Judge, United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
Judge Carlos Bea serves as a judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. He received his Bachelor's Degree from Stanford University in 1956 and his J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1958. Judge Bea was born in San Sebastian, Spain, and immigrated with his family to Cuba in 1939. In 1952, he represented Cuba on the Cuban National basketball team in the Helsinki Olympics. Judge Bea became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1958. He engaged in private practice in San Francisco, principally in the area of civil trials (jury and non-jury), from 1959-75 at Dunne, Phelps & Mills and from 1975-90 at Carlos Bea, A Law Corporation. He taught courses in civil litigation advocacy at Hastings College of Law and Stanford Law School. From 1990 to 2003, Judge Bea served as a judge of the San Francisco Superior Court. He was nominated by President George W. Bush to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and was confirmed in 2003.
Judge Bea and his wife Louise reside in San Francisco, where they raised their four sons, Sebastian, Alexander, Nicholas, and Dominic.
Member, NLRB
Bill works with a broad range of clients, including trade associations, hospitals and other health care institutions, school districts, transportation and logistics companies and manufacturing companies.
He is a member of Littler Mendelson's Traditional Labor Practice Group and editor of the firm's traditional labor blog, Labor Relations Counsel. He also authored several amicus curiae briefs on behalf of trade associations in cases challenging state laws that allow labor unions to trespass on the private property of employers, including a landmark case now pending at the California Supreme Court.
Chief Economist and Head of Analytics, Trulia
As chief economist and head of analytics, Jed oversees Trulia’s research programs. Applying a background in economic development and research methods, he transforms real estate data, economic trends and public policy debate into digestible insights for home buyers, sellers and renters.
In Jed’s prior role as associate director and research fellow at the Public Policy Institute of California, he led research projects and advised policymakers and business leaders on economic, housing and technology policies. Before his work at PPIC, Jed directed Forrester Research’s consumer-technology market research, advising corporate executives on technology adoption and demand. Jed has also held positions at the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (now FHFA), the World Bank and the Progressive Policy Institute.
Jed earned his bachelor’s degree in social studies and his doctorate in economics at Harvard University.
Co-Chairman, The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies
Leonard is Co-Chairman and former Executive Vice President of the Federalist Society, joining the organization over 25 years ago. Since that time he has been instrumental in helping the organization top 70,000, focusing on the growth of lawyers membership, operations and activities advancing limited, constitutional government. In addition to his work at the Society, Leonard has advised President Trump on judicial selection, assisted with the Gorsuch and Kavanaugh Supreme Court selection and confirmation process, and served as a member of the transition team. He also organized the outside coalition efforts in support of the Roberts and Alito U.S. Supreme Court confirmations. Leonard was appointed by President George W. Bush to three terms to the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom as chairman. He was also a U.S. Delegate to the UN Council and UN Commission on Human Rights during the Bush Administration. Leonard was the recipient of the 2009 Bradley Prize, along with the other founders and directors of the Federalist Society, for his work in advancing freedom and the rule of law. He is the coeditor of Presidential Leadership: Rating the Best and the Worst in the White House, as well as the author of opinion editorials in the New York Times,The Wall Street Journal, and Washington Post. Leonard holds degrees from Cornell University and Cornell Law School. He presently resides in Northern Virginia, where he and his wife Sally have raised their seven children.
Attorney, Spiro Moss LLP
Mr. Leviant is a civil litigation attorney with over 11 years of experience (10 as an attorney) handling complex and class action matters. Over the last five years, Mr. Leviant litigated class actions at several large plaintiffs' firms. Before that, Mr. Leviant worked at the small civil litigation firm Stanbury & Fishelman, Inc., where he handled increasingly sophisticated matters, including complex commercial litigations, class actions, appellate matters and civil trials.
Mr. Leviant has obtained several published appellate decisions, including Ghazaryan v. Diva Limousine, Ltd. 169 Cal. App. 4th 1524 (2009), which reversed a denial of class certification and obtained an Order of the Court of Appeal directing certification of the proposed class, Laliberte v. Pacific Mercantile Bank, 147 Cal. App. 4th 1 (2007), which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and reaffirmed the expansive nature of the “community of interest” concept in California class actions, andJohnson v. Glaxosmithkline, Inc., 166 Cal. App. 4th 1497 (2008), as modified (October 14, 2008), rev. denied, which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and questioned the rationale and viability of Alvarez v. May Dept. Stores Co., 143 Cal. App. 4th 1223 (2006).
Mr. Leviant is also the founder, primary author and Editor-in-Chief of The Complex Litigator, a legal blog focusing on developments in the areas of class action practice, complex litigation, and technology for small firms. In addition to his blog, Mr. Leviant has authored or co-authored various published articles.
Mr. Leviant is in his third year of service on the Board of Governors for the Consumer Attorneys of California.
Mr. Leviant is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth and Ninth Circuits, the United States District Courts for the Central, Southern and Northern Districts of California and all California Courts.
Mr. Leviant received his undergraduate degree from Occidental College. Graduating cum laude, Mr. Leviant majored in economics and received a “minor” emphasis in mathematics. Along with his study of economics and mathematics, he also had an emphasis in physics. This combination of scientific and economic education has been of assistance during his litigation of complex civil actions. Mr. Leviant received his law degree from the University of Southern California Law Center.
Partner, Irell & Manella LLP
David Schwarz is a member of the litigation practice group. Although he has represented clients in a broad range of complex commercial disputes and internal investigations, a primary focus of Mr. Schwarz's practice has been the defense of class actions, with emphasis on securities and shareholder claims against public corporations and parallel SEC investigations and enforcement actions. He has litigated a wide range of federal and state class actions alleging anti-discrimination claims, unfair labor practices, wage-and-hour disputes, anti-trust and unfair business claims.
Mr. Schwarz’s appellate experience in state and federal courts is extensive, and includes two matters now before the California Supreme Court, as well as numerous appeals pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and in the California Courts of Appeal. His current representations include the successful defense of Gerawan Farming, Inc., the nation’s largest grower of peaches, in two precedent-setting constitutional challenges to the compulsory arbitration procedures under the California Agricultural Labor Relations Act (ALRA). He also represents the City of San Jose in appellate proceedings challenging the constitutionality of the City’s 2012 landmark pension reform referendum.
Recognized as a leading trade secrets litigator by The Legal 500, Mr. Schwarz has litigated numerous cases involving idea submission and trade secret mis-appropriation in industries ranging from avionics and rocket propulsion systems to consumer goods and food processing techniques. Prior representations include Space Exploration Technologies Corporation ("SpaceX"), Eclipse Aviation, Pacific Scientific Aerospace, Marquez Brothers International, Williams-Sonoma, and Pottery Barn.
Mr. Schwarz also represents clients in matters relating to IP disputes, involving patent infringement and patent licensing, trademarks and copyright. In the area of trademarks, recent representative matters include KFC National Council and Advertising Cooperative, Inc. v. KFC Corporation (Delaware Court of Chancery), in which Mr. Schwarz successfully defended KFC Corp.'s right to maintain control over brand advertising funded through a Delaware corporation jointly managed by KFC franchisees and the company.
Mr. Schwarz has written on a variety of topics relating to securities litigation, securities reform legislation, white-collar criminal defense, and the defense of attorneys, accountants, and other professionals in securities class actions. Past speaking engagements include the Practicing Law Institute, the California Society of CPAs, and the Class and Derivative Litigation Institute. He served as a member of the Advisory Board of the Duke University Global Capital Markets Center and was a featured panelist at the Directors' Education Institute at Duke University and the Smith School of Business Corporate Governance Program (University of Maryland).
Mr. Schwarz also served as the Special Assistant to the Staff Director of the United States Commission on Civil Rights. Following graduation from Duke University School of Law, Mr. Schwarz clerked for the Honorable Alex Kozinski, former Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, after which he served as Special Assistant to the Honorable Morris B. Abram, the United States Permanent Representative to the European Office of the United Nations and Other International Organizations. In that capacity, Mr. Schwarz advised U.S. delegations on a wide range of public international law issues. He also served as U.S. Delegate to a number of International and United Nations conferences, including the United Nations Human Rights Commission, the World Intellectual Property Conference, and the International Labor Conference.
Mr. Schwarz was appointed in 2001 by President George W. Bush as U.S. Delegate to the United Nations Human Rights Commission. He is also a former Trustee of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
Mr. Schwarz served two terms (2007-2016) as a gubernatorial appointee and Vice-Chairman of the Milton Marks "Little Hoover" Commission on California State Government Organization and Economy, an independent, bi-partisan government oversight board.
Mr. Schwarz is former chair and currently a member of the Firm's Pro Bono Committee. Public Counsel named him its "Advocate of the Year" for his work in the area of elder law advocacy. Mr. Schwarz is also a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Debate League, which is focused on bringing competitive debate to inner-city schools, and serves on the board of LDOS Media Lab, a non-profit whose mission is the development of science curriculum in public schools.
Attorney, Spiro Moss LLP
Mr. Leviant is a civil litigation attorney with over 11 years of experience (10 as an attorney) handling complex and class action matters. Over the last five years, Mr. Leviant litigated class actions at several large plaintiffs' firms. Before that, Mr. Leviant worked at the small civil litigation firm Stanbury & Fishelman, Inc., where he handled increasingly sophisticated matters, including complex commercial litigations, class actions, appellate matters and civil trials.
Mr. Leviant has obtained several published appellate decisions, including Ghazaryan v. Diva Limousine, Ltd. 169 Cal. App. 4th 1524 (2009), which reversed a denial of class certification and obtained an Order of the Court of Appeal directing certification of the proposed class, Laliberte v. Pacific Mercantile Bank, 147 Cal. App. 4th 1 (2007), which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and reaffirmed the expansive nature of the “community of interest” concept in California class actions, andJohnson v. Glaxosmithkline, Inc., 166 Cal. App. 4th 1497 (2008), as modified (October 14, 2008), rev. denied, which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and questioned the rationale and viability of Alvarez v. May Dept. Stores Co., 143 Cal. App. 4th 1223 (2006).
Mr. Leviant is also the founder, primary author and Editor-in-Chief of The Complex Litigator, a legal blog focusing on developments in the areas of class action practice, complex litigation, and technology for small firms. In addition to his blog, Mr. Leviant has authored or co-authored various published articles.
Mr. Leviant is in his third year of service on the Board of Governors for the Consumer Attorneys of California.
Mr. Leviant is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth and Ninth Circuits, the United States District Courts for the Central, Southern and Northern Districts of California and all California Courts.
Mr. Leviant received his undergraduate degree from Occidental College. Graduating cum laude, Mr. Leviant majored in economics and received a “minor” emphasis in mathematics. Along with his study of economics and mathematics, he also had an emphasis in physics. This combination of scientific and economic education has been of assistance during his litigation of complex civil actions. Mr. Leviant received his law degree from the University of Southern California Law Center.
Attorney, Spiro Moss LLP
Mr. Leviant is a civil litigation attorney with over 11 years of experience (10 as an attorney) handling complex and class action matters. Over the last five years, Mr. Leviant litigated class actions at several large plaintiffs' firms. Before that, Mr. Leviant worked at the small civil litigation firm Stanbury & Fishelman, Inc., where he handled increasingly sophisticated matters, including complex commercial litigations, class actions, appellate matters and civil trials.
Mr. Leviant has obtained several published appellate decisions, including Ghazaryan v. Diva Limousine, Ltd. 169 Cal. App. 4th 1524 (2009), which reversed a denial of class certification and obtained an Order of the Court of Appeal directing certification of the proposed class, Laliberte v. Pacific Mercantile Bank, 147 Cal. App. 4th 1 (2007), which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and reaffirmed the expansive nature of the “community of interest” concept in California class actions, andJohnson v. Glaxosmithkline, Inc., 166 Cal. App. 4th 1497 (2008), as modified (October 14, 2008), rev. denied, which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and questioned the rationale and viability of Alvarez v. May Dept. Stores Co., 143 Cal. App. 4th 1223 (2006).
Mr. Leviant is also the founder, primary author and Editor-in-Chief of The Complex Litigator, a legal blog focusing on developments in the areas of class action practice, complex litigation, and technology for small firms. In addition to his blog, Mr. Leviant has authored or co-authored various published articles.
Mr. Leviant is in his third year of service on the Board of Governors for the Consumer Attorneys of California.
Mr. Leviant is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth and Ninth Circuits, the United States District Courts for the Central, Southern and Northern Districts of California and all California Courts.
Mr. Leviant received his undergraduate degree from Occidental College. Graduating cum laude, Mr. Leviant majored in economics and received a “minor” emphasis in mathematics. Along with his study of economics and mathematics, he also had an emphasis in physics. This combination of scientific and economic education has been of assistance during his litigation of complex civil actions. Mr. Leviant received his law degree from the University of Southern California Law Center.
University of San Diego School of Law
Former San Diego Superior Court Judge
Hon. Michael B. Orfield (Ret.) was a jurist for 20 years, mostly as a civil independent calendar judge. His experience and expertise as a civil judge spread widely across such diverse areas as catastrophic personal injury, medical and legal malpractice, product and construction defects, breach of warranties, easements, breach of contract, wrongful death and a variety of business disputes. His strength as a mediator "...comes from being able to call upon a broad plain of knowledge, coupled with an attention to detail, empathy for the participants, and a conviction that the resolution should be their own."
Judge Orfield retired as a member of the statewide Continuing Judicial Education Committee, and still has a passion for teaching. He currently teaches "Trying the Complicated Case: From Trial Readiness to Verdict" as well as the LexisNexis Jury Instruction computer program for both civil and criminal jury instructions. He has also taught "Leading Organizational Change" as well as the week long "Civil Overview for Judges".
Judge Orfield was appointed by Chief Justice Ronald George to the original Task Force on Civil Jury Instructions and then to the Advisory Committee on Civil Jury Instructions. Justice George also appointed him a member of the prestigious Judicial Council of the State of California. Judge Orfield has served as a member of the Judicial Council Presiding Judges and Court Executives Advisory Committee and the Judicial Needs Advisory Committee.
Judge Orfield has served on the Board of the San Diego Humane Society and chaired the North County "Bridging the Gap" program for new lawyers. Before transferring to the Vista Courthouse, he co-moderated the San Diego County Bar Association Bridging the Gap program.
In 1972, Judge Orfield earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from the University of California at San Diego, and obtained his law degree from California Western School of Law in 1977. Judge Orfield also completed one year of graduate study in Microbiology and Immunology at Duke University in 1974.
Partner, Horvitz & Levy LLP
Jeremy Rosen is nationally renowned for his proficiency in numerous issues arising under the First Amendment and California’s anti-SLAPP law. Using that knowledge, Jeremy has helped a wide variety of clients – including churches, private businesses, and individuals – defeat lawsuits that seek to impose liability on clients for exercising their rights of petition, free speech, and free exercise of religion. He has also handled hundreds of appeals in numerous appellate courts, including the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the California Supreme Court, and California’s intermediate appellate courts. In addition to First Amendment and anti-SLAPP cases, his cases have involved numerous important issues regarding anti-trust, class actions, wage and hour law, employment law, breach of contract, California’s Unfair Competition Law, CEQA, the enforceability of arbitration clauses, hospital peer review, the scope of public employee whistleblower protection, and the application of the primary assumption of risk doctrine.
Jeremy is a partner at the firm, which he joined in 2001. He is a California State Bar Certified Appellate Specialist and a member of the California Academy of Appellate Lawyers.
Jeremy directed the Pepperdine University School of Law Ninth Circuit Appellate Advocacy Clinic for 6 years. The Clinic represents individuals in the Ninth Circuit who are identified by the court as needing pro bono counsel. Jeremy also previously served a three-year term where he was appointed by the Ninth Circuit to serve as one of 18 appellate lawyer representatives to the court.
Jeremy is a member of the National Chamber Litigation Center’s California Litigation Advisory Committee. Before joining the firm, Jeremy was a Litigation Associate with Munger, Tolles & Olson.
Partner, Morrison & Foerster LLP
Attorney, Spiro Moss LLP
Mr. Leviant is a civil litigation attorney with over 11 years of experience (10 as an attorney) handling complex and class action matters. Over the last five years, Mr. Leviant litigated class actions at several large plaintiffs' firms. Before that, Mr. Leviant worked at the small civil litigation firm Stanbury & Fishelman, Inc., where he handled increasingly sophisticated matters, including complex commercial litigations, class actions, appellate matters and civil trials.
Mr. Leviant has obtained several published appellate decisions, including Ghazaryan v. Diva Limousine, Ltd. 169 Cal. App. 4th 1524 (2009), which reversed a denial of class certification and obtained an Order of the Court of Appeal directing certification of the proposed class, Laliberte v. Pacific Mercantile Bank, 147 Cal. App. 4th 1 (2007), which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and reaffirmed the expansive nature of the “community of interest” concept in California class actions, andJohnson v. Glaxosmithkline, Inc., 166 Cal. App. 4th 1497 (2008), as modified (October 14, 2008), rev. denied, which reversed an adverse trial court ruling and questioned the rationale and viability of Alvarez v. May Dept. Stores Co., 143 Cal. App. 4th 1223 (2006).
Mr. Leviant is also the founder, primary author and Editor-in-Chief of The Complex Litigator, a legal blog focusing on developments in the areas of class action practice, complex litigation, and technology for small firms. In addition to his blog, Mr. Leviant has authored or co-authored various published articles.
Mr. Leviant is in his third year of service on the Board of Governors for the Consumer Attorneys of California.
Mr. Leviant is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth and Ninth Circuits, the United States District Courts for the Central, Southern and Northern Districts of California and all California Courts.
Mr. Leviant received his undergraduate degree from Occidental College. Graduating cum laude, Mr. Leviant majored in economics and received a “minor” emphasis in mathematics. Along with his study of economics and mathematics, he also had an emphasis in physics. This combination of scientific and economic education has been of assistance during his litigation of complex civil actions. Mr. Leviant received his law degree from the University of Southern California Law Center.
University of San Diego School of Law
Former San Diego Superior Court Judge
Hon. Michael B. Orfield (Ret.) was a jurist for 20 years, mostly as a civil independent calendar judge. His experience and expertise as a civil judge spread widely across such diverse areas as catastrophic personal injury, medical and legal malpractice, product and construction defects, breach of warranties, easements, breach of contract, wrongful death and a variety of business disputes. His strength as a mediator "...comes from being able to call upon a broad plain of knowledge, coupled with an attention to detail, empathy for the participants, and a conviction that the resolution should be their own."
Judge Orfield retired as a member of the statewide Continuing Judicial Education Committee, and still has a passion for teaching. He currently teaches "Trying the Complicated Case: From Trial Readiness to Verdict" as well as the LexisNexis Jury Instruction computer program for both civil and criminal jury instructions. He has also taught "Leading Organizational Change" as well as the week long "Civil Overview for Judges".
Judge Orfield was appointed by Chief Justice Ronald George to the original Task Force on Civil Jury Instructions and then to the Advisory Committee on Civil Jury Instructions. Justice George also appointed him a member of the prestigious Judicial Council of the State of California. Judge Orfield has served as a member of the Judicial Council Presiding Judges and Court Executives Advisory Committee and the Judicial Needs Advisory Committee.
Judge Orfield has served on the Board of the San Diego Humane Society and chaired the North County "Bridging the Gap" program for new lawyers. Before transferring to the Vista Courthouse, he co-moderated the San Diego County Bar Association Bridging the Gap program.
In 1972, Judge Orfield earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Biology from the University of California at San Diego, and obtained his law degree from California Western School of Law in 1977. Judge Orfield also completed one year of graduate study in Microbiology and Immunology at Duke University in 1974.
Partner, Horvitz & Levy LLP
Jeremy Rosen is nationally renowned for his proficiency in numerous issues arising under the First Amendment and California’s anti-SLAPP law. Using that knowledge, Jeremy has helped a wide variety of clients – including churches, private businesses, and individuals – defeat lawsuits that seek to impose liability on clients for exercising their rights of petition, free speech, and free exercise of religion. He has also handled hundreds of appeals in numerous appellate courts, including the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, the California Supreme Court, and California’s intermediate appellate courts. In addition to First Amendment and anti-SLAPP cases, his cases have involved numerous important issues regarding anti-trust, class actions, wage and hour law, employment law, breach of contract, California’s Unfair Competition Law, CEQA, the enforceability of arbitration clauses, hospital peer review, the scope of public employee whistleblower protection, and the application of the primary assumption of risk doctrine.
Jeremy is a partner at the firm, which he joined in 2001. He is a California State Bar Certified Appellate Specialist and a member of the California Academy of Appellate Lawyers.
Jeremy directed the Pepperdine University School of Law Ninth Circuit Appellate Advocacy Clinic for 6 years. The Clinic represents individuals in the Ninth Circuit who are identified by the court as needing pro bono counsel. Jeremy also previously served a three-year term where he was appointed by the Ninth Circuit to serve as one of 18 appellate lawyer representatives to the court.
Jeremy is a member of the National Chamber Litigation Center’s California Litigation Advisory Committee. Before joining the firm, Jeremy was a Litigation Associate with Munger, Tolles & Olson.
Partner, Morrison & Foerster LLP
California in Crisis: Are People and Jobs Leaving for Better Pastures?
Carlos T. Bea, William J. Emanuel, Jed Kolko, Leonard A. Leo, Scott Leviant, David A. Schwarz, Kate Comerford Todd
Sixth Annual Western Conference
Much has been written lately about companies’ unwillingness to invest or create new jobs in...
California 17200: Its Nature, Function, and Limits – Remarks by Scott Leviant
Scott Leviant
California 17200: Its Nature, Function, and Limits The debate surrounding use of the Unfair Competition...
California’s 17200 – Its Use and Abuse
Scott Leviant, Shaun P. Martin, Michael Orfield, Jeremy B. Rosen, William L. Stern, Adam Van Susteren
San Diego Lawyers Chapter and State Courts
Prop 64, also known as California 17200, was adopted by initiative in 2004 and was...
California’s 17200 – Its Use and Abuse
Scott Leviant, Shaun P. Martin, Michael Orfield, Jeremy B. Rosen, William L. Stern, Adam Van Susteren
San Diego Lawyers Chapter and State Courts
Prop 64, also known as California 17200, was adopted by initiative in 2004 and was...