Samantha Chen joined Miller Starr Regalia as associate in Walnut Creek.

Chen is a litigator and advises public agency clients on land use, planning and zoning matters including the California Environmental Quality Act, as well as building and municipal code enforcement, ADA compliance, public works projects and government transparency laws.

Aaron S. Case was promoted to partner of Yoka & Smith LLP in Los Angeles.

Case represents clients in personal injury, wrongful death, product liability matters, complex tort and environmental litigation and commercial and business disputes. He also advises clients on state and federal compliance regarding operating businesses in California and selling consumer products.
He is based in Los Angeles.

Lauren A.R. Lofton was promoted to partner of Yoka & Smith LLP in Los Angeles.

Lofton defends clients in catastrophic personal injury, wrongful death and products liability litigation, as well as business tort matters.
She is based in Los Angeles.

Stacey L. Rosenberg joined Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP as partner.

Stacey L. Rosenberg, a former partner at Hogan Lovells U.S. LLP, joined Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton LLP on Dec. 5 in the downtown Los Angeles office. Rosenberg, the 15th partner to join the firm in the last 12 months, will be part of the finance and bankruptcy practice group.
"I think that Sheppard offers me just a better platform," Rosenberg said of her move. "It has a larger banking group than Hogan had in the U.S. ... and it was doing well. But I think that Sheppard really gives me an opportunity to focus on a larger potential group of clients, and just because they have that larger finance practice, I think it's a bit easier to work with my partners and pitch business and the like."
Rosenberg had been with Hogan Lovells for four years.
Since the start of her career, she has specialized in secured lending and currently focuses on alternative lenders and direct lending. She also has experience in leveraged finance, working with investment banks and commercial banks and other types of debt finance, with the exception of public securities. Her clients range across industries but she has specific expertise in film finance, which she has been doing for the last 20 years.
Much of Rosenberg's work also involves distressed companies. "I think that there's quite a bit of opportunity to work with the bankruptcy partners to build on the synergies there as well," she added.
"Stacey checks a bunch of boxes," said Brent Horstman, Sheppard's finance and bankruptcy practice group leader. "We've always had a historical strength in commercial banking, but we have tried to strengthen our direct lending, alternative lender portion of our practice, which we think Stacey definitely does. We have a very strong entertainment group and Stacey fits well there as well. And then, just culturally, we've gotten to know Stacey over the course of interviewing and we think she fits very well with the firm. We thought, on all levels this was a great fit."
Rosenberg has been involved in handling adoption cases pro bono for the Alliance for Children's Rights. She was the coordinator of pro bono adoption cases at Hogan Lovells and looks to continue that work at Sheppard Mullin.

Nicholas E. Ma joined Miller Starr Regalia as associate in Walnut Creek.

Ma is a commercial litigator. He represents real estate developers, tech companies, financial institutions and public entities.

Daniel M. Kolkey

After 28 years as a partner at Gibson Dunn and five years as a justice of the 3rd District California Court of Appeal, San Francisco based appellate lawyer Daniel M. Kolkey retired at the end of the year.
"There's an expectation that partners will retire at age 68, to make room for the younger partners, but it was also time for a change," said Kolkey in an interview.
"I'm interested in focusing on things that particularly interest me. Particularly I'd like to write about California public policy -- I've been doing a bit of that already this year -- as well as on foreign affairs."
Kolkey plans to leave the door open when it comes to practicing law and said he is open to consulting and possibly writing briefs in the future.
Kolkey's 43 years in practice includes civil actions and litigation on a range of law, from tax to constitutional issues. He has expertise in the California Constitution and procedure, government law and ballot initiatives.
He drafted two constitutional measures, co-authoring California's international arbitration law and a recent law that allows foreign and out-of-state attorneys to represent clients in international commercial arbitrations in California.
At Gibson Dunn, he was co-chair of the appellate and constitutional law group and was chair of the appellate rules subcommittee of the Judicial Council of California for six years.
In addition to his time on the appellate court, he was legal affairs secretary and counsel to Gov. Pete Wilson during his second term and as Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's negotiator under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.
Kolkey said he has enjoyed most the thrill and creativity of appellate litigation, particularly in the high stakes cases he has handled related to public policy. He mentioned in particular arguing for both Governors Wilson and Schwarzenegger on redistricting before the California Supreme Court.
"I've also enjoyed drafting two initiative measures that were adopted by the California voters and are now part of the California Constitution," he added. "I can technically say that I've written part of the California Constitution."

David Mesa joined FisherBroyles LLP as partner in Palo Alto.

David Mesa joined FisherBroyles as a partner this month, expanding the firm's Palo Alto litigation practice. He moved from Steptoe & Johnson, where he practiced three years in the products liability, commercial litigation and retail and e-commerce groups.
"FisherBroyles is a stellar law firm. It provides my clients with a broader platform and a larger national footprint, and for me, the opportunity to work with the firm's impeccable trial bench to defend clients nationally," said Mesa in an interview. "It's a global firm with world class partners. Whatever my clients are facing when a problem arises, even if I'm not an expert in the area, we have a diversely talented and experienced bench, who can help the client solve whatever those problems are. ... The firm was touted as a fantastic place to work with a collaborative culture amongst the partners and I agree 100%."
He was attracted to the flexibility and autonomy of the partnership and its distributed, cloud-based structure that allows him to spend extra time with his young children, Mesa said.
"I have the freedom to choose to work from home, which means I get to spend more time with my family," he added. "I have a 3-year-old and a 6-year-old and that extra time really means the world to me."
Mesa specializes in complex civil disputes with a focus on defending manufacturers and retailers. He has experience representing clients in products liability and commercial business disputes, as well as injury and wrongful death lawsuits, consumer class actions and enforcement actions by government agencies.
"From my summer associate program at Sedgwick in 2006 up until today, all I've ever done is litigation for manufacturers and retailers," he said.
Mesa was with Sedgwick LLP for 10 years before joining Steptoe in 2018.
Outside of his practice, Mesa is active in bar associations, which he considers his second family. In the past, he has been president of the National Filipino Lawyers Association and board member of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association. Currently, he is in his third year on the board of the California Asian Pacific American Bar Association and is on the judiciary committee of the National Filipino Lawyers Association and the California chapter of the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association.

Frances Brower was promoted to partner of Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP in Irvine.

Brower specializes in litigation related to premises liability, commercial disputes, elder abuse and products liability.
She is based in Irvine.

Kristian B. Moriarty was promoted to partner of Haight Brown & Bonesteel LLP in Irvine.

Moriarty is a litigator and a member of the firm's risk management and insurance law, transportation and products liability practice groups. He has experience handling disputes related to insurance coverage and trucking accidents.
He is based in Irvine.

A. Alexander Lowder was promoted to partner of Larson LLP in Los Angeles.

Lowder focuses on representation of clients in white collar criminal investigations and prosecutions, as well as complex breach of contract matters, class actions and civil rights disputes.
He is based in Los Angeles.

Jen C. Won was promoted to counsel of Larson LLP in Los Angeles.

Won specializes in complex commercial disputes and white collar criminal investigations and defense.
She is based in Los Angeles.

Emilie J. Zuccolotto was promoted to counsel of Larson LLP in Los Angeles.

Zuccolotto focuses on employment and business disputes such as discrimination
and wrongful termination claims, wage and hour class actions and
consumer class actions.
She is based in Los Angeles.

David Michaels joined Spertus, Landes & Umhofer LLP as partner in Los Angeles.

David Michaels joined Spertus, Landes & Umhofer as a partner in Los Angeles from his solo practice.
"Matt Umhofer has been a good friend and mentor of mine since I started my career at Skadden," said Michaels in an interview. "I got staffed on a case with him and worked with him quite a bit when I was there - really enjoyed the experience - and he and I stayed in very close contact. He had mentioned over the last couple years a couple times in conversation that there was a potential seat for me at the firm if I was interested. That conversation started to become more serious in the last few months before I joined ... and I basically started talking to all the partners and was just incredibly impressed."
Michaels said he was also impressed by the caliber of attorneys and the firm's culture. How the attorneys felt about practicing there really attracted him to the opportunity, he said.
As a commercial litigator, Michaels specializes in corporate, securities and general business litigation. His clients are primarily middle market and emerging companies.
Prior to his two years in solo practice, he was a co-founder and principal of Kilometer Partners LLP for almost seven years. He joined Spertus, Landes & Umhofer earlier this month. Michaels has practiced at Boies, Schiller & Flexner LLP and at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP in Los Angeles.
He also was a clerk to 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Kim McLane Wardlaw and Vice Chancellor John W. Noble of the Delaware Court of Chancery.
Since joining the firm, Michaels has been focusing on transitioning his clients to the firm and building relationships with his new colleagues. He looks forward to growing his practice on the firm's platform and helping the firm grow.
"I like the sort of romantic or old school idea of being someone's attorney, someone's protector, so to speak," he added. "I sort of romanticize that a little bit when a client puts their faith in you in an area in which they're often really stressed, don't know that much about and depend on you to steer them through sometimes what is the hardest circumstance they have ever dealt with. That's my favorite part about my practice."