Lawyer magazine’s A-List. For the past five years, since the beginning of A-List, New York had held the No. 1 spot. NY’s Debevoise & Plimpton has held the honor of being the best for four years. It’s finally Los Angeles’ turn, and more specifically, Munger, Tolles & Olson’s turn. The firm owes this win to its commitment to pro bono work (3,200 hours more than last year), its 11% increase of revenue per lawyer, associate satisfaction, diversity,

Source: www.latimes.com